Sunday 14 August 2022

Spice Girl

I have this jar of za'atar on my spice rack. No idea which recipe I bought it for. I suspect one of Yotam Ottolenghi's Israeli/Medierranean dishes. It is the last one at the top [because everything is alphabetical, but it didn't work when the frequently used C spices** were out of reach, so they go from A up to Z]

I was listening to The Kitchen Cabinet of Radio 4 yesterday and they mentioned za'atar. I read a lot more about za'atar afterwards. I had not realised it is the herb hyssop which is mentioned in the Bible, part of the thyme family.

Za'atar [Arabic /Hebrew names are ezov אֵזוֹבis believed to be a cleansing herb - so the Israelites were instructed to use it as they prepared for the Exodus - they took bundles of the twigs and used them to paint a mark on their doorpost, so that the Angel of the Lord would pass over them. Hence it is used in the Jewish Passover ceremonies to this day [Exodus 12:22] After David committed adultery with Bathsheba, he asked for forgiveness, saying 'purify me with hyssop  and I shall be clean" [Psalm 51;7] In John 19;29 we read that when Jesus was dying, they too a long hyssop stalk and put a sponge on the end, moistened with sour wine vinegar to moisten his lips.

As well as its purifying properties, za'atar is also believed to keep the mind alert - many Palestininian grannies encourage children to sprinkle za'atar on their breakfast before school! 

So there you have it - a spice which cleanses, and keeps us alert. I must check out my new Ottolenghi book to see which of the recipes in there call for this [if I have any spare thyme!]

**I have loads of 'C' herbs and spices- caraway, cardamom, cayenne, chili flakes, cinnamon, cloves, coriander, cumin, curry powder...


12 comments:

  1. Interesting information! I read that it is a drought tolerant plant - I might look for a packet of seeds to try growing them!

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    1. I would expect it to grow very well in your climate Bless! Is the thyme/hyssop type of herb used in Sri Lankan cookery?

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  2. Well, I never knew that za'atar is part of the thyme family, I'd assumed it was something spicy!

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    1. It has a "Herby and fresh tasting profile" - but I originally thought it would be spicy too!

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  3. Interesting to find out so much more about it. I used to have far too many spices that I bought to be part of one recipe, usually one that I never made again and they just sat languishing. Now I just use the nearest equivalent or similar tasting one instead of dashing out to the shops to buy them.

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    1. "Languishing seeds" sound like they should be sprinkled over a salad

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  4. I didn't know that! I have always been curious about hyssop. I'm so going to have to get some za'atar (most of my spices are filed under 'd', as in, Dammit, I'm sure that I had some somewhere...)

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    1. Or "W"... "wherever did I put that jar?"

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  5. I never heard of za'atar but I had heard of hyssop. I could certainly use some to keep my mind alert!

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  6. Za atar is delicious! We sprinkle it on flat breads with a dash of olive oil and grill it for a few minutes - great breakfast dish - when I taught in the Middle East in the ‘80s the children would eat it as a snack at break time.

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    1. Thankyou Anon - this sounds a delicious idea

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