This meme has been making its way around the food blogosphere recently. I first saw Barbara's list over at Tigers and Strawberries, and then, this morning, Shauna's list at Gluten-free Girl. And it got me ruminating enough that I wanted to create a list myself.
Of course, there are so many foods to choose. I can think of so many categories from which to pick five foods that no one should miss...I could probably choose five Thai dishes alone. Or five Chinese. Or five things to buy fresh from the farmer's market (like eggs! Hello! And fiddlehead ferns.) Or five things made out of chocolate to try.
But the rules say five, and five it must be. So I'm choosing "ethnic" food. I put that in quotations because it's a misnomer, really--all cuisines are "ethnic" on some level. But it eliminates several items I would have otherwise chosen--like the farmer's market egg, and fresh Oregon strawberries--gives me a direction, and hopefully might encourage people to expand their horizons a bit. So without further adieu: five things to eat before you die, ethnic-style.
1. Tom Yum Goong. Thai.
Tom Yum Goong is a fragrant, spicy, sour soup that Austin and I always use for sinus-clearing and immune-system-fortifying purposes when we are sick. When the server brings it to the table, the combined scent of lemongrass and lime juice wafts up and really, truly makes the mouth water.
Tom Yum also contains galangal (a root similar to ginger), kaffir lime leaves, fresh Thai chiles, roasted chiles in oil, cilantro leaves, and for the non-vegetarians among you, fish sauce.* The substance of the soup is the vegetables (usually broccoli, onions and mushrooms) and meat or seafood or tofu, but as delicious as those things are, they're also a bit beside the point. Tom Yum is mostly about the broth. Get it from your most highly-recommend local Thai restaurant, order it as hot as you can stand it, and eat it in the restaurant--don't bother with take-out. This is one soup you want to eat as fresh as possible; unlike most other soups, it doesn't taste better the next day.
2. Injera. Ethiopian.
Injera is the spongy sourdough flatbread that's at the base of all Ethiopian cooking. So I'm cheating a bit here and saying "go eat Ethiopian food." But really--you should. Roll up your sleeves, get over yourself, and eat with your hands.
Authentic injera is made of teff flour and fermented naturally, like other sourdough breads, so avoid at all costs the restaurants that offer an Americanized version made with white flour and baking powder, which is bland and salty. Real injera is soft, brown, smooth, flavorful, sour, and a perfect foil for the thick, spiced sauces of Ethiopian dishes.
3. Neopolitan Pizza. Italian.
Take a break from the bready crusts, thick layers of multiple cheeses, and piles of toppings that typify the standard American pizza, and get back to pizza's lovely, simple, peasant roots.
A true Neopolitan pizza is:
-made by hand
-made with fresh dough
-topped with San Marzano tomatoes or a sauce made from San Marzano tomatoes
-seasoned with sea salt, fresh basil, and garlic
-cheese-optional, but the cheese must always be sliced fresh buffalo mozzarella
-drizzled with extra-virgin olive oil
-cooked in a wood-fired brick oven
Accept no substitutes. Several excellent examples of this style of pizza are served at Una Pizza Napoletana in Manhattan, as well as in Naples, of course.
4. Guacamole. Aztec/Mexican.
Of course everyone thinks they have had guacamole, but it isn't necessarily so. Decent guacamole is often hard to find. Make this one yourself: with fresh, in-season, perfectly ripe avocados, a bit of good-quality salt, and a dash or two of lime or lemon juice (or both.) My favorite version also includes diced red onions and minced garlic, but you can also add fresh chopped tomatoes, cilantro, cumin, coriander, or chile peppers.
DO NOT add any of the following: salsa, hot sauce, pepper, wasabi, soy sauce, vinegar, black beans, mayonnaise, sour cream, corn, or any of the other "clever" little additions that people like to put in because they think it makes the guacamole more interesting, somehow. Just embrace simplicity and revel in those simple, ancient Aztec flavors. If your avocados are right, that will be more than enough.
And don't bother saving any for tomorrow, or, god forbid, freezing it. Just throw caution to the wind, break open a bag of good tortilla chips, know that all that fat in the avocados is good for you, and eat the whole bowl. Better yet, share it with someone you love.
5. Uttapam. South Indian.
Austin and I first had uttapam at a tiny hole-in-the-wall vegetarian Indian restaurant outside of Columbus, Ohio, when we were driving across the country. We were the only Americans in the place, the menu was full of things that I, a seasoned veteran of Indian restaurants, had never heard of before, and the proprietor seemed thrilled with our visit and brought us a free dessert, which, he assured us, contained "no dairy--only butter." Of course we ate it anyway. That experience remains one of my favorite food memories.
Uttapam is a thick, savory pancake made out of black lentil and rice flours--similar to a dosa. The texture is hard to describe if you haven't eaten something made with bean flour before, but trust that it's not to be missed. It's a bit doughy and sour with a crispy, browned outside. Usually they are filled with some kind of vegetables--onions and green chiles are a common combination, and my favorite--as well as spices, like toasted cumin and mustard seed, and cilantro. (But if you're anti-cilantro as I am, you can order it without.) Any South Indian restaurant worth their salt will offer these, and a little pot of sambar on the side, for dipping.
*There are those who insist that Thai food is completely pointless and inauthentic without the fish sauce. I say, screw 'em. Thai food is absolutely delicious made vegetarian, certainly worth eating, and arguably authentic, since there are quite a few Buddhists in Thailand who are strict vegetarians, and eat their curries, soups and sauces sans fish sauce.
