Description: Afghanistan - 03/02/09Hands up who knows what Afghan cuisine is? Well, it’s actually one of the most interesting cuisines I’ve come across so far…
In ancient times the much-hallowed Silk Route lead to the wonders and spices of the east. In Manchester it is Wilmslow Road. Heading south rather than east you pass Manchester University and the Royal Infirmary. Before you hit the student area of Fallowfield you come across Rusholme. Here the stretch of Wilmslow Road is know as ‘the Curry Mile’ due to the concentration of curry houses, kebab shops, ethnic minimarts and associated businesses (tailors with windows filled with shimmering saris and salwar kameezes, music stores with Bangla beats and Arabic tunes drifting out through the doors, shops selling Islamic gifts, travel agents and solicitors). It is a vibrant, sparky neighbourhood where the very air is redolent of cumin and saffron, and it is where I lived for four years (and where Paul still lives).
On the west side of Wilmslow Road in the heart of this hub-bub stands
Afghan Cuisine. This is a new restaurant and only opened at the tail end of 2008. Downstairs it looks like just any other takeaway on this busy road, but it does have a ‘family sitting area’ upstairs with space for 60 diners and a great view over the neon-lit bustle of the Curry Mile. However, to order you do need to go to the counter downstairs.
The menu offers the not-very traditional pizzas and burgers alongside a variety of kebabs – chicken and chicken tikka, lamb shish, tikka or chops, and minced kobeda kebabs. These range from £3.80 to £5.95 in price, depending on size. Ana went for a kebab, no more or less special than you can find elsewhere in Rusholme, served on a pretty massive naan bread with salad and yogurt and chili sauce to taste. More interesting to me though are the ‘Special Dishes’. Here you can find dishes such as boulani ("Freshly made folded dough filled with potato, coriander, mint, onions & herbs, pan-fried") or manto ("Steam cooked mince meat, and onions, yoghurt & lentil sauce on top").
In for a penny, in for a pound. I ordered
Qabily Pillow, which is apparently the national dish of Afghanistan. Now this is where it gets interesting. As a staging point on the Silk Route Afghanistan was a cross-road of cultures. You can see this in the food. Qabily Pillow is literally the ‘pillow’ from Kabul. And ‘pillow’ is basmati rice mixed with meaty chunks of lamb, carrots and sultanas for sweetness. This is the dish that would be known as ‘pilaff’ in Iran, ‘plov’ in Russia, and from where presumably we derive the phrase ‘pilau’ as used in Indian cooking. For £5.35 this was a decent-sized plate-full.
Paul paid £5.95 for
ashek. This turned out to be a dish of pasta dumplings stuffed with vegetables (onion and leek I think), and served topped with yogurt and a lentil sauce. The boiled dumplings seemed to be the missing link between Russian pierogi and Chinese won tons.
Just because I am focussing on the excitement we felt in making the links between different cuisines does not mean that we did not enjoy the meal. Washed down with a kettle of mint tea the meal was very palatable – more so than I expected if I’m being honest! I can honestly recommend this little place for an insight into Afghan food – and a darn good meal too!
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