What are the best restaurants to try when visiting Addis Ababa, Ethiopia? What should you try while you're there?
Addis Ababa is a city with so much to offer. It actually depends on the type of fun you prefer. For example you might like to party, then you can go to night clubs during the night except Mondays. Flirt Lounge at Bole, Volt Lounge Behind Bostan Day Spa (also Bole), Gas light in Sheraton Addis, DC Lounge next to Kebe Pastry behind Bole Medhanialem, and Champion behind the old Khaldis Coffee building. Theses are to name a few. When considering restaurants, you can find them from cultural bases to modern based to fasting. Cultural Restaurants mostly provide Kitfo, a local food with chopped up meat and other delicious ingredients. Places like Yod Abyssinia, Teshomech Kitfo, totote Kitfo or Yohannes Kitfo are one of the best places to enjoy cultural Gurage Kitfo (hmmmmm, I wish I had one now!!!!!). There are also restaurants that bring Shiro (one of the best fasting food ever) to the table. You can check out places like Tsege shiro or Azmera Shiro, or can even go to Tigray (It is not a restaurant but a region in Northern Ethiopia and they have the best Shiro ever) to taste some cool-ass Shiro. Don’t get shocked if people ask you what kind since it has different genres (or types, however you say it).For the modern type or International restaurants, there are Indian Restaurants (eg. Sangham Restaurant), Italian Restaurants (eg. Abucci Restaurant), Turkish Restaurants (eg. Istanbul Restaurant), Via Via, MK’s and so on.If you want to meet locals, you can check out places like Libro bar and Restaurant.Uhhhh to many places, and got tired of thinking to many of the best places, so let me shorten the next burger house lists as follows:Sishu BurgerBurger shackYitem Burger,Angela Burger,Milan Burger……………………………Please search the Internet for more, I can’t write anymore, I’ll have to get back to work.Au Revoir! or A bientot! (Either of the two)
What is that secret ingredient in Hyderabadi Biryani that is prepared in Biryani joints across Hyderabad?
I am sharing you the recipe of Hyderabdi dum biryani which I got from Mothers’Zone. Try to cook biryani with this method, may be you get same taste and smell like authentic Hyderabadi Chicken Dum Biryani RecipeIngredients:Chicken: ½ kgRice: 1 ½ cupsBay leaves: 2Green cardamoms: 10Black peppercorns: 20-25Cinnamon sticks: 3 (1 inch each)Caraway seeds (shahi jeera): ½ tspCloves: 10Onions: 4-5 (finely sliced)Ginger garlic paste: 3 tbspTurmeric powder: ½ tspCoriander powder: 2 tbspChili powder: 1 ½ tbspYogurt: 1 cupBlack cardamoms: 2Saffron: few strands (mixed in ¼ cup of milk)Pure ghee: 4 tbspFresh coriander leaves: 2 tbspFresh mint leaves: 2 tbspOil 1 tbsp + for deep fryingSalt: according to tastePreparation Method:Soak rice in plenty of water for about ½ an hour.Now heat water in a deep pan and add the bay leaves, few green cardamoms, seven to eight peppercorns, one cinnamon stick and cook the rice till three fourth is done.Now drain the excess water and spread the rice on a plate and let it cool.Next, heat sufficient oil in a kadhai and deep fry the onion slices till golden brown in color.Remove and keep it aside.Grind the remaining cinnamon stick, black peppercorns, cloves, green cardamom and caraway seeds to a fine powder and keep it aside.Take the chicken pieces in a bowl and add ginger, garlic paste and salt and mix well.Add the powdered spices, red chili powder, half of the fried onions, yogurt, coriander leaves, half of the mint leaves and a tablespoon of oil and mix well.Let it marinade for about two hours in the refrigerator.Heat two tbsp of ghee in a pan and add the remaining cinnamon sticks and black cardamoms and fry till a nice aroma is released.Now add the chicken pieces and cook on high heat for a few minutes.Now reduce the flame and cook covered till the chicken is almost done.Heat the remaining ghee in a thick bottomed pan and spread a layer of rice and spread the chicken over the rice.Sprinkle some mint leaves and spread the remaining rice and chicken and sprinkle saffron milk.Cover and cook in low flame till the rice is done.A sweet fragrance will be released.Serve hot with raita of your choice.
What is the typical Christmas meal in your country?
In Canada, it really depends what part of the country you live in, and from where your ancestors immigrated.I live in Southern Ontario, with primarily Scottish/British ancestry.I have adopted the French-Canadian tradition of Tourtiere on Christmas Eve. It’s a double-crust meat pie, generally a combination of ground or shredded beef/pork/veal or other (game) meat, seasoned with nutmeg and/or cloves, but there are as many versions as there are Francophone Grandmothers. In addition to the Tourtiere, we serve “nibbles”; cheese board, crackers, meatballs, veggies and dip, sausage rolls/various puff pastry appetizers…depending on how many guests we may be entertaining. For dessert, Holiday themed ice cream (a certain store brand here has Candy Cane Chocolate Fudge Crackle that I buy every year), and Christmas cookies.For Breakfast Christmas morning, we have Cinnamon Rolls, a fruit tray, a particular family recipe coffee cake, and coffee (with Eggnog in place of milk or cream, if desired).For Christmas Dinner; before we eat, we MUST pop our Christmas Crackers and wear the paper crowns! We traditionally do turkey and ham, with dressing, potatoes (possibly prepared a few different ways), vegetable side dishes, cranberry sauce, and Pillsbury Crescent Rolls. Always the Crescent Rolls, as long as I can remember. They are very important (even when slightly darker on the bottom than they should be, because they have been neglected in the oven).For dessert, it could be Trifle or Cheesecake, or Pie (apple or pumpkin), plus Christmas cookies of all varieties.This is just my extended family’s menu, and it can vary slightly from year to year.
How can I be a vegan? I've been eating meat for 17yrs and I do not like vegetables. Is it difficult? How long will it take? What will happen?
How is the easy part. You eat no meat, eggs, milk, cheese or any other product that is not produce by or from killing an animal. That also includes some wines and beers, biscuits, deserts and other things that they slip bits of animal into. Do that and you can do it overnight. The real question is 'why?'. What is your motivation for being vegan? Why not try being a vegetarian first? Why not have meat free weekdays? Are you doing this because for health reasons? Are you doing it for environmental reasons? Are you doing this because of animal cruelty reasons? Are you doing this because someone else is doing it (which is the worst reason to do anything)?Answer that and you may or may not have you motivation for why you want to be vegan. The how is then easy. Learn to cook, try different foods you haven't before, be experimental etc. Your tastes will change when you change your diet. Salty fatty food for me makes me shudder now, so bacon holds no sway over me and I'm going to live a year or so longer by avoiding it!Find a good reason for doing it and the how will come naturally.
What is your favorite flavor of ramen noodles and why?
There aren’t any particular good Ramen noodle shops considered to serving good Ramen noodles in North America. Mostly there are some Chinese, Korean, Thai and Vietnamese restaurants, they have a small percentage of Ramen noodle soups in their menus. The majority of customers mainly order some usual dishes like meat stir frys, rice and noodles. If you look around you see other tables having either egg rolls or dumplings. And for the main course, they would have chicken, beef or pork stir fried with vegetables or deep fried sweet and sour chicken etc…Others would order some fried rice or fried noodle dishes. Every now and then, you spot some local Asian would have some Ramen noodle soups.Unlike in Japan and China, there are thousands of noodle shops in town. Specially in Japanese Ramen noodles, they still have some awesome and authentic Ramen noodle soups in Tokyo and Kyotos! Their thick and creamy broth made out of either pork or chicken bones are so good that make your mouthwatering every time you mentioned about a bowl of noodle soup! Local people would get in line in morning waiting for the noodle shops to open.I’d love to try one of the best Ramen noodle shops in japan someday. My favorite Ramen is got to be either beef or pork in a thick creamy pork broth. it’s a Japanese authentic udon, Soba and Somen noodle soup and it’s so good and yummy. Sometimes, you see one of this guy ordered not one, but two or three bowls of noodle soups just for himself. Some noodle shops are jam packed with customers during lunch and dinner time. I’ve also heard they are the best and traditionally made by Japanese style for generations. I’d prefer Japanese Somen buckwheat noodles over the egg noodles in Chinese style.When you walk in the noodle shop, there are several booths that you can sit down or you can sit at the counter with friends and they cook and serve the Ramen noodles right in front of you. Meanwhile, you can also sit at the individual booth starting to order on the menu. The menu is real simple and check mark boxes whatever you like to add onto your soup accordingly. Then you give it to either a waiter/waitress behind the door. After a few minutes, they open a small door or curtain and push out a bowl of ramen noodle soup of your choice. They even build a little faucet at the booth for your drinking water. I wish I can be there now to indulge myself with a wonderful bowl of noodle soup!