75 recipes spanning cherished classics and modern interpretations, bringing the soul of Somali cooking to the world stage.
Known by many names, the cape of spices, the nation of poets, and the land of cinnamon, Somalia is nestled in the Horn of Africa and is blessed with fertile fields, rich in spices, and endowed with the longest coastline in mainland Africa. This location and natural abundance have made Somalia a corridor between east and west, and a central point in global trade and migration, dating back millennia.
In Soomaaliya, Ifrah F. Ahmed tells the story of her country through its history, its food, and its people. Somalia’s role in the spice trade yields xawaash, the most distinctive of Somali flavors, a heady blend of cumin, coriander, black pepper, cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, and turmeric that’s used in everything from marinades to stews. Cardamom also finds its ways into thin, fragrant crepes, sweet fried beignets called bur, and bariis, rice spiced with cardamom and cumin. This rice is paire
