From Meeting the Royals to Jalebi Junction....Hello London!

Hello Friends,

Sorry for the long gap in writing. I always think of writing something here but just get distracted with ... you know what . LIFE! yesss..anyways while thinking of a topic for my blog I remembered I actually didn't share my not so recent move from down under to the world's most famous city-London! This upward geographic move from Aussie land to a country that once ruled more than half the world, my awe was of course contained as I also struggled to cope with the extreme time difference and weather. I took my time to take in the historic magnificence as well as the colours of diversity. While I treaded along Central London on Oxford Street, Regent Street and took in the lights at Leicester Square and Piccadilly Circus discovering the landmarks and streets names that had been etched in my mind since childhood from our Monopoly board game I could not help recalling the famous nursery rhyme.. " Pussy cat Pussy cat where have you been? .. I have been to London to see the Queen!" .. well I only watched the live telecast of the monarch's 90th birthday on television. However only after the sinking feeling I had while staying up all night to follow the historic UK referendum that voted Brexit, I knew I now feel part of this great country too.

Big Ben

The quaint phone booths 

Meeting the Royals

Harrods

Buckingham Palace

Canary Wharf

There is so much to discover here but what I like most about this city is the feeling of being at home away from home. While  Turkish kebabs and Lebanese pizzas have become the popular street foods in Sydney, one will find the Fried chicken shops run mostly by Pakistanis at abundance in almost every part of London. For someone like me who loves to try out new cuisines but is a diehard desi fan, stepping into Southhall High Street in London's West and Bury Park in Luton was a definite treat. The authentic taste and smell of Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi food and the crowded markets reminded me of walking in Karachi's famous Tariq Road market. Through this blog I am sharing with you some of the highlights of my stay here so far. Hope you enjoy!

A variety of mixed vegetarian and non-veg curries

Colourful ethnic dresses for every occasion

Spicy chicken tikka and lamb BBQ

Fresh Jalebis at Jalebi Junction

A traditional Paan (Betel leaf) shop in South Hall

Life in the UK has been for me the biggest adventure so far as it was the first time in my life that I moved away from my immediate family to start a new life in a brand new place with my loving partner. I am lucky to have this opportunity to learn more and grow. See you around!

Sha's Tasty Adventures

Hi all,

Its been some time since I wrote here. Its not easy maintaining your own blog when you have to manage social media accounts as part of your work too. This post is actually an introduction to my current professional work. I am fortunate to be part of a great community project that does wonders for our taste buds. I bet you will really be jealous with this part of my job.

I am part of a team that organises walking tours as part of a social enterprise project. This project is one of the initiatives of  The Benevolent Society which is one of the oldest charities in Australia soon to celebrate 200 years of community service. The tours aim to promote the positive image of suburbs that are otherwise considered disadvantaged by focussing on their rich cultural diversity and food traditions. It creates training and employment opportunities for locals and  also helps to promote small local business.

Its a community project with a very Tasty touch!!. A lot of fun and  a great way to learn about different cultures through food.

If you are in Sydney, you must come to one of the food tours and progressive dinners. Each walking tour has a minimum of 6 stops, includes a sit-down lunch and is a true case of Taste indulgence as the participants go about the day tasting and sampling. and even get a take home bag of goodies, samples and recipes!!

All net profits from the tours are reinvested in community development. So eat your heart out for a Tasty social cause!!

You can help to support this initiative by joining us on facebook, following us on twitter and visiting our blog and sharing this information within your network.

Here are just some of the appetising shots of the Taste indulgence that is part of our tours. Hope to see you soon at a Taste Food Tour!

Freshly baked Cheese pockets- Lebanese bakery

Lamb seekh kabab & Chicken Tikka - Pakistani BBQ

Honey & Sesame stick and Baklava- Moroccan style

Different kinds of Baklava - Middle Eastern sweets

Food preparation at a Thai restaurant

Freshly baked Baklava ( Middle Eastern Sweet)

Chevapi & Pleskavice- Bosnian Serbian meal

Chicken Parmigiani with roasted potatoes & Green salad -Italian meal

The final cook off- What a marvellous affair !!

http://www.pressurecooks.com.au/thefinals.html

                
http://shawjonathan.wordpress.com/2009/11/28/bankstown-cooks-with-grace-under-pressure/

The final cook off of the Bankstown Pressure Cooks was held this saturday. What a great day full of unexpected technical glitches, the buzz of the shoppers as they peered at the whole drama on way to buying their weekend groceries and the enthusiasm and flexibility of the contestants who remained undeterred despite of a sudden change in plans and the need to modify their recipes.

The final contestants were the Daisy Crazy friends team from Maltese background and the Hot and Spicy team from mainland China. As one of the judges, I once again got a chance to observe the cooking talent from up close. The Hot and Spicy team won for their meticulous knife skills and calm and finely tuned in orchestration of the entire cooking process. It was simply amazing how the husband and wife team quietly carried on with their task in a very focussed manner amidst a live audience.

The cultural advisers and the other competitors came to watch the grand final. Prizes were awarded by Mayor Tanya and MP Jason Claire. 

It was  a perfect closure to the competition that had created a buzz in Bankstown. Community members participated enthusiastically to make it a success by sharing their recipes and taking on the challenge of cooking from a different culture.

The essence of the competition was actually the joy it spread amongst people living in the same area, providing them a chance to break the barriers of social isolation and open heartedly welcome others to try their treasured recipes. Bankstown Pressure Cooks has proved that food is not just the way to a man's heart, it can infact pave way for a more harmonious and exciting fusion of cultures.

Bankstown Pressure Cooks- A cultural harmony project with a difference!!

We all know Food is such an important part of each culture. The ingredients, style of cooking, presentation all reflect not only the geography of the region but the social norms that show how families get together for meals and discuss the most important things in their lives.

I consider myself very fortunate for being involved in an innovative Multicultural Cooking competition that aimed to promote cross cultural interaction through sharing of recipes. This competition has been organized by The Benevolent Society one of the oldest charities in Australia. It is a chance for local community members to learn about different cultures. It was held in one of the suburbs of New South Wales in partnership with the Local City Council and other community organisations. What gave this cooking competition an edge was the use of 'Cultural Advisers' who provided recipes from their cultures. Contestants were challenged by cooking a recipe that was not from their culture and they were all 'Every Day Cooks' who just came together because of their love for food and the need to mingle with others, share and learn!

As a member of the working committee, I was involved from the planning stage, doing my bit to promote the event and helping out in communication activities. It was really marvellous to later on see this wonderful project actually take shape as the competitions began with a lot of enthusiasm and excitement. With a little encouragement from one of the office bearers, I found myself becoming a Cultural Adviser for Pakistani Food. This was my chance to show everyone what rich cuisine we had and learn about other cultures. The other advisers represented Food culture of Greece, China, Thailand, Vietnam, Australia, Palestine, Lebanon, Jordan and the contestants were teams of diverse age groups from Chinese, Maltese, Malaysian, Lebanese, Nepalese, Australian backgrounds. So you can just imagine the wonderful mix of exotic tastes, texture and colours.

I was also given the opportunity to act as a co-judge for the first two rounds. This was my first experience as a judge for any cooking competition, let alone such a multicultural one. But this is what the entire project was about. It gave community members the opportunity to come out of their shell and encouraged them to talk and share ideas in a fun and productive manner. It was such a treat watching a team of Chinese ladies making the traditional Pakistani snack ' Dahi Vadas', the young Nepalese cooks struggling with the 'Vietamese pancake' and finally getting it right, the Maltese team stuffing minced meat in squids for another Vietnamese delicacy and a Lebanese team carefully arranging ' Thai Chicken boats' . Wowww..very memorable moments indeed.

This has by far been my most positive experience in Aussie Land so far. I arrived here just over a year ago and am simply amazed at the genuine warmth of the people I have met. My association with all members who have worked on this project has given a boost to my dwindling morale in an economy hit by recession.

The buzz, excitement and the feelings of warmth and social inclusion that generated from this marvellous project are a great success for the organisers. I hope you have enjoyed reading about this event as much as I have enjoyed being being part of if. You can log onto www.PressureCooks.Com.au  to learn more about this wonderful project.

Share your comments and any other ideas on social inclusion/ cultural harmony projects you may have been part of.

Take care. Eat Well. Rest Well & Enjoy Life!