Kazakhstan - Nan, Baursaki, Sausage, & Tea

 

Background
Kazakhstan is an ethnically diverse country in central Asia. Much of this diversity is a result of Stalin's prison camps and other forced migration policies of the Soviet Union. Kazakhs are traditionally nomadic and their cuisine reflects this with lots of preserved food and protein sources that range well. The prominent protein sources are horse and lamb, and much of the dairy is preserved or fermented. The only breakfast information I found online was that Russian influence have made kasha more prevalent. I looked for Kazakh restaurants in the Boston area to get some better information. I found Cafe Assorti in Washington D.C. They got back to me immediately with information and suggestions. So if you are in the D.C. Metro area please go eat there. We are looking forward to trying them the next time we are in the area.
According to our source, Kazakhs are tending towards a more western breakfast as they are less nomadic. Our contact at Cafe Assorti gave us a break down of what they would consider a traditional breakfast: an assortment of thinly sliced sausages made from lamb or horse meat, served with taba-nan and/or baursak (a flat bread and a fried dough respectively). The bread is eaten with a type of sour cream called kaymak. Kaymak is also used in a tea made with cardamom and fennel.
Taba-nan requires special equipment (two oven-proof frying pans), so we adapted an Uighur flatbread from nearby western China. We chose it because it the base of the recipe was quite simple and seemed to be a good approximation of a nonspecific central Asian flatbread. We found the original recipe in Flatbreads & Flavors. We got our baursak recipe from Food by Country (originally published in Junior Worldmark Encyclopedia of Foods & Recipes of the World). We made some substitutions to reduce the size of the recipe to something two people can eat.  The tea recipe is from The World Cookbook for Students.
Kaymak is not readily available in the United States, but can be made at home by steaming a mixture of milk and cream for eight hours. Kitty tried a homemade recipe but it did not work for us. Instead, we bought clotted cream as the closest available substitute.
Even setting aside any ethical concerns, horse meat was not an option as it is simply not available in the United States. The last horse slaughterhouse closed in 2007 and it existed mostly to provide zoos with meat. We decided to purchase beef or lamb sausage instead. One of the sausages is called shuzhuk, and given the histroical Turkish influence in the region, we assume it to be related sujuk. I got the sujuk from a local halal market and proceeded to pseudo-smoke it using a 200°F oven and waiting until it got to 150°F internally. I then refrigerated it overnight. I got the technique from a summer sausage recipe that can be found here.

Basic Nan (6 pieces)

• 2 tsp dry yeast
• 2 ½ cups warm water (105-115°F)
• 5-6 cups white flour
• 2 tsp salt
• Ceramic baking tile/pizza stone (optional)

1. Place warm water in a mixing bowl and add yeast.
2. Mix in 3 cups of flour one cup at a time.
3. Stir the mixture 100 times in the same direction to develop the gluten.
4. Add 2 teaspoons of salt, then continue to add flour until you cannot stir the dough.
5. Flip the dough onto a floured surface and knead until it smooth and elastic.
6. Lightly oil a bowl, put the dough in, and let it rise until it has doubled in size.
7. Break the dough into 6 pieces. Roll out the pieces into 4-5 inch disks. Cover the disks and working one at a time roll them out into 10 inch disks (Note: Avoid making the dough too thin as it will easily burn. Think thin crust pizza for the correct thickness.)
8. Let the disks rest for 10 minutes, then prick the dough with a fork (traditionally, a specialized bread stamp is used to apply a pricked design). Leave a two inch boundary unpricked around the edge of the dough.
9. Place dough on a stone in a 500°F oven. Bake for 7 minutes or until golden brown on top. (Monitor it closely.) Let it cool for 5 minutes before serving.

Baursaki

• 1 cup flour
• 1½ tsp yeast
• 2 tbsp water (105-115°F)
• 2 tbsp yogurt
• 1 egg white
• 2 tsp butter
• 1½ tsp salt
• Oil for frying

1. Mix water and yeast and wait for the yeast to bubble.
2. Mix in the remaining ingredients, knead until it forms a dough.
3. Let the dough rise for 30 minutes.
4. Break off tablespoon sized pieces of dough and roll them into balls.
5. Heat the oil in a deep skillet over high heat.
6. Carefully add the balls and fry them until they are golden brown. Drain on a paper towel.
7. Roll in sugar before serving, if desired.

Kazakh Tea

• 4 cups water
• 5 tsp black tea leaves
• 4 cardamom pods
• 1 tsp fennel seeds
• 2 cups milk
• Sugar/honey, salt, and cream to taste.

1. Bring water to a simmer.
2. Simmer tea and seeds for 3 minutes.
3. Add milk and simmer for 2 minutes more.
4. Remove from heat and strain tea.
5. Add sugar or honey, salt, and cream as desired.

Results and Discussion
The bread had a nice crispy texture with very puffed outer crust. The puff comes from the fork pricks (or rather, the lack of them around the outer edges) and gives a pretty cool bread bowl effect. It might be fun to try this on pizza crust.
Fried dough continues to taste good. I am curious if there exists a civilization that practices agriculture that does not have some form of fried dough. This particular dough was not as fluffy as some of the recipes but it had a nice dense texture and felt more substantial. It was also a slightly drier dough which makes getting the dough from your fingers to the hot oil much safer.
The tea is basically chai with salt. I added more salt with each until I noticed its effect. I would estimate I topped out around 1/8 teaspoon with 1/2 teaspoon of sugar. As I drank it I realized the only drink I am used to tasting this much salt in is a sports drink. The clotted cream gave the tea a rich texture. (Clotted cream is nearly butter, very rich and creamy. It tastes great, but you can feel your arteries clogging.)
The suzhuk was nicely spiced with what tasted like garlic and black pepper which is matches my understanding of Kazakh version. The oven-smoking process gave decent results but it is no substitute for the flavor of a proper smoking.

Niger - Fari Masa and Tuareg Tea

Background
Niger is the largest country in West Africa and takes its name from the Niger River running through its western region. Its population does not scale with its size because 80% of country is the Sahara Desert. Over half the population engages in agriculture, with the principal crops being millet, sorghum, and cassava.
(When searching for information on Niger it is important to get your adjective right or you find information about Nigeria. Things related to Niger are Nigerien and things from Nigeria are Nigerian.)
We are fortunate to have friends who spent a semester in Niger in college. Their recommendations included fari masa and an omelet sandwich, and they kindly offered to come to breakfast to demonstrate the preparation of traditional tuareg tea. We decided to try the fari masa, a leavened fried dough that is rolled in sugar or spices after frying. Lacking an authoritative recipe, we used a basic yeasted fried dough which met our friends' approval; those cooking at home can choose their own favorite.
Tuareg tea is made using green tea and has a strong social component attached to it. The tea is brewed three times, with the strength of the tea diminishing with each brewing. A saying about the tea goes "the first cup is bitter like death, the second is mild like life, and the third is sweet like love." The water is traditionally heated over coals in a wire brazier. We had the brazier but we could not get the coals lit so we used the stove instead.

Tuareg Tea Fill the tea pot with green tea leaves and cover it with water. Boil for several minutes. You can tell it is ready from the smell. Pour the tea into a cup and add a small cup of sugar. Pour the tea between two cups to mix the sugar, cool it, and reduce the smell. A little foam should develop on top. Pour the tea into small glasses and serve. Repeat the process two more times using the same leaves.

Results and Discussion
Fried dough is good and hard to mess up. You get a nice brown crispy outside and a spongy warm inside. Rolling them in sugar helps too! A non-stick pan makes flipping and moving the dough much easier. The dough puffs up a great deal as you cook it and you should account for this when filling the pan. As I went along I discovered flouring my hands and spoon made dropping the dough into the oil safer.
The first brewing of the tea was frighteningly strong. I had a sip best measured in micro-liters and it hit me very hard. It is very bitter and the sugar did not lessen the bitterness. The second brewing was a bit more mellow but still very strong and bitter. (I liked it well enough –Kitty) The third brewing was finally something I would consider good. The other two brewing were just way too strong for me. The third brewing is given to children which adequately describes my caffeine tolerance.

Burkina Faso - Lemon Porridge with Peanut Sauce

Background
Burkina Faso is a landlocked country in West Africa with a predominantly agricultural economy. According to the World Cookbook for Students, the major foodstuffs are maize, sorghum, and millet, with chilies and peppers used as condiments. Meals are eaten in the morning and upon returning from work. Three meals a day is more common for wealthier families.
For breakfast we chose millet porridge flavored with lemon juice, from the World Cookbook for Students. The lemon juice substitutes for fermenting the millet flour, a process we have done before for corn-based porridges. The porridge is then cooled, sliced and topped with a thick sauce made of spinach and peanut butter, from the Holidays of the World Cookbook for Students.
Millet is a form of grass but it does not fit nicely into a single scientific grouping. Rather it is a functional category of crops made up of small seeded grains which are usually grown in drought-prone areas.

Lemon Porridge

• 2 cups millet flour (may substitute fine white cornmeal)
• 4 cups cold water
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 1 cup water, for cooking

1. Mix the flour into the cold water using a whisk.
2. Add the lemon juice and let the batter stand for 15 minutes.
3. Bring the other cup of water to a boil.
4. Stir in the batter using a wooden spoon, continuing to stir the porridge until it is smooth, thick, and stiff.
5. Pour the porridge into a greased mold or loaf pan and let it rest for 30 minutes.

Africans Greens in Peanut Sauce

• 1 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 1 green pepper, seeded and finely chopped
• 1 tomato, finely chopped
• 1 lb frozen spinach, thawed.
• ¼ cup peanut butter
• Salt and pepper to taste

1. Heat oil in a saucepan over medium-high heat.
2. Add peppers and onions, and cook until onions are soft.
3. Add spinach and tomato, and cook until spinach is wilted (or heated through if frozen).
4. Stir in peanut butter and serve.

Results and Discussion
The porridge had a strong lemon flavor. While fermenting gives a subtle sour taste that lingers in the background, the lemon juice brings the flavor to the front and dominates the dish. It is not necessarily a bad result, but it is a poor substitute for the flavor that comes form the fermentation process.
The peanut sauce had a nice flavor and its coarser texture goes well with the smoother porridge. The Holidays of the World Cookbook suggests serving it over rice which would make a nice lunch or dinner meal.