Last night was a very special night for me. Brian and I were invited over to a new friend's house to partake in a long standing tradition of eating Mansef. Mansef is the national dish of Jordan and I am told it is served on special occasions or to honored guests. The lamb is pressure cooked in its own fat and covered with a dried yogurt-like product called jameed. It is served on a huge platter (about 3 ft wide) first covered with a layer of flat bread, then topped with rice, incredibly tender meat (head and all) and garnished with almonds or pine nuts. Lastly, the sour yogurt-type sauce is poured all over the whole dish. Fortunately Brian had his camera with him so I made him take a picture of the finished product. Having been the only one there who had never had Mansef before, they had to teach me how to eat it. Everyone sits in a circle around the dish and eats with their hands. You are suppose to take a small pinch full with three fingers and get a little rice, meat and sauce, ball it up and pop it in your mouth. Last night we weren't quite as delicate and everyone was using their whole hand to grab some of the dish and mush it together in mouthfuls. Brian was more of a shover than a popper and I kept dropping it on the floor before it got into my mouth but no one seemed to mind. From the visual of two lamb heads staring at me (eyes, teeth and tongues in tact), the smell of the sour yogurt sauce and the sound of the Mansef squishing in between everyones fingers it was an experience I will never forget(and probably don't need to repeat). I was kindly offered an eye ball and the brains but declined. Add to the night many glasses of Arak (a traditional drink which is an anise flavored alcohol that is mixed with water) and I felt like a true local.
