Top 5 Middle Eastern Ingredients

One of the best parts of my job is one I’d never have predicted when we opened the doors of our Perth city deli in 2005.  At the time we were focused on cheese, wine and artisan producers from Scotland, the UK and into mainland Europe. As the years rolled on, the world became a smaller place and cultures, ingredients and food traditions from every corner of the globe wound their way into our stomachs and hearts.  It was only a matter of time before our local artisans began to draw their inspiration from this global smorgasbord of flavours bringing a whole host of new and exciting speciality products to our shelves.

In the past couple of years, ingredients and recipes from Northern Africa and the Middle East have started to emerge as store cupboard staples meaning we can now bring you the flavours and scents of a Middle Eastern street market while dealing with a producer just down the road!

Think intoxicating spice blends and delicately flavoured pastes that pack a powerful punch of flavour into any dish. Here’s our top five!

SUMAC: The brick-red finely ground berries of the sumac shrub give an astringent, lemony brightness to whatever they touch. A sprinkle wakes up the simplest ingredients: steamed rice, cooked meats, or stone fruit.   

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