Thursday, January 31, 2008

Kibbe at the Crossroads

I was driving to work listening to NPR when the Kitchen Sisters began and it was about "kibbe". Yes, "kibbe". Kibbe, for those who do not know, is the food of the gods. It is by far the most tasteful, delicious, and lovely dish one can ever eat. Kibbe can be grilled, backed, raw, and sometimes in stew. It is a meat shell stuffed with meat, onion, and nuts; and what more does one wish in a dish.

The show "kibbe at the crossroads" was about the food of some of the oldest Arab immigrants in the US, those of the late 1800's and early 1900's to the Delta. I was shocked to know that kibbe was present when the "Blues" was born. That's why if you don’t eat kibbe, you ain’t got the blues. Most of the guests on the show called themselves Lebanese, but at times confessed that were from Greater Syria. I felt so proud of their achievements and stories, I connected with their struggles despite being 90 or more years apart. It was a great, emotion-filled show; every Arab-American should listen to it.