All of the production of high-quality mastic occurs on limestone ridges around the medieval villages in the Mastichochoria region of Chios, where the resin has been granted denomination of origin status and a local cooperative oversees the harvest and its sale. Although the Lebanese cultivate this same species for its nutlike fruits to flavor sausages and for its mastic, they cannot legally sell the latter as true mastic in food and beverage markets. There is also a Bombay mastic harvested from Pistacia atlantica ssp. cabulica.
The English term mastic is borrowed from the Greek mastiha, which is etymologically related to the ancient Greek and Phoenician word mastichan, “to chew.” Mastic has been casually used as a chewing gum, a breath freshener, a perfume, a varnish, a medicine, and a digestive for at least twenty-four hundred years. Over time, Mediterranean cultures identified additional culinary and enological uses for the versatile gum, so that today most of the Chios production is used in liqueurs, pastries, and candies.
Mastic is an essential ingredient in many anise-flavored distilled beverages, including Greek ouzo and Turkish and Cretan raki. In addition to using mastiha in their own ouzo, the residents of Chios also make a sweet-smelling liqueur called mastichato. Growing up in a Lebanese American family in a Greek American neighborhood where ice-cold water was always added to fine arak and ouzo to make them milky and sweet, I had wondered whether mastic was the magical ingredient that caused white crystals to condense and color the drink. The true cause, however, is simpler than that: anethole, the essential oil in aniseeds, is soluble in alcohol but not in water. The Greeks also use mastiha in two refreshing summertime drinks: soumada, a mix of mastic, cane sugar, almond milk, and the potent liquor tsipouro; and hypovrihio (submarine), which consists of mastic, honey, and cold water.
Some teetotalers may have ingested mastic and savored its flavors when sampling the famous confection called loukoumia, or Turkish delight, found throughout the Middle East. Mastic is also used to flavor and thicken puddings, candies, sweet pastries, ice creams, jams, and cheeses, and it can be added to rubs for baked or fried poultry and seafood to give them a distinctive crust. If these uses sound exclusively secular compared with those of gums such as frankincense and myrrh, remember that followers of the Greek Orthodox faith celebrate scores of sacred feasting and fasting days each year. It is therefore not surprising that mastiha is ritually used in Greek festival breads such as vasilopita (St. Basil’s bread). Mastic was also a key ingredient in the lamb and garbanzo bean stew that Hu Szu-hui recommended to his Mongolian emperor, as recorded in A Soup for the Qan, the classic food history of the Silk Roads. I have been known to keep a few lumps of mastic on the top of my desk, to chew on whenever I need to project my imagination into the eastern Mediterranean.
Davidson, Alan, ed. The Oxford Companion to Food. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1999.
Green, Aliza. Field Guide to Herbs and Spices. Philadelphia: Quirk Books, 2006.
Katzer, Gernot. “Gernot Katzer’s Spice Pages.” http://gernot-katzers-spice-pages.com/engl/index.html. Accessed May 8, 2013.
Sherman, Deborah Rothman. “The Magic Tree.” Epikouria Magazine of Fine Food and Drink from Greece 1 (2005). www.epikkouria.com.
Sortun, Ana, with Nicole Chaison. Spice: Flavors of the Eastern Mediterranean. New York: Regan Books, 2006.
• HARIRA • CARNE DE CORDERO EN LA OLLA
Lamb and Garbanzo Bean Stew
This ancient dish may have emerged at different times in multiple places, but it clearly spread with Arab and Persian influence as far east as Mongolia, and with Jewish and Arab-Berber influence as far west as the Hispanic communities of northern Mexico. Currently, its most widely acclaimed expression is in the many variations of harira and chorba prepared in Morocco and other parts of the Maghreb, where they are traditionally eaten at sundown each day during Ramadan. In this particular recipe, I have based the ingredient list and cooking instructions on the Hispanic culinary traditions documented in Arroyo Hondo, New Mexico, by Cleofas Jaramillo in 1939, then elaborated on them through attention to Paula Wolfert’s records on the various types of harira in Morocco. Following Wolfert, I suggest that the garbanzos be soaked and then peeled, a step not done in all places where such a stew has diffused, but one that allows for a softer texture. In a pair of harira recipes, she illustrates two different thickeners, a mixture of semolina flour and water in one and beaten eggs in the other. To enhance this rich culinary melting pot, I have used mastic here in the same role, a soup ingredient included in the medical dietary recommendations known as Yin-shan cheng-yao by Hu Szu-hui, published in the early 1300s. Look for mastic, sometimes labeled gum mastic, in food shops specializing in Greek, Turkish, or Middle Eastern ingredients or online.
Serve with a flat bread, such as Lebanese or Jordanian za’atar bread, focaccia, or even a whole wheat tortilla. A small salad of romaine lettuce hearts, watercress, or purslane leaves tossed with dried mint, lemon juice, and olive oil complements this stew, as well. Serves 4.
| ⅓ | cup dried garbanzo beans | |
| 1½ | cups water | |
| 1 | teaspoon fresh lemon juice | |
| ¼ | cup olive oil or smen (Moroccan fermented salted butter) | |
| 1 | pound boneless lamb from the shoulder, cut into 1-inch cubes | |
| 1 | large white onion, finely chopped | |
| 4 | plum tomatoes, finely chopped | |
| 1 | teaspoon finely crushed mastic | |
| Salt and white or black pepper | ||
| ½ | cup fresh cilantro leaves, minced | |
| 1 | teaspoon freshly ground cassia cinnamon | |
| ½ | teaspoon peeled and minced fresh ginger | |
| ½ | teaspoon peeled and minced fresh turmeric | |
| ½ | teaspoon freshly ground cumin seeds | |
| ¼ | teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg | |
| Pinch of saffron threads | ||
| 2 | lemons, cut into wedges |
In a bowl, cover the garbanzo beans with the water and stir in the lemon juice. Allow to soak for 8 to 24 hours in a warm spot or, if preferred, in the refrigerator. Drain, rinse, and then rub the beans between your fingertips to release their skins. Set the beans aside.
In a heavy pot, heat the olive oil over medium-low heat. Add the lamb and brown the meat on all sides. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the lamb to a plate. Add the onion to the oil remaining in the pan and sauté over medium-low heat until translucent, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes and cook, stirring occasionally, for a couple minutes to release their juices.
Return the lamb to the pan, add the garbanzos and mastic, season with salt and pepper, and stir well. Add water to a depth of 2 to 3 inches, raise the heat to medium-high, and bring the mixture to a boil. Lower the heat to a gentle simmer and cook uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the beans are nearly tender, about 45 minutes. Add water as needed to cook the beans properly and to maintain a good stew consistency.
Add the cilantro, cinnamon, ginger, turmeric, cumin, nutmeg, and saffron, stir well, and continue to simmer until the garbanzos are tender, about 20 minutes longer.
Ladle the stew into individual bowls and serve. Pass the lemon wedges at the table for guests to squeeze into their bowls as desired.
Buell, Paul D., and Eugene N. Anderson, eds. A Soup for the Qan: Chinese Dietary Medicine of the Mongol Era as Seen in Hu Szu-hui’s Yin-Shan Cheng-yao. London and New York: Keegan Paul International, 2000.
Jaramillo, Cleofas M. New Mexico Tasty Recipes. Layton, UT: Gibbs Smith, 2008, p. 2.
Wolfert, Paula. Couscous and Other Good Food from Morocco. New York: Harper & Row, 1973, pp. 58–61.
CHAPTER 1
Aromas Emanating from the Driest of Places
I am tracking a scent across the desert.