Fresh Dates Pickle

A Saudi discovery

A few months ago, I was invited to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, to talk about Saudi Feast at the Islamic Arts Biennale. As luck would have it, my lovely friend and wonderful artist, Filwa Nazer whom I hadn’t seen in years but kept in touch with online, was there and she immediately invited me to a ta3tima at friends of hers. Ta3tima is a food spread that is not quite a meal, more like a selection of snacky dishes or nibbles. This said, in perfect Arab hospitality, the spread that evening was not far from a proper meal with the long table covered with the most exquisite dishes, including an extraordinary fresh dates pickle that was totally new to me. It was a revelation, and I loved the pickles so much that I asked Filwa, and Noura al Moammar, a lovely chef who I met there how they were prepared. They told me that the spread was catered by Rajaa Merani and suggested I connect with her on instagram for an exact recipe , which I did; and she very kindly explained how to make them.