Better Than GOLD!! Rare ARABIAN FOOD in World’s Biggest Oasis - 2 Million Palm Trees!

Hello everyone, I hope you are having an amazing day. I'm Mark Wiens. I am in Algasa which is the largest

oasis

in the

world

located in Saudi Arabia and today we are going on an ultimate

food

tour of Alcasa. We will have a local breakfast. We will walk through the spice market and bazaar and then, today's highlight, we will meet Chef Fahad who will prepare a traditional alcasa meal for us inside a date

palm

farm. It will be an amazing experience to learn about the local

food

and all the ingredients that make it up, tell me how it is kept and to learn about the beautiful culture of alcasa, so stay tuned, it will be an amazing day in Saudi Arabia and I can't wait to share all the culture and everything. the delicious food you are coming right now good morning Mark, welcome to al-hasa, thank you very much, thank you very much, this is the eastern side of Saudi Arabia, it is close to Qatar, Bahrain, so here we have very traditional food and this is a of the oldest restaurant and the oldest food served in alhasa and you will see a different way here they are you are welcome so this morning we will start early for breakfast so I want to say that the Oasis is so big that there are several cities inside from Oasis and Villages thank you, it's okay, it's a kind of lamb, it's served with original alhasa bread, this bread just makes an al-hasa, it's made with dates, yes, but here in the kitchen they have big pots with legs of lamb.

I think there are also some lamps that collect them in your bowl and then since one of the unique things here is the bread made with dates, okay, let's eat, this already has bread and the other one I said. They don't mix, yes, so you can see the beer. There are many cultures that have lamb bones or heads and legs. Yes, it's actually a very common breakfast, but I think one of the unique things here is especially the date of this bread. right, that's a unique thing, so we have two different versions, one is with the bread on the bottom and then they put the soup in a kind of absorption of the bread and then we have the feet on the side also squeezed out. lemon so you can see how tender it is the bones are actually completely softened the meat just falls off it's very tender and I'm especially full of our tenderness but first I want to try that bread that was completely absorbed, how is it? that's meaty yes it's rich and fatty and just shaky mm-hmm when you taste the sweetness of the dates in the bread but not overpowering like with the bread with the bread and you just give a little bit of that collagen to the skin and then mix it in again with that bread, all together in one bite, it's so tender it just melts in your mouth, all the collagen, all the fat, the skin just cooked until it wobbles in your mouth.

I like that bread. a lot of it is also very tasty um do you get the marrow plus the juice that has just been absorbed into the center of the bone oh standing mirror oh so so meaty oh man what a way to start the day yeah okay here we go. the gotra is ok now we are ready to leave today so now we are going to walk around the souk this is the oldest market and many people come from all over the

world

and from all over the GCC from a Gulf region to shop . here for spices for many things and it has been an old market so we will walk around a bit to see some of the things they have here and maybe have some tea, one of the most famous things about al-hasa the bisht. look at the princess, the king, the minister should wear something like that, the people of alcasa are very well known for their tailoring, right, yes, and foreign, okay, let's stop at a local cafe inside the souk, just for breakfast a little more, esp.

Ying is eating some eggs um and then we are going to have some Saudi coffee, this is special, it is called a kind of sweet noodle omelet with salted eggs, with some of the sweet noodles with an amazing fragrance of cardamom and then I have the texture of the noodles plus the hot tortilla, everything melts together, this is called, this is special. Okay, so we have a Saudi coffee which again is like a light roast, almost like green bean coffee, brewed together with cardamom. and saffron and it is so aromatic I love the aroma of cardamom, well it is such a relaxing drink and then it is eaten along with al-hasa dates and ahasa dates are some of the most famous dates in the whole of Saudi Arabia.

There are something like two. There are one and a half

million

date

palm

s within this Oasis, so they produce an incredible amount of dates every year and these dates you could see how oily and sweet they are, oh oh, that date is incredibly sweet and syrupy and goes perfectly with the coffee. this we're going to do a little this this comes from Iraq this one is easier to cook and is really good it doesn't give you much Cornish flavor thank you oh now we're just going over the soup and move on to the spice souk section where you'll find all the ingredients that make up alcasa cuisine, from bay leaves to cinnamon, a variety of nuts and all the spices, turmeric, dried lemons, it's just an abundance of the colorful spices that go into the kitchen are dried fish, we call it SAS and it is eaten like this immediately or ground into powder and we use it in a dish, we call it wadma, we only eat it when it is cold if you eat it. in summer you will go to the hospital it is too strong it is too hot for the stomach so it will be cold to eat it this is lime lemon al-hasa the green one is different from anywhere else it is very strong it really smells bad it is like 10 times more and we squeeze it with hand, we remove the seed and leave it in the sun for approximately a year so that the sun does the contraction.

It's very strong here, you can't drink it, you can't, but you can add it to water and drink it. good for the stomach, it's good for wow, yes, and you know, this is dried ginger, yes, ginger and this is dried turmeric, okay, yes, this is blue arabic and simple, so many spices and so much variety, and I love this whole mixed spice dish, you can see coriander seed like cumin, maybe fennel, bay leaves, cinnamon, dried turmeric, but there is such an abundance of spices, there is pepper, dried flowers, gum arabic for incense, dried turmeric and dried ginger, but.

These are some of the spices that have been traded in this area for centuries. This has been a commercial crossroads and a place where spices are introduced and where they have mixed with culture. Okay, so we're getting into a brochure. where they roast coffee here, they started great in 1957. This is like 40 years ago before I got burned, yeah, since 1957, his father is fine, the initiator of this place and he's been here forever, this is Saudi coffee and Al has a virgin Saudi coffee. al-hasa variety and then, what does zephyrus cardamom include? Is it a fungus or not?

It's not a flower. It is a kind of flower. Yeah, oh, okay, so ginger is included in Saudi coffee, especially in oh, wow, okay, I have no idea. and ginger and clothes and clothes, so it's much more than just coffee, I mean it's a mix of spices, this is Royal Yemeni coffee, this is the most expensive, it's not roasted like once, once it's brewed , yes, and there is different level of roast, like slightly medium and medium and very roasted, yes, look, this is a little more roasted, of course, we have to try the coffee where they roast it, where oh no, that's so good before roasting it, where they mix the spices, they grind everything. fresh um and in Saudi Arabia coffee I mean, it's much more than a drink, it's a big part of the hospitality, the culture, the greeting um and I love that spice blend so relaxing and full of spice oh, it's so good, thank you. above we are visiting a local rice farm and to see especially Al Casa's local rice harvest and this is the rice, this is the harvest, but they didn't get to the final product yet.

Can you tell me what type of rice is hasawi? rice and it's specifically from and it only grows here it only grows Hui and we happen to be here during the harvest season so hopefully we'll get a chance to see the rice harvest. Oh, you have some flowers here, although it is here for me to put it in the machine and take it off the shelf, but this is difficult to do by hand, so it must be machinery to see that this is the seat, okay, so this It is the rice that has already been cut and then it will be dried and then the hulls will be removed.

It is simply amazing to be in the middle of the desert and yet it is so lush and so fertile because of the natural water that comes from the ground. Here, after the one-hour visit, they leave it for 10 days when it really is. dry they put it together in a pile like this and they pile everything here and the top of this plastic but then they separate the seed then the hay and the hay goes to the animal they feed it to the animal with hatred or like they burn it for a warm purpose after they do this, they leave it and the outside for eight months to a year, ah, then they take it, so yeah, then they call Georgia, that means they're like, uh, grounded, crush it a little bit, okay, so They remove the shell from the shell.

Okay, okay, that's the whole rice process of this special grain rice that's native and that's very prized and alcasa and it's also very nutritious. It's great to see the rice harvest and production. We continue with the next place where we are. on the way to Fahad's farm in the date palms and they will cook us some of the local specialties of El Paso, some of the local dishes that will really be the highlight of today, so here we are at the farm, oh this place. It's beautiful, yes, nice to meet you, nice to meet you, that means the only root that has two palm

trees

together like this, this is the name, even the place had the name of the palm and it is also mentioned in the Holy Quran, so it is strange to have it. which is pretty cool, it's weird, yeah, okay, and the place was established by my friend and colleague Omar Alosvor to benefit the city, especially the food, you know, that's why he called me to sell out and we have all kinds of activities you can. imagine and everything about tradition so let's start from the beginning, okay, the first thing we will do is take a little tour and walk around the farm, this is the name of the place and one at the top and this is the real one. story about alhasa this car is the most well known car in al-hasa it is a chevy caprice oh this place is absolutely beautiful and it is a cultural heritage that preserves the cultures and traditions of al-hasa and how everything revolves around the date palm

trees

and how the culture just reflects that, so here I mean there are places to cook to sit and relax, you can learn about the date palms, it's like a total immersion in the alcasa culture, I mean the ancient culture that It has been around for so many years. years and agriculture and cultivation, it's like a museum at the same time, it's incredibly peaceful.

I mean, this is what you think of when you think of an

oasis

and this is an oasis and it's a whole group of you. Yes, who aims to preserve cultural heritage and food? Yes, so, all the ingredients are ready, we are about to start cooking, we are ready and we have a lot of dishes and not even everything is here, so we have hasawi rice. this is the rice that only grows in al-hasa and this is the gradient we cover because of the fly, wine with mutton, any, you know, the rest is vinegar, ground lime, this is the ground black line and spices mixed, that is the wheat one. it broke only this is two it broke this is one broke and this is it and 11. or yogurt a little garlic a little onion in general we take our time we give each part of the food it's time to cook so he put it the onion and stayed with The onion for a while until it's caramelized then it moves on to the next step, so it's a long process, but in the end you will eat something amazing.

We usually don't use the pressure cooker, but it will take a long time to cook, okay? Thank you. so they're starting all the dishes at the same time, all the different aromas coming out, um, that lamb dish, oh, that's going to be with the

gold

en rice, the aroma of the spices just sautéing and then this side of the kitchen , he is starting with that dessert with fresh date palm syrup this is one of the most used ghee or butter in hasawi cuisine a photo this is how we lift it is not like other rice you did not see it as each piece of rice on its own but like the usual saudi cook no this one is like sticky so this is how it is served like this oh man that dessert is so interesting with all the date syrup and then you whip it with water add some melted ghee and then there is another bubbling pot of melted ghee with some dates and then black pepper is added to the dessert because this dish is just a winter dish, if you eat it you will warm yourself from the inside out.

I mean, we already had that traditional al-Hasa bread for breakfast, this bread is famous here, I mean, it is a special type of bread because it includes dates inside the dough, so we are also going to eat it for lunch, so I They spread it out and then they just put it in the Tandoor. Mom made it, so I'll use it while it lasts. It is a mixture of spices that we put in this thing so that it does not reach the end of cooking. Okay, yes, okay. Right now with the Jew, thank you, let's remove the foam.

So this way so that the flower doesn't have chocolate in it oh man that's where that is with that date syrup melted and then the flour you have to keep stirring it so then you let the flour go in so it will probably spread uniformly bythe whole mixture, thank you, it's so fragrant and you just smell the aroma of that date syrup and then like when it's cooking, that aroma comes out very foreign, so all that meat and spices are tender now, one goes with the wheat and the other with local foreign al-hasa rice, a little butter to start. our last dish on the bad leg, onion is the main thing at Hassan and it has a dish and our way of cooking it until it's

gold

en, if it's not golden, something Missy, hello, it's hot.

Fahad said this will be the best date I have ever had in my life. just, yeah, money, I bet on it so well, so it's been, um, it's a date with alcohol that's been boiled in ghee for how long exactly, maybe 45 minutes, 45 minutes, yeah, and you can see that the sugar starts to come out. the right date and then it caramelizes, yeah, in the melted clarified butter, okay, tell me how it tastes, oh wow, I told you, I've never had a date like that before, yeah, oh, it's just saturated with the ghee, the sweetness Salty, yeah, oh. that's good, that's amazing, it's like a ghee date sponge, like it's gushing with the ghee and the saltiness of the ghee and then the sweetness of the date, that's amazing.

Okay, this room, you know, they shouldn't have taken much. time, so yes, this is the dried black lemon Add the small ones for the salad and okay, it's ready, now we add the secret ingredient which is Laban or yogurt or valine so that Laban or yogurt gives it that salty and sour taste and try two types of flour, wheat flour and all-purpose flour and yeast, caves, coriander and green onion are sold, this is the bad thing, two eggs, turmeric and black pepper, and mix and water, this It's a cup and we'll see if I need more we're going to add foreign food now we're going to open in the Harissa which I started early this morning we're going to remove some Cornish to make soup you can add a little meat if you want uh this is the lime that they I said this is from our house we leave it in the sun for about a year yes this is rice or wheat this is wheat ok normally we remove the meat from the plate and add it little by little This is how Do it right and like this it is almost everything ready as long as it is done you're serving we're about to start eating we're going to remove this so it doesn't break and we lose the flavor this is like with shrimp with blondin ok so all the food is almost ready, but they said you have to eat this while it's hot and fresh because It's best when it's hot, it looks like fried fritters with so many spices, the leeks and the green onions, but then they are dipped and then glazed. date syrup, so it's kind of like a dessert but tasty at the same time hmm oh oh, that's amazing, it's like yeah, it's like a curry donut, but with the sweetness of the date syrup, the taste of the green onions , the leek and the spices, wow! the most salty and sweet in the mouth at the same time, then one of the things you will notice is that ghee is very important in the food, the local alcasa food almost all the dishes include ghee and then almost all the dishes are finished with ghee at the end like sprinkles or some of them even have like a puddle, a small hole in the Dugout with ghee in the center, okay, then all the food is ready and okay, God is going to explain to me where do I start oh yeah , okay, this is beautiful. the muffalette with shrimp we cook it and serve it with um, that is the ghee and the eggs, this is the Girish, it is the same seed but this one is smaller than this one, so both are made with wheat, three things with wheat, okay okay so harisa jerisha and falak jirisha basically with the soft meat like the meat that is on the sides of the lamb and the haris are made with the meat and a long piece of meat and they are all served with dinner which is the special ghee that we make and the master of the Master the hasawi rice that can only be found in alhasa, so Ali cooked it with meat, also mutton and vegetables, mainly the egg plans, so all these dishes are traditional from al-hasa, oh yes, and they are traditional dishes that Yes, mainly you would find it different from other parts of Yes and we don't talk about Oh yes, it is the main dessert in winter, even if you like it, you can't eat it in summer, It's so strong that it will warm you from the inside out, okay?

It's basically cooked with flour, wheat flour, that's it, that's the game, oh, I can't wait to start eating, yeah, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you. Let's start with the phallic, a little onion, tomato and put it on cilantro. put it here lemon and lime also a little bit of egg oh yes, yes, make sure you have a shrimp and yes, in this first bite, yes, okay, here we go, the first bite, oh, it's so good with the lemon fragrance dry. There is what I really like, it gives it that acidity then with the freshness of the onions the ghee the wheat oh it's so good okay, we will try the next dish this is the jerisha yes, freshly cooked with the soft lamb meat and this is this big chocolate, bigger pieces of wheat, yes ok, soft lamb, wheat is almost like porridge.

Style, it's so sticky and so rich and so rich, yeah, and so similar, if you taste the taste of that ghee, oh man, that's good, the lamb just kind of started to melt, it's so tender and it dissolves into that wheat pasta, yes, I'm glad we like it, oh, it's so good and it's a little spicy, yes, yes, you can try it, yes, there is the pepper flavor, yes, it's okay. the next dish is like a volcano oh yes, in the center oh, you can't swallow it with them, yes, believe me, because it is very sticky, so this is the wheat with the meat with meat, okay, so yes, one long slice of meat, but then it's cooked like it's been cooked for so long that everything starts to melt and then when you make it, that's the dish that he really likes, beaten and really stirred, to make sure that all the Gluten is released until it becomes like a sticky paste, almost oh yeah. wow, it's so sticky, it's like bubblegum, it looks like bubblegum, pizza with cheese, you dip it in the ghee, yes you have to dip it, they are so doughy, yes, yes, like a dough, almost um, but then with the strands of the meat inside. he and the Gigi are like, I mean, they add flavor but they also add an oily texture like it slides in your mouth a little bit, man, these dishes are so rich and so filling, this is the harisu.

So these are the same ingredients as the Harish but it was not from the face and then you added uh yeah, okay, just add a little bit of water and lemon, see how it is, yeah, it's like caramel, yeah, the milk skin, but if. It's from the wheat, it's so complex from the lemon, I mean, it's been brewing in the sun for a year, yeah, and that just magnifies the flavor of that lemon juice. Wow, the next main dish, this is one that I'm really excited to try because We saw the Cosecha rice this morning, yes, and this is also a green rice that is only available in Alhasa and it's called yes.

Wood, so good, so we have as good as if the lamb melts in your mouth, everything is tender and then the I. I love that rice, it's just absorbed all the lamb, yeah, and all the spices, the turmeric and that's what you can taste like fenugreek, everything has a unique flavor and then it's all like a really amazing mix of things like. all cooked in one pot, I think that's what stands out to me, oh nothing, that dish is absolutely amazing with the acidity of the onions, tomatoes and cilantro combined with the wheat and shrimp, oh, it's so good that the lamb just melts. in your mouth again that fenugreek and the rice that is just absorbed, it's like the main seasoning you can try, you have to try that pepper, hmm, it's so sweet and juicy, it's one of my favorite dishes, that dried lemon is just That flavor doesn't count. day is not enough I swear to God so next time I want you with your family thank you thank you whole family oh spend an hour in the place you choose the moment it is yours thank you come and enjoy and we will take you on a tour every day, thank you all over the east coast.

I don't know, we are here every day, so for dessert we move to the tent with the fire with traditional Saudi coffee and we will drink it, yes, it is full of black. pepper and ghee, yeah, so it took hours to make, starting with that date palm syrup and then adding water and then adding flour and then just getting that texture right by adding ghee and adding more ghee until it had the perfect texture, like sticky and then black pepper on top and a puddle of ghee too wow oh it's so sticky and the black pepper on top gives it a little spice, it's actually not too sweet because it only comes from that date whey, it's not just daytime, it's mild slightly sweet, that pepper that really gives it a nice kick and then of course the Saudi coffee which is always good, what a way to end this day sitting by the fire drinking Saudi coffee with dessert and just hanging out in the store. with fire, oh man, and what food, learning about the unique dishes and food of Al Casa in Saudi Arabia, the spices, dried lemons and dates that are part of the cuisine and life here has always revolved around to the date palms and the palm. trees and that is also reflected in the cuisine, the food is so delicious and abundant.

I mean, eating is about community, it's about spending time with others here and yes, today was an extremely memorable day here at Al-Hasa, thanks to Fahad and everyone. group of chefs who aim to preserve the culinary heritage of alhasa, this is the largest oasis in the world with such a unique culture and I will have Fahad, he makes you two videos that he makes on social networks about the food in alhasa, so which I will have its link in the description box below, you should definitely check it out. He's such a nice guy, very hospitable, and that's going to be it for this video.

I want to say a huge thank you for watching, remember to give this video thumbs up. above, if you enjoyed it, leave a comment below. I'd love to hear from you and if you're not already subscribed be sure to subscribe now for lots more food and travel videos and also stay tuned for this whole Saudi Arabia Where We Are series. Travel eating some local cuisine. It has been an incredible trip and thanks to the Ministry of Tourism here in Saudi Arabia for organizing it and that will be it. Thanks again for seeing us. See you in the next video abroad.