Post by Admin on Jan 9, 2018 13:12:42 GMT -5
The heart of Desmira’s cuisine lies in its rich spice trade, allowing for dishes redolent with aromas ranging from sweet to savory, spicy to floral, and everything in between. Because of its location where much of the population resides either along the river or the coastline, there is a heavy influence of seafood and fish rather than poultry, fowl, or beef. Further, the population incorporates a great deal of fruits and vegetables into each meal.
Meals are served family style regardless of rank, unless there are important guests or a formal occasion. Then, servants bring salvers and place portions upon each guest’s plate along with the correct utensil or, if the food is to be eaten with the hands, a bowl of scented water so that the diner may wash when finished.
Food is extremely important to the Desmirans – when they initially broke free of their Rohari counterparts, they feared famine for a time, before reaching the river, finding it full of fish and the surrounding soil rich and fertile, as well as discovering the vast variety of herbs and ultimately, the spices for which the region is renowned.
Breakfast is considered the least formal meal of the day, and the simplest in Desmira. As some family members head to tasks and jobs, the food is often served buffet-style, where each person serves themselves and eats as they have time. The upper ranks often take their breakfasts in their chambers, served on covered trays by their body-servants. Comprised of flattened rice cakes or rice porridge, it can be served as either a savory or a sweet dish. Fresh fruit and spiced or herbed yoghurt accompanies the porridge, along with eggs cooked with the spicy paste called harissa. Flatbread is also served in the mornings.
Lunch tends to be strongly vegetarian, though meat is not forbidden. Chickpeas, lentils, and other beans serve as the bases for dishes, along with vegetables like cauliflower, okra, carrots, onions, and spinach. Many dishes come in rich, fragrant sauces where the primary spices are cardamom, cinnamon, chilis, ginger, and garlic. Flat rice flour crepes or puffed bread, along with flatbread, accompany the sauce-based dishes, which are often served over plain rice. More often than not, fish and shellfish is seen at lunch, unless there is a feast. If the lunch has to be portable, then finely chopped meat and vegetable mixtures are baked into bread pockets, or wrapped in fine layers of rice-flour crepes.
Dinner is the most elaborate meal of the day, and also takes the most time to prepare, thanks to the need for lengthy simmering for spices and sauces. Meat is typically the primary focus of the evening meal in the form of lamb, mutton, pork, and chicken, though fish and shellfish is not unusual. Beef is rarely eaten in Desmira because of cost.
Dishes can be roasted or grilled, served on skewers or in bowls containing a thick, fragrant sauce, often with varied breads, and an elaborate rice dish called biryani. Sweets are always served after the evening meal with spiced tea, so that the diners may ‘enjoy sweet dreams as they rest.’ Rice pudding sweetened with coconut milk, honey-soaked dumplings, a custard dessert that is often served ice cold, almost solid, and steamed puddings made from various fruits.
Meals are served family style regardless of rank, unless there are important guests or a formal occasion. Then, servants bring salvers and place portions upon each guest’s plate along with the correct utensil or, if the food is to be eaten with the hands, a bowl of scented water so that the diner may wash when finished.
Food is extremely important to the Desmirans – when they initially broke free of their Rohari counterparts, they feared famine for a time, before reaching the river, finding it full of fish and the surrounding soil rich and fertile, as well as discovering the vast variety of herbs and ultimately, the spices for which the region is renowned.
Breakfast is considered the least formal meal of the day, and the simplest in Desmira. As some family members head to tasks and jobs, the food is often served buffet-style, where each person serves themselves and eats as they have time. The upper ranks often take their breakfasts in their chambers, served on covered trays by their body-servants. Comprised of flattened rice cakes or rice porridge, it can be served as either a savory or a sweet dish. Fresh fruit and spiced or herbed yoghurt accompanies the porridge, along with eggs cooked with the spicy paste called harissa. Flatbread is also served in the mornings.
Lunch tends to be strongly vegetarian, though meat is not forbidden. Chickpeas, lentils, and other beans serve as the bases for dishes, along with vegetables like cauliflower, okra, carrots, onions, and spinach. Many dishes come in rich, fragrant sauces where the primary spices are cardamom, cinnamon, chilis, ginger, and garlic. Flat rice flour crepes or puffed bread, along with flatbread, accompany the sauce-based dishes, which are often served over plain rice. More often than not, fish and shellfish is seen at lunch, unless there is a feast. If the lunch has to be portable, then finely chopped meat and vegetable mixtures are baked into bread pockets, or wrapped in fine layers of rice-flour crepes.
Dinner is the most elaborate meal of the day, and also takes the most time to prepare, thanks to the need for lengthy simmering for spices and sauces. Meat is typically the primary focus of the evening meal in the form of lamb, mutton, pork, and chicken, though fish and shellfish is not unusual. Beef is rarely eaten in Desmira because of cost.
Dishes can be roasted or grilled, served on skewers or in bowls containing a thick, fragrant sauce, often with varied breads, and an elaborate rice dish called biryani. Sweets are always served after the evening meal with spiced tea, so that the diners may ‘enjoy sweet dreams as they rest.’ Rice pudding sweetened with coconut milk, honey-soaked dumplings, a custard dessert that is often served ice cold, almost solid, and steamed puddings made from various fruits.