Food Talk: Medieval Arabs Ate Sandwiches, Too

The Culinary Historians of Washington Are Pleased to Present

Nawal Nasrallah

“Medieval Arabs Ate Sandwiches, Too:

Bazmaward and Awsat for the Record”

Through research in medieval Arabic records, educator and author Nasrallah has found that the sandwich was not invented in 18^th century England. Brick-oven breads, both spongy and crusty and thin malleable varieties, were used by Arab cooks to make sandwiches, called awsat and bazmaward, that were popular snacks purchased at food markets, and offered as hors d’oeuvre before the main hot meal. And the medieval Arab sandwich was not an isolated accomplishment: its lineage and culture can be seen in the evolution of today’s shawirma, disseminated by Middle-Eastern immigrants first to Sicily, where the Arabs ruled for centuries, and then to other shores, as far away as New Orleans.

Nawal Nasrallah is a native of Iraq who received her MA in English and Comparative Literature from Baghdad University in 1977. She worked as a professor at the universities of Baghdad and Mosul teaching English language and literature between 1977 and 1990, when she moved to the United States. She is currently she is an independent scholar, researcher, and food writer. She is a member of the Culinary Historians of Boston and regularly speaks on Iraqi/Middle Eastern cuisine, its culture and history—ancient, medieval, and modern—to college students, culinary groups, schools, and libraries. Her published books include Annals of the Caliphs’ Kitchens: Ibn Sayyar al-War-raq’s Tenth-Century Baghdadi Cookbook (Brill, 2010) and Delights from the Garden of Eden: A Cookbook and History of the Iraqi Cuisine, (Equinox Publishing, 2013).

for more information, contact Claudia Kousoulas 301-320-6979  appetite@kousoulas.com www.chowdc.org                                 

This is a free event, no reservations necessary