How To Cook A Camel

[Jacaylbaro]

 

Somaliland isn't known for its haute cuisine. Ask people here what their staple foods are and they will reply rice and spaghetti. The days of a meat and milk diet are drawing to end as pastoralists succumb to export bans, land rights and of course, climate change.

 

However, if there is a speciality dish, then it is camel. They say you can judge a restaurant by its kitchen. In which case the omens were not good for my lunch-stop this afternoon. The wooden work-surface was covered with innards, off-cuts and slop from the huge vat of camel, onion and tomato that simmered away on a charcoal-burner below. Flies swarmed over hunks of meat and piles of the sour tasting njera laid out on the side ready to be thrust through the hatch.

 

The recipe is simple: grill the meat over coals for ten minutes then add to the simmering cauldron of mucky water and vegetables. Eat with soggy njera.

 

But I was brought up to try eveything once and for a meat-lover the camel meat was more than palatable. A little like mutton perhaps, nice and tender. Not quite so easy to stomach was the 'soup' with its layer of fatty globules on the surface. I drew the line at a slab of fat from between the brain and skull.

 

 

My stomach survived the experience and it got me thinking there's probably a book-load of camel recipes out there. I've had a quick scan...here's the pick of the bunch.

 

1 medium camel

4 lambs

20 chickens (roasted)

150 eggs (boiled)

40 kilos tomatoes

Salt and seasonings

 

Stuff eggs into tomatoes, stuff tomatoes into chickens, stuff chickens into lambs, stuff lambs into camel. Roast until tender

 

This though leaves the cook asking several questions:

 

- Just how big is a medium camel?

 

- How exactly do you stuff 2 kilos of tomatoes in a single chicken and five chickens in a lamb?

 

- Are we talking oven roast (how?!) or spit roast? And how many minutes per pound?

 

 

Any other recipes out there, send them my way...

 

 

By Richard

[cynical lady]

1 medium camel

4 lambs

20 chickens (roasted)

150 eggs (boiled)

40 kilos tomatoes

Salt and seasonings

 

Stuff eggs into tomatoes, stuff tomatoes into chickens, stuff chickens into lambs, stuff lambs into camel. Roast until tender

 

What the hell…. :eek:

[Jacaylbaro]

Have you ever eaten a camel meat yaa CL ??

[Malika]

I must be so hungry,that plate of meat and the sabayaad had cause me to salvate.. greedy tummy,I just had a tuna salad!

[Faarax-Brawn]

Couple of questions?--First things first,Who the font is Richard? I need to holler @him and show him how hilib geel is done

 

2ndly, what does digaag & tomatoes got to do with hilib geel? Correct me if am wrong here(actually dont please),but arent these two different dishes?

 

 

- How exactly do you stuff 2 kilos of tomatoes in a single chicken and five chickens in a lamb

I am no Tomato expert but i believe what Mr.Richard saw being stuffed into that poor chicken is just mini tomatoes aka Dhicis tomatoes. These are like tiny winy little things that resemble like grapes?

 

My guess is that regular sized tomatoes cannot be grown in the desert?(Haar-Geysah). So,naturally you are gonna need 2 killos of these dhicis tomatoes just to have the effect of one regular tomato?

[Abaay Heylay]

Last time when I visited my grandma in back home, I had camel milk. I was telling my co-workers about it and they all thought I was wierd. Anyways I loved the milk but never tried the meat, I heard it gives diarrhea

[RedSea]

"gadh hunguri nin herer jooga iyo habar x baa leh"...those folks eat a whole camel with ease. JB ma reerkaas baa ku dhalay? lool

[nuune]

^^ Ka daa adeer

[RedSea]

Hey nuune are you aware of thier large apatite for food too?

[nuune]

^^ waxba ma ogi, just didn't wanted him to go dat further,

 

 

Anigu nabadoon ayaan ahey sxb

[RedSea]

He who? lool

[nuune]

Balo, magacaad ii soo badalatey, Alla Al shabaabna fududaa

[RedSea]

i made you look bad there nuune. cidlaan kudiray. Behold my new SOL nick. :cool:

[Geel_jire]

hate the milk .. love the meat !

[RedSea]

^am the opposite.