Our Blind Tasting Test

The team members of Foodie decided to test our food knowledge by trying to guess the ingredients of 5 different dishes. We tried to make it as varied as possible by choosing food from all over the world. Each of us brought a dish and none of the other group members knew what it was or were allowed to see it beforehand. The dishes to be tried were: Chicken Biryani, Green Spaghetti with Fried Chicken, Chicken Adobo, Shaven Beef with Chips and Persian Rice with Chicken and Tzatziki sauce.

We were all blind tasters and took turns with the shooting and taking pictures. Fahmida edited the pictures so they were ready to be used in the video. Finally Magaly and Aiken were in charge of the video editing.

Here is the result!

A spice of life

by William Benbow

I love Thai food for both its taste and uniqueness. Thai cuisine ranges from a variety of dishes including curries and stir fries. The chefs of Thai food are known for the attention to detail of their dishes. Some notable qualities of Thai cuisine include its intricacy, texture, color, taste, and the use of Ingredients with medicinal benefits. From my experiences with Thai food, it is apparent that the chefs are not simply concerned with how a dish taste. They are also concerned with how it looks, how it smells, and how everything fits in together. Some of my favorite dishes include: green curry, sweat and sour with duck, fried rice and red curry. Thai food is always great value for something healthy yet delicious, and is a nice alternative to fast foods.

 

References:

http://vp.cdn.cityvoterinc.com/g/00-00-03-41-69-32-3416932_794934.jpg

http://munaymedia.com/meltingpot/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/thai_chicken.jpg

http://east-hills.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/Thai.jpg

http://jardinmariacristina.com.mx/galeria_web/14.jpg

Looks can be deceiving, even in food

by Magaly Chin

So far we’ve seen dishes made of chicken, beef or fish. But have you ever thought of guinea pig? Well in my country there’s a traditional dish whose star is none other than a crunchy guinea pig. I know, it doesn’t sound too appetizing but you’ll have to trust me when I say it tastes really good. To make this dish, the whole guinea pig (called “cuy” in Peru) is roasted over a spit. Usually one serving requires one cuy since its size is not big enough to be cut.

Roasted cuy is considered a delicacy and it’s mostly served on especial occasions. It’s quite messy to eat because the best way to have it is only using your hands. I tried it for the first time not long ago, because the looks of the dish used to put me off a bit until I felt brave enough to eat it. But being honest, it tasted so good that I wondered why I didn’t do that before.

This dish is so popular that it even has its own holiday celebrated in October. Recently, chefs have started to go gourmet with the cuy and have been using it in other dishes instead of main ingredients like smoked fish.

Reference:

http://libroderecetas.com/files/recetas/cuy-chactado.jpg

Sushi… is awesome!

by Navdish Chopra

Sushi is another item in my top foods list of course I mean… who doesn’t like sushi to be honest! First found in Japan and now you can find it basically at any corner of the civilised World. I have tried so many different flavours of sushi but my favourite one is cooked spicy tuna with seasoned cucumber. I just never get bored of the taste this particular one has. To make my sushi a bit tangy, I like to add kimchi to it and as well as apply a bit of wasabi on the top to enjoy my first bite. Otherwise, I would just have my sushi with mild sweet soy sauce just for a quick snack. 

References:

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4119/4856102903_3af62d9b18.jpg

http://www.manusmenu.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/1-Try-Sushi-Rolls-1-1-of-1.jpg

Hilsha - King of all fish

by Fahmida Vivian Sheikh

This is the national fish of Bangladesh. It called “Illish” in Bengali. Mostly found in Bangladesh. People cook it in many ways like Bengali fish curry made with mustard oil or seed or just simply fry it on its natural oil. I love to eat the fried version, can’t really explain the taste unless you really get to enjoy the flavor.

The most famous dish with Hilsha fish called Panta Illish which is a very traditional platter enjoyed in the Bengali new year by the Bengalis. It is a congee with fried Ilish slice, supplemented with dried fish (Shutki), pickles (Achar), dal, green chillies and onion. When I’m in my country I get to savor this platter with my friends and family.

If you love fishes, you should definitely try it!

References:

https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/88/52/3a/88523ae022fcb513e0a794166e2a7f64.jpg

http://www.ecurry.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/Bhapa-Ilish-3-507x620.jpg

My Pizza Bane

by Fahmida Vivian Sheikh

Oh my Gosh Pizza!! Who doesn’t love it? But my obsession with pizza crosses the border. Every week in any time of the day, at least once, I need to have pizza. Sometimes it feels like it’s my life line. I know it’s silly but yeah you can understand why it’s my bane.

I love the fact how you can enjoy slices of pizza with friends and family, you can fight over who gets the last slice of pizza, which I usually win :3.

Pizza is a flat bread with tomato sauce, cheese and selection of meats, vegetables whatever you like and cooked in the oven. The varieties of pizza that exists in this world is humungous. It is said that pizza is originally from Naples, Italy in the 18^th or 19^th century.

References:

http://cdnimg.webstaurantstore.com/uploads/buying_guide/2014/11/pizzatype-header.jpg

https://bordentowncurrent.files.wordpress.com/2013/04/pizza.jpg

From China to the world

by Magaly Chin

Fried rice is probably the best known Chinese dish. It’s made with steamed rice stir-fried in a wok mixed with other ingredients such as egg, vegetables and meat. The list of ingredients usually varies from country to country. This dish originated from China and from there it reached most countries in Asia, the Western countries and even some in Africa. Also it is very common to find fried rice in any Chinese banquet but when it is consumed as a homemade dish it is mostly made with leftovers. However, it’s not considered a Chinese everyday dish.

Due to the changing recipe on each country, fried rice has different presentations. For example, Muslim countries have created a vegetarian option using egg fried rice and in Indonesia is a spicy dish called “nasi goreng”. In the US it is considered as fast food and in South America, each country has its own variation, but the most remarkable is the Chinese Peruvian version called “chaufa”. 

American fried rice

Nasi goreng

Chaufa

References:

http://kirbiecravings.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/fried-rice-30.jpg

http://www.takestockmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/nasi-goreng-indonesian-fried-rice2.jpg

http://s3-media4.fl.yelpcdn.com/bphoto/4aeQCUZy7HQnnaz2YSZ6vw/o.jpg

http://delperu.info/wp-content/uploads/comida-peruana-receta-del-peru-arroz-chaufa-con-pollo.jpg