PAUL F WESLEY
Adel Bensalem
by Diana Cercone
O.K, so you use salt and pepper when cooking—and hopefully, extra virgin olive oil. Perhaps you’ve even been seasoning some of your dishes with cumin, coriander, pimentón or ginger and feeling savvy about spices. But have you tried sumac? Zaartar? Harissa, Ras el Hanout or Hruss? No? Well, you need to. Not just to add a game-changing dimension to your dishes, but to also connect with the countries that not only bring these flavorful spices in reach of your table, but also to understand their connections to our collective culinary history.
And I have just the person to introduce you to these intoxicating and seductive spices. Meet Abdel Bensalem of Mediterranean Delicacies. You’ll find him (or his wife, Zeinab) at many of the farmers’ markets in our area. That’s how I first met Abdel years ago—at the Doylestown Farmers’ Market. My family and friends tease me that before I would stock up on toilet paper, I stock up on extra virgin olive oil. They’re not far from wrong. So when I first walked past Abdel’s stand, I was drawn to his deep, green bottles of Organic Extra-Virgin Olive Oil. (A good sign that his olive oil is top-notch: olive oil should be in dark green or brown bottles or cans. Never in clear glass bottles where it can deteriorate quickly from light.)
Before the pandemic, Abdel was able to offer tastings of his organic extra virgin olive oil. Accepting a chunk of artisan bread dipped in his olive oil, I sniffed the golden droplets of liquid sinking into the bread before plopping it into my mouth. Images of his family’s olive grove came through the aroma and a lovely peppery finish lingered on my taste buds. I was sold.
Instead of telling me stories like Scheherazade, Abdel, kept my attention (and taste buds) captivated by offering me another cube of bread. This time he dipped it into a dish of his organic extra virgin olive oil mixed with his red zaatar (also spelled za’atar). As he told me of its ingredients and the many ways to use it, I was savoring its explosion of flavors. Sumac gives it its red coloring, he said, as well as a burst of fresh lemon. The other ingredients are roasted thyme, roasted sesame seeds, cumin, coriander, fennel, anise and sea salt. He also offers green zaatar which omits the sumac.
Along with its use as a dipping spice, he said, you can also use it to rub onto vegetables, meats and fish after spraying or tossing them with olive oil, mix into salad dressings, eggs before cooking … the culinary creations are endless.
By now we understood each other. Both nodding, Abdel added a jar of his red zaatar to my bottle of his organic extra virgin olive oil, as well as a jar of sumac. Since that day many years ago, sumac has become my go-to spice. I don’t think I’ve made a fish dish (especially tuna, swordfish and salmon) without sprinkling its terra-cotta-colored and lemony-flavored grains on top or have I finished a platter of hummus, deviled eggs or smoked trout spread without it.
Abdel was born in Tunis, the capitol of Tunisia. By the age of seven, he and his family moved to Hammamet, in the southeastern section, which because of its beaches is a popular tourist destination. It’s very cosmopolitan, Abdel says, and is a favorite destination of Europeans, especially with the French, Italians and Spanish, many of whom winter their yachts there.
It’s also where his family’s olive grove is and where his mother’s couscous (a Tunisian and Middle Eastern specialty, is always a feast. Their olive grove was started by his grandfather more than 70 years ago, Abdel says. No preservatives or chemicals are used in the growing or pressing of the olives, he says, and the groves and extra virgin olive oil are U.S. certified organic.
After graduating with a degree in finance, Abdel headed to Temple University in Philadelphia where he earned a master’s degree in actuarial science. But it wasn’t long after that that Abdel thought he’d like importing and selling his family’s organic extra virgin olive oil better. Like Mediterranean cuisines, olive oil is key to Tunisian cooking as well as the key to cooking in other Middle Eastern countries.
In 2010 he opened a stand at the Doylestown Farmers’ Market, and in the same year, at the Stockton Farmers’ Market. (Since then he’s added five other farmers’ markets: Lower Makefield, Emmaus, Philadelphia at Christ Church, Kennett Square and Rehoboth.) In his cookbook “Simple,” celebrated chef and cookbook author Yotam Ottolenghi lists his 10 must-have spices. You’ll find four of them at Mediterranean Delicacies: sumac, harissa, zaatar and preserved lemons. Abdel goes Ottolenghi one better and dives deeper into the Middle Eastern cuisine, offering spices from his homeland of Tunisia, as well as those used in the cuisines of Lebanon, Turkey, Morocco and Syria.
Abdel’s Traditional Hruss is but one that he offers. It blends sun-dried chili pepper, garlic, cumin, coriander, caraway, sea salt and extra virgin olive oil, and is made fresh twice weekly. Like sumac, it gives any dip or dish its umami thrill. Another is Ras el-Hanout. It’s a blend of sea salt, cumin, ginger, turmeric, cinnamon, black pepper, white pepper, coriander, cayenne pepper, allspice, nutmeg and cloves. It works wonders in stews and tangines, marinades and rubs. Baharat is the Arabic word for a Middle Eastern blend of spices, commonly known as Lebanese 7-Spice Blend. Abdel has this, too. Another Mediterranean spice blend is Traditional Harissa, made in small batches twice a week, it lends an undeniable flavor and texture when cooking, in dips or in finishing sauces.
Eating mezze, or small plates, writes noted, Middle Eastern cookbook author Claudia Roden, “is one of the most appealing features of Middle Eastern way of life. … The word “mezze” derives from the Arabic t’mazza, meaning “to savor in little bites.” Mezze are to be enjoyed in an unhurried way. The pleasure of savoring the food in convivial company and beautiful surroundings is accompanied by feelings of peace and serenity, and sometimes by deep meditation.”
Abdel offers several authentic Middle Eastern delicacies by which you can create your own mezze. Fancy Makdous Pickles, a traditional Syrian dish, is prepared by stuffing baby eggplants with chopped walnuts, ground red pepper, salt, garlic and preserving in olive oil and vinegar, is but one. You’ll find jars of pickled baby cucumbers, pickled green chili peppers, oil-cured black olives and black olive spread, among others. One of my favorites is his Turkish grilled, green cracked olives—totally addictive, both as a mezze or addition to a salad or pasta.
An array of his Middle Eastern delicacies makes entertaining easy and a pleasure. The “convivial company and beautiful surroundings” are up to you. Bel Hana Wel Shefa!
For more information, including all the products Abdel offers, visit: mediterraneandelicacy.com or visit Abdel or his wife, Zeinab, at one of their farmers’ markets; 267-240-0184; email: delicious@mediterraneandelicacy.com.
Diana Cercone is an area freelance writer who specializes in food, art and travel.