If you are ticking off the boxes of the foods you have to eat before you die, then taking a flight to these destinations is right up there. This choice is indeed amazing and overwhelming in the world…do put it to delicious use!
IRISH STEW, DUBLIN, IRELAND
The Irish have some of the best meals around in my book, and if you are a meat and potatoes kind of person who has been eating pasta instead, you better try this out. Traditional Irish stew is lamb with potatoes, usually prepared with carrots, leeks, onion, parsnips and rutabaga. For those determined to continue the rich Guinness flavour in their meal, one could go for the recipe in which some stout is added along with the stock for some true traditional Irish taste. Unlike other savoury stews the meat is not first browned and therefore the broth is not dark. Also do not mistake Irish stew is not Irish Soup. It is a very thick broth, and the meal itself is heavy and filling.
BEST WAY TO ENJOY: It is an excellent meal and great with Irish soda bread, sourdough bread, Guinness or black tea.
ORANGES, VALENCIA-SPAIN
World renowned for their sweetness, size and extraordinary colour, as a result of the unique colour of the juice many bottled orange juices are made from Valencia oranges (also known as Murcia) because people love the bright colour of the juice from these oranges. Although now grown throughout the world, you can still not better Valencia oranges grown and harvested in their native soil. This is because Valencia has enough sunlight and well-drained and acidic soil.
BEST WAY TO ENJOY: Honestly they look too perfect to eat , but then the chances of them remaining untouched, once you see them, are slim indeed…
TRUFFLES, ALBA-ITALY
King of piedmonts’ gastronomy is undoubtedly the white Alba truffle, rare and precious, characterized by an unmatched intense aroma and taste! These truffles are sold at a high price tag throughout the European continent are generally the most sought after. Interestingly it is at times also referred to as the ‘Diamond’ of the culinary world, also because truffle is a seasonal product and it fruits only during the two autumn months. As they are to be dug from below the ground level it is not easy to hunt these tubers. Farmers use dogs that are naturally skilled to sniff well and make excellent hunters of truffles.
BEST WAY TO ENJOY: It is excellent to enhance the flavour of dishes such as fresh home-made pasta prepared in the old-fashioned way.
ORGANIC GARDEN, SONEVA FUSHI-MALDIVES
A panoramic westerly aspect over the gardens and surrounding jungle affords spectacular views- Don’t forget your camera.Every effort is made to find ingredients of the highest quality and have them delivered to the island as pure and fresh as they might have been served at their place of origin. Also I guess they benefit from the abundance of fresh fish available in the Maldives. The majority of vegetables are grown on the island itself. 100% of produce harvested from the gardens of Soneva Fushi is organic.
BEST WAY TO ENJOY: With the organic vegetable garden, Six Senses Soneva Fushi complements all menus with the freshest possible leaves and herbs.
CHOCOLATES, BRUGGES-BELGIUM
Brugge a beautiful, romantic little medieval town, could possibly be described as a mix between Amsterdam and Venice, with many waterways and stone bridges Swans swim through all the canals and horses with carriages trot down the streets- it’s so cute! Belgium is famous for its chocolate and 'The Chocolate Line’ is known as one of the best chocolate shops in Bruges (if not Belgium). It does come at a cost but the quality and combination of flavours are brilliant. Every flavour imaginable seems to be represented in some way, even Wasabi which was fabulous. Additionally to pralines the chocolate line offers different kinds of chocolate from different countries from South America. One can find white, milk and dark chocolate with different amounts of cocoa.
BEST WAY TO ENJOY: The chocolate line does a variety of spice based chocolates, I particular loved the cinnamon one but they also had lemongrass, chilli all bringing out a complex and fascinating symphony to play on the taste buds.
CHILLI CRAB, SINGAPORE
These tasty crustaceans are almost Singapore’s national dish. You would get the best ones at Long Beach (on Dempsey Hill). This restaurant stands out from the numerous sea-food specialty restaurants dotting the city. Live crabs will be weighed in front of you and then taken in for cooking. Seeing you ponder how best to attack the shell, the waiter will promptly slid on his plastic gloves and deftly dissected it for you. The exact sauce recipe is a closely guarded secret, but usually it consists of garlic, ginger, fresh red chilli, honey added to a rich tomato sauce, finished with chicken eggs.
BEST WAY TO ENJOY: with steamed buns.
SOUP DUMPLINGS, TAIPEI-TAIWAN
Made from unraised flour, the dumpling skins appear almost translucent. The broth is in gelatine form and when the dumplings are steamed, it becomes juicy and hot, pouring flavour into your mouth when you bite into its delicate, doughy skin. It is fun to watch the chefs make tons of dumplings through a big glass window and the dumplings even came with instructions which are rather helpful. One is supposed to poke a hole in the soup dumpling and drain the broth into their spoon, sip on the broth, and then eat the dumpling. All in all the dumplings are top notch, with the perfect ratio of meat filling and soup, and a super thin dumpling skin. These “Soup dumplings” (Xiao long Bao) at the legendary “Din Tai Fung” restaurant In Taipei are a must try. Although there many branches of Din Tai Fung worldwide, this original branch in Taipei cannot be beaten.
BEST WAY TO ENJOY: Steamed dumplings filled with pork or shrimp dipped in vinegar soy sauce; it makes me still pucker with joy just thinking of it!
DUTCH PANCAKES, AMSTERDAM- HOLLAND
The pancakes here are somewhere in between a pancake and a crepe, but delicious, very large, and come with a mouth-watering variety of toppings. On offer are all types of flavours you can choose from like strawberry, blueberry, apple cinnamon, chocolate and strawberry, etc. The savoury ones are with eggs, meats and cheeses. The star of the show however is the one with ham and cheese or try the one with chocolate sauce and whipped cream.
BEST WAY TO ENJOY: with a steaming hot cup of coffee.
BON APETIT!!!
- RUPALI DEAN
