True Taste of Middle East
Menu at Simsim restaurants stresses regional authenticity
SOURCE: THE SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE
BY: NICOLE SOURS LARSON
Ibrahim Alsharief, executive chef and co-founder of Simsim Outstanding Shawarma, stepped into his immaculate white and stainless steel kitchen to find the spices for chicken shish kebab, a new menu item at Simsim’s recently opened Carmel Mountain Ranch location. As he pulled down sealed, labeled plastic bins, he explained that spices are the key to high quality, authentic shawarma and Middle Eastern food.
“One of my biggest challenges for creating recipes for Simsim was finding good spices,” Alsharief said.
What is shawarma? It’s a classic Middle Eastern dish, made of beef, lamb or chicken that’s first marinated with spices for 24 hours before it’s compressed into a cone-like shape and roasted on a vertical spit. After cooking, it’s sliced and served as a sandwich in flatbread, as a platter or in a bowl with accompanying rice, salads and sauces. Simsim mixes slices of two-thirds beef, one-third lamb for its shawarma, taking no shortcuts in the traditional techniques.
You might think you know this staple of the regional cuisine if you’ve ever had a gyro at a Greek restaurant. But shawarma, made from whole cuts of meat, is distinct from gyro. Gyro meat, made of mixed lamb and/or beef or chicken, is ground and processed with seasonings and usually bread crumbs. It’s formed into a large cone-shaped meat loaf before being roasted on a vertical rotisserie and then sliced into strips. Many restaurants offering gyros serve commercially made products shipped frozen from national suppliers.
The inspiration for Simsim — which means sesame in Arabic, the basis for tahini, a key ingredient in hummus — was the lack of authentically flavored and prepared shawarma in the San Diego region.
Nawar Miri, Simsim’s co-founder and CEO, developed the concept for the fast-casual restaurant with three partners, also of Middle Eastern origin, who had attended the University of San Diego.
“I didn’t see anyone here doing true Middle Eastern food. I thought the authenticity was missing. We’re trying to do food that anyone would feel good about eating, everyday Middle Eastern food. Everything is fresh, made from scratch, with really good quality ingredients,” explained Miri, who grew up in Detroit in an Iraqi Chaldean family.
Middle Eastern food, he said, is often confused with Mediterranean cuisine. The two are near cousins and have much in common in their use of lean proteins, olive oil and fresh produce. But Middle Eastern food is distinctive in its emphasis on spices, such as cardamom, cinnamon, coriander, cloves, cumin, ginger, sumac, saffron, za’atar and even curry, many of which were brought to the region along the Silk Road in the middle ages. Another difference is the Middle Eastern cuisine’s variety of dips, spreads and sauces.
The most prominent of the dips are: hummus, based on garbanzos; muhammara, based on red pepper and walnuts; and baba ghanoush and moutabel, both based on eggplant. Simsim offers these spreads, served with flatbreads cooked on the ancient round saj grill, along with a selection of freshly made sauces, using tahini, garlic, cucumber yogurt and roasted tomatoes.
To achieve their goal of authentic Middle Eastern food and especially shawarma, Miri and his partners needed to find the right chef. After surveying the talent available in the United States, they concluded they needed to bring in a chef raised and trained in Middle Eastern culinary traditions. Two partners who had ties to Kuwait undertook the chef search, inviting 15 to 20 chefs from the Gulf region to provide a tasting menu in their homes.
Finally, they found Alsharief, now 36, a Jordanian raised in Kuwait who had trained in the kitchens of five-star international hotels in Kuwait and Dubai while completing high school and university degrees in hotel management and marketing. He had also helmed the Kuwait branch launch of the Paris gourmet specialty shop Fauchon. At the time of his recruitment, he was executive chef at the Intercontinental Hotel in Amman, Jordan. But, most importantly, he had developed his love of cooking and absorbed Middle Eastern cuisine from his mother.
Alsharief arrived in San Diego two years ago, in time to design the bright, efficient kitchen for Simsim’s first location in Clairemont Mesa, which opened in August 2018, followed by the larger Carmel Mountain Ranch restaurant in November.
While preparing to open the first restaurant, Alsharief and Miri had to tackle the task of finding essential suppliers. For spices, they ultimately opted to order directly from the Middle East since they couldn’t identify an appropriate U.S. bulk supplier. Alsharief roasts his own spices, grinding them in an old-fashioned coffee grinder, the kind often seen in supermarkets, and makes his own blends.
Finding a reliable supplier of halal meats — butchered according to Muslim practice — was also critical. Miri explained that they tried four or five suppliers before finding the right one in Los Angeles.
Equipped with the essentials, Simsim Outstanding Shawarma is now proud to provide San Diegans with authentic Middle Eastern “everyday” fare, prepared fresh for an ever-growing audience of satisfied fans.
Simsim Outstanding Shawarma
Locations: 7051 Clairemont Mesa Blvd. and 11640 Carmel Mountain Road
Phone: (858) 430-6717
Online: www.eatsimsim.com
Sources for Middle Eastern foods
San Diego boasts a number of Arab and international markets offering an array of products. These include Balboa International Market, 5905 Balboa Ave.; Harvest International Market, 4220 Balboa Ave.; Mid East Market, 4595 El Cajon Blvd.; and three North Park Produce locations, 3551 El Cajon Blvd. in San Diego, 432 E. Chase Ave. in El Cajon, and 12342 Poway Road in Poway.
For spices, Nawar Miri recommends shopping at Indian groceries, which offer a broad array, especially Miramar Cash & Carry, 9262 Miramar Road.
Spinach Salad
Labneh, a soft cheese made from yogurt, is available in Arab or international markets or well-stocked supermarkets, or you can make your own from yogurt. Adding sugar to the water for any green vegetable preserves its green color.
Makes 1 serving as entrée or 2 servings as appetizer
1 teaspoon sugar
2 bunches fresh spinach, washed, stems removed
2 ounces (about 4 tablespoons) olive oil
2 cloves garlic, diced
1/4 white onion, diced
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
2 tablespoons Labneh (for garnish)
1 or 2 lemon slices, thinly sliced and quartered (for garnish)
5 or 6 thin strips red bell pepper (for garnish)
Boil water in a 4-quart or larger saucepan. Add sugar. Add spinach and blanch for 1-2 minutes. Drain and form spinach into a ball to squeeze out moisture. Set aside.
Heat olive oil in a medium skillet on medium heat. Add garlic and onion and sauté for about three minutes or until golden. Add spinach to the skillet, stirring well, and cook until the spinach is tender. Season with salt and pepper.
Place on serving dish and, using a pastry bag or small spoon, arrange Labneh around the salad. Garnish with sliced lemon quarters and strips of red bell pepper.
Tandoori Chicken Shish Kebab
Curry spices are used in Middle Eastern cooking, the result of long Indian culinary influence.
Makes 1 large skewer for 1-2 servings
1 tablespoon curry powder
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon ground coriander
2 ounces (about 4 tablespoons) olive oil
1 9-ounce chicken breast, boneless and skinless
2 small red chiles
In a medium mixing bowl mix spices and olive oil together for about 2-3 minutes. Cut chicken breast into 4-5 chunks of equal size. Add chicken to bowl and cover thoroughly with marinade mixture. Cover bowl and let marinate in refrigerator for 3-4 hours or longer.
When ready to cook, thread chicken pieces onto a metal or wooden skewer, interspersed with red chiles. Grill over a charcoal (preferred) or gas grill until fully cooked, about 7-8 minutes.
Saffron Rice
Middle Eastern rice is known for its spices. Ghee, or clarified butter, is available for sale in Arab or international markets or at Trader Joe’s.
Makes 10-12 servings
2 1/2 cups Basmati long grain rice
4 tablespoons ghee or clarified butter
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon saffron threads
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cardamom
1 teaspoon ground cloves
1 or 2 bay leaves
5 cups water
Place rice in a large mixing bowl and cover with cold water. Soak for 20 minutes. Strain, using a fine mesh strainer, and rinse thoroughly with fresh water for 1 minute. Let rice drain and set aside.
Add ghee to a large, shallow stainless steel pan and heat on high for 2 minutes. Add rice, salt and spices to the pan. Add 5 cups water at once, stirring well, and bring mixture to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to low and cook about 20 minutes until tender. Remove bay leaves before serving.
Recipes courtesy of Ibrahim Alsharief, executive chef of Simsim Outstanding Shawarma.