Get up in the morning, walk to the kitchen, the first thing, drink water, the second thing, eat thyme!
The Olive Season in Palestine, tearing a slice of bread, dipping it in the freshest olive oil, and pairing it with thyme (Arabic pronunciation Zaater), a movement that runs through the palestinians throughout the year, adds to the fragrance of olives at this moment.
Speaking of thyme, the earliest classic old song that has been loved since the student days, the one that is repeatedly chanted:
Are you going to Scarborough Fair? Parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme.
Parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme, four spices that were once unknown, became my daily companion during my years on the West Coast.
And thyme, a homophone with time time, is my favorite that I can't leave for a day. Really, love thyme, love West Coast time!
The thyme pictured below is planted in a country vegetable garden. Every time I go back to the countryside, I pick some. In March this year, one or two plants were also planted on the balcony, and the small ones have yet to grow slowly.
As a famous spice in the Middle East, thyme has high nutritional and medicinal value and is also rich in eating.
When we don't go back to the countryside, we buy a lot of fresh ones, pluck the leaves, and use them to make salads or pie fillings.
Salads are practiced according to personal preference. I usually add some white cheese (salty) from here, add some shallots, drizzle with olive oil and lemon juice, and eat it directly. (Below)
If there were a lot of thyme, it would be used to make pies. It's also very simple, put some salt and green onion (amount yourself), add olive oil, then wrap it in the dough and bake it.
The more common, more Palestinian characteristic and representative of Palestinian specialties is to dry the leaves of thyme and add some other materials to make thyme powder.
Sometimes, we also do it ourselves, especially after picking a lot of thyme leaves from the countryside.
The picture below was taken when I made it before: the leaves are dried completely and then beaten into pieces.
Then crush the sumac fruit into sumac powder (this step can actually buy sumac powder directly). Sumac is a sour Middle Eastern spice.
Mix the minced thyme, drizzle with the right amount of fresh olive oil, add the sautéed white sesame seeds and sumac powder and sprinkle some salt.
In this way, the Palestinians' favorite Zaater is ready. When I go to the store to buy it, there are also thyme without olive oil, and I generally like to buy olive oil, so it is convenient to eat.
How to eat such thyme? I eat more.
You see, I actually added it to the avocado and ate it directly. Also, cutting some white cheese, sprinkling some thyme, and adding some olive oil is also particularly delicious.
Of course, we can't forget the most distinctive thyme flatbread manaqish here, which is the picture below, which is actually very similar to pizza, but it is just a lot of thyme and olive oil on it, and then baked.
I always like to improve it, for example, sometimes put some tomato sauce, or chili sauce, or sprinkle some green onions, and every time the manaqish can eat a different feeling.
I also have a personal hobby of eating thyme as a snack. I also forgot when it started, I really like to go to the kitchen with nothing to do, and then eat a spoonful of thyme, which is how to eat empty mouth.
And I'll add more sesame seeds to it, so it's even more delicious when I eat it empty!
Today, I have become the person who loves thyme the most in the family and is most inseparable from thyme. The brother said: Mom, you really love Zaater more than the Palestinians.
Yeah, unconsciously, so deeply, in love with thyme, in love with the West Coast time.
Salam, this is Palestine.