Palestinian chef gets a taste for Chinese food

GAZA－Ibrahim Badwan, one of the best known Palestinian chefs in the coastal enclave, is leading a new trend in his local community－cooking Chinese food.

For many years, the young Palestinian man worked at prominent restaurants as he specialized in making various kinds of Arabic and international dishes.

Two years ago, Badwan and other Gazans, were forced to stay at home when the local authorities imposed a full lockdown on the region to curb the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The 30-year-old chef says he decided to invest leisure time in learning new international dishes that he would prepare after the lockdown was over. The Chinese dishes were among his new interests.

"I like this cuisine so much as it contains all healthy ingredients," Badwan says, adding that he then came up with the idea of learning more about the cuisine.

"I found that Chinese food is nutritional and balanced, and provides everything your body and metabolism needs."

Chinese cuisine is rich in vitamins and proteins, as it relies heavily on vegetables, meat and fish and rice.

Vegetables are widely included in most Chinese dishes and they are not fully cooked to retain their nutritional benefits and distinctive fresh taste.

The young chef was determined to spread the culture of Chinese cuisine among Gazans and joined several online workshops.

"I spent about a year learning my new dishes.… Once I finished cooking, I took photos of them and posted them online with their names and ingredients," he says while standing in his kitchen ready to prepare a Chinese dish.

"I have prepared lots of famous Chinese dishes, such as spring roll, noodles, shrimp and fish, as well as many other delicious dishes."

When he posted his Chinese recipes online, he received hundreds of comments, with some asking how he managed to integrate them into the Palestinian culture.

"I answered their questions and told them about the benefits of Chinese food, which is healthy and delicious. The only thing we need is to accept other cultures and try them, then we will taste new food and recognize a new culture without even leaving our area," he adds.

Now, he organizes dozens of workshops to teach others how to prepare Chinese food.

Samah al-Masri, a woman in her 30s in Gaza, was one of his students. She says she was happy to adopt a new recipe for her dining table, after finishing her lessons with Badwan.

"Some Chinese dishes are compatible with the Palestinian culture, especially those characterized by spicy taste," she says.

Badwan says he hopes to open a restaurant in Gaza specializing in Chinese cuisine, and have the opportunity to import Chinese ingredients from abroad to let locals enjoy its original taste. It is difficult for Gazans to find all Chinese ingredients in the coastal enclave.

"Gaza is a tourism area and someday we will have a chance to live in peace and we will receive tourists (from) around the world, then I will let them enjoy these dishes for sure," the chef says.

Xinhua