If you’re Jordanian – or have had the privilege of visiting the kingdom – you know that mansaf is everything.
For any non-Jordanians, mansaf is a typical Jordanian bedouin dish that is served mostly during large gatherings. It consists of: rice, lamb meat, jameed (fermented dried yogurt), shrak bread and pine nuts.
When the dish is put in front of you, the rice and meat will be served together. The jameed sauce or sharab will be placed in a separate bowl. Going back to old-school bedouin traditions, the head of the family needs to pour the sharab for guests.
Jordanians take mansaf very seriously. Apart from the fact that it is usually consumed with your hands, there are a bunch of rules you must follow while eating this delicious meal.
Allow me to explain...
1. Use one hand only
Don’t stick both hands in there its just very wrong, disgusting and disrespectful.
2. Stand horizontally
This way you make more space for other guests to fit around the table.
3. Mark your territory
Always inform the person on your left and right how much you will be eating. Make a triangle so no one eats from your side!
4. Master the art of dahbara
With your hand, take some rice and meat, which by then would be drenched in sharab, and squeeze all the ingredients together until you can form a ball.
5. Keep it as hygienic as you can
Don’t go lick your fingers after every ball. After you make a perfect ball of heaven, pop it in your mouth without letting your fingers touch the mouth.
6. Stop when you’re full
If you don’t stop when you’re full you can suffer many side effects that include: sleepiness, bloating, trouser popping and forgetting names... or even your way back home!
Still confused? You can find a full tutorial on YouTube !