Aug. 06--Malnourishment and junk food concern every parent. While they can be fought with healthier alternatives, it is often a challenge for parents to convince children to actually eat their greens, their homemade pizza and their raw vegetables. Instead of forcing your child to eat healthy food, Kuwaiti culinary artist and nutritional healer Adlah Al-Sharhan suggests a better fun alternative: get them involved in preparing their own meals.
Watch out! Kids in kitchen
Stemmed from her belief that children are half-starved because they are not exposed to good food, Adlah held a cooking class for kids. I attended one of the sessions last week held at her kitchen. The kids cooked their own pasta and pizza from scratch: they rolled the dough, prepared the sauce and the toppings and listened dutifully to her instructions. At first timid and shy because of my presence, the kids took the floor halfway through the session.
First they made the pizza dough which basically consists of flour, warm water and a dash of olive oil. Adlah demonstrated how to make the dough and then watched over as the kids worked on their own. When the dough was ready, it was time to move for the sauce. While little Rakan started cutting the tomatoes, Eissa prepared the food processor. After the tomatoes were pureed and added to the saucepan, Adlah added a few spices to make the sauce. The kids were kept engaged throughout with Adlah asking them ques
tions on why certain ingredients are added to the process of making the sauce. "We add sugar because tomatoes are highly acidic," put in Faisal.
Very knowledgeable about the fine ingredients of gourmet food, Faisal effortlessly recited the ingredients of pasta dough -- 200 grams of flour, two eggs and one egg yolk -- and did not hesitate to ask for black truffle oil for his pasta. He briefed me on the spices of Seychelles he collected while on a vacation with his family there and eagerly told me about the fruit bat he had tasted there, a local delicacy of the Seychelles Island. He knew much more than I did about cooking and food!
Selective gourmet
Young Rakan, whom I came to learn is very picky about the food he eats, was very enthusiastic about preparing his pasta. He opted for a pink sauce made of tomatoes and cream. When his food was ready he savored it -- all of it. The secret, Adlah says, is to let kids participate in the process of making the food. "If you start to introduce cooking slowly to kids, you will find them choosing homemade food over unhealthy junk food," she said.
The chef is currently working on two cookbooks that she will release soon. The first features her own take on Kuwaiti recipes, featuring renditions of classic dishes as they were prepared by her mother and grandmothers. The second cookbook will target guys; it will include only four to five ingredients and simple steps that guys can follow on their own to barbecue food. "My intention is to create possibilities for guys at chalets and camps to eat healthy food. When my brothers are alone in chalet they'd en
d up ordering junk food or eating canned tuna, while a delicious healthy meal is very easy to prepare" she said.
A culinary artist with a dynamic spirit, Adlah Al-Sharhan is a Kuwaiti icon in her own right. She is the co-founder of Umami culinary school, the first state-of-the-art cooking school in Kuwait. Knowledgeable about international cuisines and passionate about local food, Adlah is a true pioneer in the culinary field. Extremely down to earth, her humility will make you feel like you have known her forever after just your first meeting. Adlah hosted a TV cooking show and wrote a book on how to make healthy ba
lanced meals that was published by a local private clinic.
Cooking with passion
Passionate about food from a very young age, Adlah's background helped her immensely in honing her culinary talent. With a BA in Ecopsychology, a diploma in nutritional healing, an MA in hotel and restaurant management specializing in culinary art, and a degree from Le Cordon Bleu as well as work experience in an institute that belongs to world renowned chef Gordon Ramsay, she established herself as a Grade A chef. Adlah promotes her classes by word of mouth, and the class timings are usually by appointme
nt.
Speaking about the restaurant market in Kuwait, Adlah notes that it is unstable in constant flux. Because of people's appreciation for trendy eateries, there is quite a lot in Kuwait. "You never know when a trend is going out of fashion in Kuwait," said the chef.
With regard to the quality of food in the restaurant industry, Adlah noted that while there is premium quality food available in the market, it is overpriced. "A pack of blueberries costs triple the amount in other Gulf states. How are people expected to eat healthy if the available food is overpriced?" she asked, noting that people will certainly choose the affordable not-so-healthy (and often times not-at-all-healthy) alternative.
hussain@kuwaittimes.net
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