A Taste of Famagusta by A Taste of Famagusta

A TASTE OF FAMAGUSTA

A TASTE OF FAMAGUSTA The Book

CYPRUS 2015

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“Ask not what you can do for your country. Ask what’s for lunch.” Orson Welles

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a small intro

A Taste of Famagusta is a video project that was conceived by Renewal, in collaboration with Crewhouse Media. Its aim was to use culinary culture as a tool with which to explore the identity of the greater Famagusta region, a region whose people have been divided for almost sixty years. At the same time, A Taste of Famagusta sought to create the opportunity for the people of the two communities to come together around a table. Food, in Famagusta, is placed at the centre of human experience. The tradition around it is a rich one, as the region’s land is extremely fertile. In the southern part of the region lie kocchinochorka, literally translating to ‘red villages’. The name denotes the rich, red soil that produces excellent vegetables such as potatoes, cucumbers, and fruits such as watermelons. In the northern side of the region lies the broad Mesaoria/Mesarya plain that produces cereals and, further on, lies the peninsula of Karpasia/ Karpaz, that produces excellent olives and olive oil, cereals, carobs and pomegranates. But beyond the raw materials, what makes food special in the region is the important role it plays in shaping social interactions, conviviality being a very common trait among the inhabitants of the rural and urban areas of greater Famagusta. Our aim was to investigate the relationship the region and its inhabitants have with food. We felt that it was the people of the area themselves that had to portray all the ways in which their lives are influenced by food and vice versa. We followed four inhabitants of the region in their adventures of exploration of food, of the self and of the ‘other’.

Polyvios and Nurtane were given a challenge by Mr Hüseyin and Mrs Giorgoulla, who had prepared for them a surprise recipe each. These were traditional recipes, commonly prepared in their respective communitites. The challenge, for Polyvios and Nurtane, was to try these dishes and reproduce them as faithfully as possible. Their task was to find out what these dishes were, what ingredients they contained and how to recreate the very same taste. They helped each other in every stage of this process. Finally, once they managed to recreate the recipes, they presented them to Mr Hüseyin and Mrs Giorgoulla who hosted a big Sunday lunch together with friends and family. It was an amusing and heart-warming journey, through which everyone involved discovered something about themselves and something about the others. They found out quite a bit about the past, the present and, perhaps, the future; and at the same time about their land, and their island. This book accompanies the video series, adding some information that could not make the final cuts, expanding on things that were dealt with only briefly on camera and also documenting the entire process. We threw in the recipes as a bonus, so do try them out. We hope that through this project the reader will get a better taste of Famagusta. The Renewal team

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Mete Hatay

APPETITES ACROSS THE DIVIDE

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Throughout history and across the world, food and drink are the lubricants of social interaction. This applies also to the field of diplomacy, where a round of drinking or daring to eat another’s cuisine, may break down many barriers. One of the best known examples for Cyprus was when, in the early 2000s, the late President Glafkos Clerides agreed to meet Turkish Cypriot leader Rauf Denktaş in the north if the latter promised to provide the Turkish sweet ekmek kadayifi. Political theorist Costas Constantinou calls this “gastronomic diplomacy” and demonstrates that it has a history stretching at least to Rome and the ancient Greeks (1996). For former enemies, eating and drinking together has been one of the main ways of sealing peace agreements. But just as food brings people together, so it may divide or marginalize them, especially when religious rules impede sharing a table with people of another faith. Religious Muslims and Jews may avoid Christian homes because of the use of pork, while for Hindus in South Asia eating meat would be a reason to stay away from Muslim houses. In the urban centers, food restrictions such as those found in kosher and halal codes often cause those who abide by those rules to remain imprisoned in their own neighborhoods. In Cyprus, as well, food has at times united and at other times divided. In the past, not only were religious food restrictions divisive, but in some cases certain common foods and drinks became sources of conflict for nationalists. The best known instance of this is the Turkish coffee/Greek coffee argument — an argument eventually resolved with the vast majority of people calling it Cypriot coffee. However, one could argue that even before the checkpoints opened, food was already uniting Cypriots, as on either side of the dividing line the two sides

began discovering their differences from their respective “motherlands” (Turkey and Greece). A new Cypriot identity began to emerge in the 1990s, that often used gastronomic symbols, such as halloumi/hellim and Cyprus cognac, in contrast to the feta/beyaz peynir and ouzo/ rakı of Greece and Turkey. When the checkpoints opened in 2003, eating and drinking were the first things on many people’s minds. For some, it was eating at the harbors in Limassol and in Kyrenia, that they had not seen for almost three decades. For others, it was eating and drinking with former friends and neighbors. The love for food was one of the things that almost any Cypriot would have said tied them together as islanders. Moreover, most people assumed that, apart from a few minor and well-known exceptions, such as old Turkish Cypriots not eating pork, the cuisines of the two communities were the same. Imagine, then, the surprise of younger Turkish Cypriots when, in this period, they cooked what they consider to be their national dish, molehiya or mulihiya and presented it with all the pride of a common Cypriot identity to their Greek Cypriot guests — only to discover that Greek Cypriots had no idea what this food was! Molehiya is a dish made from the fresh or dried leaves of the plant Corchorus olitorius, which grows wild in the fields in Cyprus and is picked in the late summer. These days, it is also cultivated, as it is widely consumed by Turkish Cypriots and cooked as a stew with lamb or chicken. Legend has it, the dish was a favorite of the pharaohs and drawings of its leaves adorn walls in the pyramids. As one of the participants of A Taste of Famagusta, Hüseyin, remarks, the etymology of molehiya may be 7

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related to malik in Arabic, which means a landowner or a king. It is also considered the Egyptian national dish, though it is cooked there as a soup rather than a stew (Hatay 2005). Similarly, the dish is part of Palestinian and Lebanese cuisine. Interestingly, despite being a favorite dish in a number of Arab countries, the English name for the plant is “Jew’s mallow”. No one knows how the dish arrived in Cyprus, or why it is eaten almost exclusively by Turkish Cypriots,. Some speculate that it may have been because of intermarriage with Arabs from neighboring countries or because of Egyptian cotton laborers working οn the island. In any case, the dish reached the island and Turkish Cypriots now consider it their “patriotic dish”, something distinguishing their own cuisine from that of Turkey, where molehiya is unknown. As a result, with the opening of the checkpoints, they experienced the disappointment of discovering that their most beloved “cypriot” dish was not one that they shared with their Greek Cypriot neighbors. Similarly, while Turkish Cypriots knew kolokasi as kolakas and still regularly use it in numerous dishes such as in stews and moussaka, it was only when the checkpoints opened that they learned about dishes such as kolokasi kapamas, that is cooked with sweet wine (a greek cypriot specialty from kocchinochorka). Although no one knows when the kolokasi plant arrived in Cyprus, the Roman historian Pliny (AD23-AD79) records it, and there are claims that Richard the Lionheart ate it at his wedding (Hatay 2006). Turkish historian Mehmet Akif Erdoğru also claims that it was widely cultivated during the Ottoman period (2010). It is a plant with roots across the region (going as far east as South Asia) and it was often used as a substitute for potatoes. When it first arrived in Cyprus in the middle of the 19th century it was called frenk kolokası, or frankish kolokasi. 8

In the west it is known as taro. The plant of kolokasi or colocasia esculenta is believed to have originated from East India and it gradually spread westward to Egypt and the eastern Mediterranean basin. Like molehiya, kolokasi is also not used in Greece and Turkey though some Cypriots who emigrated to Turkey in the 1930’s introduced it there (in Antalya it is called gülevez). It is also known that kolokasi is cultivated in the greek island of Icaria. Icarians even claim that kolokasi saved them from famine during the Second World War. Gradually, over the course of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, potatoes began to replace kolokasi as a staple, especially because the latter requires considerably more water— an important factor for an island as arid as Cyprus. Demetris Christodoulou (1959) wrote that at the end of the British period, kolokasi was mainly cultivated in Karpasia, around Vasilia, Cape Kormakiti and Morphou. However, today 85% of the plantations of kolokasi are concentrated in and around the small town of Sotira, in the district of Famagusta. A Greek Cypriot refugee from Karpasia once told me that one of the disappointments he had after he fled his village in 1974 was the dearth of kolokasi fields in southern Nicosia, where he was given temporary shelter. Although Turkish Cypriots also knew and loved kolakas, they didn’t use it in many dishes. The opening of the checkpoints opened up a new repertoire of tastes that had not been part of the Turkish Cypriot traditional cuisine because of religious sensitivities. Although they had known of grilled dishes such as souvlaki or seftalia, made with pork, they suddenly learned that there were other dishes of which they had no idea that were part of the cuisine they thought they shared with Greek Cypriots.

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While we know that Turkish Cypriots and Greek Cypriots share many common instances in their everyday habits, including their culinary traditions, it is often the minor differences such as those mentioned above that are exaggerated and instrumentalized to fuel conflicts. As a result, acknowledging, respecting and learning about these differences will undoubtedly enrich the common cypriot culture. In his discussion of what he calls “homo-diplomacy”, Constantinou asserts that diplomacy has a transformative potential, that in the act of respecting the other one is also opening oneself to the possibility of self-transformation (Constantinou 2006). If one of the oldest and most central forms of diplomacy is imbibing together, then surely learning the cuisine of the other is one of the most important forms of self-transformation.

References Costas M. Constantinou (1996), On the Way to Diplomacy, University of Minnesota Press. Costas M. Constantinou (2006), “On HomoDiplomacy.” Space and Culture 9: 351-364. Demetris Christdoulous (1959), “The Evolution of the rural land use pattern in Cyprus”, The World Land Use Survey – Monograph 2: Cyprus, Geographical Publication. Mete Hatay (2006), ‘The Levantine Legacy of Cypriot Culinary Culture’, The Cyprus Review, Vol. 18, No. 2, pp. 129-142. M. Arif Erdoğru (2010), Colocasia Production in Cyprus, Perspectives on Ottoman Studies: Papers from the 18th Symposium of the International Committee of Pre-Ottoman and Ottoman Studies, Berlin, pp. 641-645. 9

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introducing

THE ELDERS

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“Cooking is very important for a family. There’s something missing in families where mothers or grandmothers don’t cook. There are fewer opportunities for the family to meet and stay united.”

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GIORGOULLA SHOPAHA I am Giorgoulla Shopaha. I was born and raised in Deryneia., When I got married, fifty years ago, I moved to Frenaros. This is where I have my family, my house and my farm.

What do you do for a living? I have always been a farmer, ever since I was a child. We cultivate potatoes and watermelons. In the past, we used to cultivate many types of vegetables. How was it like being a child in the region of Famagusta in those days? When I graduated from primary school, I stayed at home to help my mother with the housework. At the same time, I was also working in our fields. Back in the old days, the daughters of the family would start working from a very young age. The housework back then was difficult. For example, we used to wash the clothes of the entire family – in my case, seven people in total – by hand in the stone washbasin. The first time I bought myself a washing machine was when I got married. In the fields too, work was difficult. Digging was done by hand, there weren’t any means of automatic irrigation, no technology at all. When did you learn how to cook? I started cooking when I was around twelve years old, right after I finished primary school. At the beginning, I was cooking along with my

mother, afterwards, on my own. Very soon, I took over almost all of the housework. We had a lot of work in the fields and we were a large family. So I had to learn how to cook on my own, as my mother was very busy working out of the house all day. You served Polyvios and Nurtane kapamas, which is one of your specialty. When did you learn how to cook it? I started cooking kapamas, at about the same time I learnt how to cook. At first, with the help of my mother. Then, at around the age of fourteen or fifteen, I started cooking it on my own. On which occasions did you cook kapamas? Kapamas used to be a winter dish. We would start cooking it in October, when kolokasi was in season and then throughout winter. Christmas was the time we used to cook it more often. Today, as our eating habits have changed, we don’t cook it so often. We used to have it on Sundays, but now we only cook it twice or three times a year, during the winter. How do you cook it? The ingredients of traditional kapamas are 13

kapamas A recipe that originates from the Eastern Mediterranean. There are many different variations of it, but it is commonly made with lamb and potatoes. The cypriot version usually contains onion, garlic, laurel and rosemary. A particular variation is cooked in the southern part of Famagusta, and is made with kolokasi and sweet red wine. See also p. 8

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lamb and kolokasi. Now, with our healthier eating regime, we usually prepare it with chicken instead of lamb. We first peel the kolokasi and then we cut it into thick wedges. Then, we marinate the wedges in sweet red wine. The secret for a good kapamas is the sweet red wine. Afterwards, we add some olive oil in a big pot and we fry the lamb and kolokasi. Then we add in the pot wine, salt, lemon juice and we cover with water. We let it simmer for a long time, until the juice becomes thick. Is this the way they cook it in the rest of Cyprus, too? This variation of kapamas is a specialty of the Famagusta region. They also used to cook it in Mesaoria. The reason why it’s considered a local dish of the area is because kolokasi is mainly produced in Sotira, a village in the Famagusta region. I buy most of my ingredients from the supermarket. When I cook it with chicken, I use the chickens that I breed myself. In case I add some potatoes in it – some of the children don’t like kolokasi – I get some from my own fields. kolokasi Taro root. In Cyprus, it grows primarily in southern Famagusta, in the socalled kocchinochorka (‘red villages’) region, particularly in Sotira, Frenaros and Liopetri. See also p. 8

Is it hard to grow kolokasi? Not very much. My family used to grow some in our fields for home use. But nowadays it is easier to just buy it from the market. What do you think is the value of sharing meals together for a family? Sharing meals is very important. It unites the family. It’s an opportunity for the grandmother to spend time with her grandchildren and the mother with her children. I cook for my family all the time. When my grandchildren get off from school, they often come to my house for lunch. If you didn’t cook for your family, do you believe it would make a difference? Yes, of course. I believe that there’s something missing in families where mothers or grandmothers don’t cook. If they don’t cook, there are fewer opportunities for the family to meet and stay united. Cooking is very important for a family. But younger generations are very busy working, even grandmothers nowadays often work. They may not have the time to do the things we used to do. But they may provide for their families in other ways. 14

You’ve met Polyvios and Nurtane. What are the major differences between their generation and yours? They have more opportunities than we had, especially in terms of education, travelling, meeting a lot of people. However, I do believe that, deep inside, we have quite a few similarities with younger generations. What about their eating habits, compared to yours? Young people nowadays are more demanding when it comes to food. We were more easy to please back then. After all, we didn’t have much of a choice, as we didn’t have the variety of food that is available nowadays. My generation was more frugal. In your opinion, which way of eating is healthier, yours or the younger generation’s? Without a doubt, the younger generation’s. We used to eat whatever was available. For example, we used to eat preserved meat and sausages, not such a healthy choice. We would slaughter a homegrown pig and eat everything that could be eaten from it. What will you remember from this project? It was a great experience and a lovely project! I met new people and I tasted dishes made by Turkish Cypriots. I also had the chance to visit the walled city of Famagusta, which I had never visited before.

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“Kapamas was a winter dish. We started cooking it in October when kolokasi was in season, and then throughout winter. Christmas was the time we used to cook it more often.”

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“Eating together enables us to talk about our lives, and what is going on in general. If we can’t do this at lunch, at least we should do it at dinner.”

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HÜSEYIN HERBSOY My name is Hüseyin Herbsoy. I was born in the village of Vadili, in Mesarya. I graduated from a vocational high school in Nicosia. While working, I managed to get a scholarship to study Hospitality. I got married in June 1971 and I have a son and a daughter.

What do you do for a living? I have always wanted to have my own restaurant. I worked in top restaurants with great people. But I recently managed to get my own place, where people with similar mindsets can experience good food. This is what I do now: I cook with passion and socialize with people in my own restaurant. What is the role of food in your life? The way to the heart is through food, and it is a joy to be able to feed people and make them happy. When did you first cook molehiya? Not long ago. While teaching the art of cooking to aspiring chefs, I used to also run a restaurant. My expertise was on international cuisine and I would dismiss local food as easy to make. As my wife is a good cook, she would always make molehiya. Years later, I decided to explore local food, and to cook molehiya for the first time. I gathered various recipes from a number of people and then adapted them to my own taste. Molehiya is very easy to find, as it has almost become a national dish among Turkish Cypriots. If you want to cook for your

loved ones, molehiya is one of the best things to prepare. When is molehiya cooked? Molehiya was traditionally cooked at village weddings, as it was easy to keep warm. Later on, it became a Sunday lunch tradition. They would cook molehiya with a rooster. However, times have changed and molehiya is cooked less and less; people prefer to cook quick meals. It is usually cooked during the winter and served at lunch, not at dinner, because it’s heavy to digest. In the summer, since we live in the Mediterranean, we have a wide variety of fruit and vegetables. Most of the time in the summer we’re satisfied with just eating watermelon and hellim. Where do you get the ingredients for molehiya? You can find fresh molehiya when in season from April to July, or buy it dry during the rest of the year. People often dry the fresh leaves and cook them throughout the winter, as it has good properties. It is free of pesticides and it is high in iron. It is served it with bulgur pilavi on the side. 17

molehiya It refers to Corchorus leaves, but is also the name of a dish originating from Egypt. The vegetable is cooked in the Middle East and North Africa. The most usual ways to cook it are as a stew or a soup, often accompanied with meat. See also pp. 7-8

bulgur pilavı A recipe popular in many regions of the Ottoman Empire. It is prepared with bulgur (cracked wheat) cooked in broth, fried onion and the optional addition of pasta and tomato.

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kısır A traditional turkish dish made with finely ground bulgur, parsley and tomato paste, with the optional additions of onion, garlic, pomengrenate molasses, lemon, cucumber and various spices. lahmacun From arabic, meaning ‘meat with dough’. A popular dish among Armenians, Syrians and Turks. It’s a baked round, thin piece of dough, topped with minced lamb or beef meat, onions, tomatoes and parsley.

Is molehiya a Cypriot dish? No, molehiya was brought by Egyptians to Larnaca and it was originally called melihiya, which means ‘food of the king’. After a long period of diseases, the Egyptians got better by eating molehiya, which grew on the banks of the Nile. Today, it feels like it is a Cypriot dish, as we Cypriots like to turn non-endemic things into Cypriot, including people and vegetables. For example, foreigners who live in Cyprus, play the ‘Dillirga’ and serve molehiya at their weddings, while we Cypriots cook kısır and lahmacun. Is there a difference between the eating habits of your generation and younger ones? One of our worst habits is eating fast food. I try to impose homemade food on my children and I know other people try to do this too. When I talk to high school children, I am happy to observe that although they eat fast food, they also eat traditional food, such as molehiya. I think Greek Cypriots are even worse in this. Although we, Turkish Cypriots, have lost many of our traditions, we still hang on to our food. Do you think the younger generations have a good knowledge of traditional Cypriot food? Younger people use the internet to find any kind of information they need. Unfortunately there is not much information online regarding traditional cypriot food. So it’s hard for them to have access to this knowledge. Do you think that it’s important for a family to share meals? Yes, it is. Eating together enables us to talk about our lives and about what is going on in general. If we can’t do this at lunch, we should at least do it at dinner. As islanders, we are very communicative. However, it’s hard to get the new generation together with the older one. I put pressure on my family to at least come together for Sunday meals, so we can spend time together and keep the family tradition going. Smartphones and the internet might have made communication easier but they’re keeping people apart. However, hope is not lost. The older generation is trying to preserve the face to face contact.

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“One of our worst habits is eating fast food. I try to impose homemade food on my children and I know other people try to do this too.”

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introducing

THE YOUTH

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â&#x20AC;&#x153;In art, there are the aspects of showcasing and sharing, which also apply in food. If I can make something using ingredients from my garden and share it, then this is also like art.â&#x20AC;?

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NURTANE KARAGIL I am Nurtane Karagil. I was born and raised in Famagusta. I studied painting and photography for my bachelor’s and got a Master’s in Fine Arts. Then I travelled to England, the Czech Republic and Turkey.

What do you do for a living? Since I returned to Cyprus, I have been doing different things with the youth, such as teaching at a university and a school for disadvantaged children in Nicosia, as a volunteer. I’m also involved in many projects for the community,. I want to create more opportunities for others and for myself to become active citizens and bring about change. Do you practice art? Yes, I participate in exhibitions in Cyprus and abroad. I do not classify myself as an artist. It’s more of something that I do while trying to expand my options in Cyprus, so that I don’t get stuck within the limits of the cypriot life. Life in Cyprus offers a wide range of choices and things to do, and if you are open to possibilities then one thing leads to another. Describe a typical day in your life. For a very long time, I used to get up and do nothing. However, this term I will be teaching at the university, so my life will be more organized. I will get up, eat my breakfast, check my emails, make some phone calls, take notes, organize film festivals, and work with MAGEM (a

local youth organization in Famagusta). In my spare time, I will go to Nicosia. I really like the old part of the town, which is more lively than the walled city of Famagusta where I live. Of course, I like being at home and at the studio, and also with friends. What does traditional food mean to you? Traditional food is something that your neighbours, grandmother and mother cook or you all cook together in a big kitchen. It’s something your mother knows the recipe of and that is handed down from generation to generation without changing much. It’s also something that you can cook with local ingredients and, even better, with ingredients from your own garden. And of course, it makes you happy when you go to a foreign city and find something similar to your own traditional cuisine. Ultimately, traditional food is something that you eat together with your family. It reflects the culture and the geography of your own country. It is made from local products. What is your relationship with food? I usually try to cook at home, using local products. I try not to eat fast food and when I do 23

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eat out, I usually eat at cafés where they serve homemade food.

manti A delicacy of the Tatar cuisine, manti are handwrapped, lamb-stuffed dumplings that are boiled then baked and finally topped with brown butter, caramelized tomato paste, and garlicky yogurt. köfte Meatballs commonly served in the Middle East. They can be made of lamb, pork or beef minced meat, potato, eggs, parsley, mint and cinnamon. They can either be fried or grilled.

While growing up, did you help your mum when she was cooking? I would usually help my mum, but I would also play around with the ingredients. As my mum grew up in the UK, she tends to cling to her roots. When she returned to Cyprus, she loved to cook and she started getting tips from my aunts. She still cooks traditional dishes. For example, she makes her own manti, and köfte. Do you cook traditional dishes? Not really. For example, I know how to make manti, but I have never made it myself. It is something that my mum and grandmother make. I never felt that I had to make it. Perhaps I will want to make it when I am thirty or forty years old. Do you think art is related to food? In art, there are the aspects of showcasing and sharing, which also apply in food. If I can create something using ingredients from my garden and share it, then this is also like art. Showcasing something I made, be it food or art, makes me happy. What do you enjoy doing in your free time? All of my time is free and I choose to do things that make me happy. I don’t want to restrict myself in a nine to five job. I consider my work to be the sharing of knowledge with others, and it’s something I enjoy doing. When I don’t teach or do art, I go to other cities, or places I have never been to before and walk. During autumn, I like running in the fields in order to better experience Cyprus. In my free time, I like to feel free. Do you cook for your friends? I like cooking with my friends. I have a friend who lives close by and we’ve created a sort of system. Either she cooks or I cook, or we share what we have. If my mum brings olive oil or her mum brings olives from the village, we share. Generally speaking, cooking for me is not such a big deal. I need to eat, so cooking is as natural as brushing my teeth, it’s integrated naturally in my life.

What do you think is the role of cooking in Cyprus? Culturally, cooking is something that women in Cyprus worry about a lot. Men and children always expect the women to cook. I never wanted to be part of this and I do not worry about what I will cook every day. Perhaps this is the reason I’m rebelling by trying to downplay cooking and make it quick without sacrificing the quality. I cook practical things and just integrate cooking within the natural flow of the day. I don’t view cooking as a bad thing, I just feel that the task of cooking shouldn’t be overly exaggerated. We never had discussions over food in our household, but I see many women who are affected by these expectations in a negative way. What are your expectations from the project? I expect people to understand each other better and cooperate. Everyone is aware of each other, but this project will be a catalyst for them to work together. The project will showcase what already exists and those involved in it can meet and learn more about each other. I would call it a happy coincidence.

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“A traditional dish is something that you eat together with your family. It reflects the culture and the geography of your country and it is made from local products.”

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“A feast without food, is not a feast. If you don’t have the food to bring happiness to your soul, how are you supposed to have fun?”

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POLYVIOS CHRISTOFI My name is Polyvios Christofi. I was born and raised in Deryneia, Famagusta. I lived in England for ten years, where I studied medicine and, afterwards, worked as a medical doctor. Here in Cyprus, I enjoy my hobbies: music, the sea, food...

Tell us a bit about yourself. I recently returned to Cyprus. I wanted to begin my specialization in psychiatry and study it in the language and culture I was going to practice it in. At the moment, I am on holiday, so every day I meet up with my family and my friends. How important is food for you in terms of your relationships with other people? Food is one of the most important means of communication with my friends and family. Food is at the center of every feast we have. From weddings to christenings, all these are occasions to cook, enjoy good food, get together and have a good time. What role does food play in your daily life? Would you ever skip a meal? That’s an interesting question! My relationship with food is a bit over the top. Food takes a great amount of my time and thoughts. For example, quite often, as I have lunch I think about what I am going to have later for dinner. So, no, I never skip meals. Food is a very important part of my life.

Deryneia, as well as the area around it, is mainly agricultural, but it’s also by the sea. Are these elements important in relation to your food habits? I feel lucky I grew up in Deryneia. I wouldn’t have the food sources that I have living in Deryneia, if I was living in a big city or abroad. The most important food source for me is the sea – almost everybody fishes in my family. There was always a great variety of fresh fish when I was growing up, so fish is my favourite food. Also, my father is a farmer. He grows flowers for a living, but in his flower plantations he also produces vegetables and fruit for the family, so we have plenty of fresh, organic products. Also, my grandfather is a specialist in foraging wild greens such as wild asparagus and wild artichokes, which my grandmother cooks. My grandmother has her own chickens, so we always have fresh eggs and home-grown hens. What else could one ask for! Who are the best cooks in your family? Before dealing with farming, my father used to work as a cook on ships and he still cooks delicious dishes for us. Both my grandmothers are also excellent cooks. The best food I have ever 27

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had was cooked by them. But it’s hard to say who is the best. They all cook differently.

makaronia tou fournou Oven-baked pasta, prepared with layers of bucatini, minced meat, a touch of cinnamon and béchamel sauce on top. anaropita Dessert made with filo pastry, filled with anari cheese, honey, walnuts and sprinkled with cinnamon.

What are their specialties? My grandmother, Androulla, makes a lovely beef casserole. She cuts the beef in large cubes, she makes holes in them where she puts cloves of garlic and herbs, and then cooks it for a long time in wine and lemon juice. It becomes very soft with a great aroma. She also makes perfect makaronia tou fournou. My grandmother Anna’s specialty is anaropita. She also makes the best boiled chicken, with pasta cooked in its juices. She uses her own chickens for the broth. She also cooks lovely wild asparagus, with eggs from her own hens. Do you cook? I love cooking. I like cooking in the kitchen, but in Cyprus I cook on charcoal. All during August, my friends and I always gather on a remote beach and we grill the fish that my brother and I catch. We always have a great time there. Seeing my friends enjoy the food I prepare for them makes me happy. There is a certain dynamic in seeing people eat well. I don’t cook for them in order to have them cook for me in return, but since they are all good cooks, it also gives me great pleasure to enjoy the food they make. Could you imagine a gathering without food? A feast without food, is not a feast. If you don’t have the food to bring happiness to your soul, how are you supposed to have fun?

fonés In Greek it literally translates to ‘voices’. It refers to the Cypriot voices, old melodies to which distichs were sung. The content usually pertains to love but not exclusively. Cypriot voices are categorised according to their place of origin. The main ones are Tillirkotissa (from Tylliria), Afkoritissa (from Avgorou), Karpasitissa (from Karpasia), Paralimnitissa (from Paralimni), Lyshiotissa (from Lysi) and Paphitiki (from Paphos).

Can you recall your first memory of eating? No, but I can always remember the first time I ate something special. I remember the first time I tasted my aunt Anna’s lava cake, my grandmother’s beef and my father’s octopus casserole. How do you spend your free time? I play music. At the moment I am studying eastern music. I like to go to the beach and relax there while reading a book, swim and meet up with my friends for a beer. I also like to visit my family to have a chat, eat and have fun. Tell us a bit about the music you play. I have always been drawn to the melodies of the eastern world. As a teenager, I was fascinated by the music of Asia Minor. I get together with my friends and we mostly play ‘rembeti28

ka’ (type of Greek music). I also like cypriot folk music, especially the local fonés. The structure, that has been developed throughout the years is not complicated, it’s only a pattern, but it’s almost perfect. This kind of music connects me with the past. It’s a world that fascinates me. What is the relationship between food and music in your life? It reminds me of this local saying we have: “a hungry bear can’t dance” but in this case “a hungry bear can’t sing”. In a social context, music and food exist together. Feasts with friends and family always contain music and food. We eat, we drink, and then the music and the singing starts.

A TASTE OF FAMAGUSTA

“Seeing my friends enjoy the food I prepare for them makes me happy. There is a certain dynamic in seeing people eat well.”

A TASTE OF FAMAGUSTA

explaining

THE FOOD

A TASTE OF FAMAGUSTA

KAPAMAS WITH KOLOKASI

By Giorgoulla Shopaha

Ingredients (5 people) 1 kg kolokasi, peeled and sliced 3 cm thick 1,5 kg lamb shoulder, cut in 5 cm cubes 700 ml red sweet wine 250 ml vegetable oil Salt & pepper 30 ml freshly squeezed lemon juice 250 ml hot water

Preparation Marinate both kolokasi and meat in the wine for about 1 hour. In a large, deep, heavy-bottomed pan, add the vegetable oil and heat over mediumhigh heat. When it starts to simmer, add the kolokasi slices and brown on both sides, remove the browned pieces from the pan and transfer to a bowl. Brown the meat in the same manner. Remove the oil from the pan, leave about 4 tablespoons and add the browned kolokasi and meat along with the accumulated juices in the bowl you kept them in. Turn heat up to medium-high, add the wine used for marinating, cover with hot water (hot water so the cooking process doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t stop) and stir well. Let it come to a boil and then turn the heat down to the lowest setting, add the lemon juice and cover with a lid. Let the meat stew for 1,5 hours or until it is tender. Check the meat every 20 minutes, stirring around so it doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t stick to the pan. When the meat is almost done, season with salt and pepper. Turn the heat off when both the kolokasi and meat are tender and the liquids have been absorbed.

Tip 1. Do not wash the kolokasi, after you slice it, dry it with a clean paper towel. Tip 2. You can replace lamb with chicken.

A TASTE OF FAMAGUSTA

MOLEHIYA

By Hüseyin Herbsoy

Ingredients (5 people) 400 gr molehiya 1 kg lamb ribs, cut in square pieces of 3 cm 2 large onions, peeled and diced 1 head of garlic, peeled, not chopped 5 large tomatoes, peeled and diced 1 tablespoon pimento paste 120 ml lemon juice 1 tablespoon salt 1 tablespoon red pepper (sweet paprika) 120 ml of mixed olive and corn oil

Preparation Tip 1. You can replace lamb with chicken. Tip 2. Molehiya tastes better when it’s reheated and eaten the day after it’s cooked.

In a large, deep, heavy-bottomed pan, sauté the lamb ribs, without oil. Once browned, remove them from the pan. Add some oil into the casserole and sauté the onions and then add the garlic and the pimento paste. Cook for 3-4 minutes, then add the diced tomatoes. Wash and rinse the molehiya and squeeze it to remove the excess water. Place it in a pressure cooker, add half of the lemon juice and enough water to cover all the ingredients. Seal the pressure cooker and let it cook for 15 minutes. Once the molehiya is cooked, turn off the heat and let it cool. Open the pressure cooker and add the meat, salt, the sweet paprika and the remaining lemon juice. Close the cooker and let it cook for another 30 minutes. Serve hot.

A TASTE OF FAMAGUSTA

CREDITS Editor Maria Th. Massoura Coordination Lina Protopapa Maria Tsiarta Essay Mete Hatay Interviewees Polyvios Christofi Hüseyin Herbsoy Nurtane Karagil Giorgoulla Shopaha Photos Panagiotis Mina Graphic Design Myria Konnari Printed by Laser Graphics Ltd

SPECIAL THANKS Aleksandar Ljubojevic David Hands Serdar Atai Ellada Evangelou Marilena Paraskeva Mertkan Hamit Our hosts in Deryneia & Famagusta Evangelos Soteriades Miltiades & Anna Protopapa Şenay & Kutlu Eyupoğlu A Taste of Famagusta was organized by Renewal, implemented in collaboration with Crewhouse Media and supported by UNDP-ACT www.famagustarenewal.org / youtube channel: Renewal Famagusta

A TASTE OF FAMAGUSTA

â&#x20AC;&#x153;Food is one of the most important means of communicating with my friends & family. Food is at the center of every feast we have, the core of it. From weddings to christenings, all these are occasions to cook, enjoy good food, get together, have a good time.â&#x20AC;?