Delicious Cuisine of Oman That You Must Experience

With influences from Indian, Persian, North African and Mediterranean cuisines, Omani food is a delicious fusion of spices, marinades and herbs. Chicken, lamb and rice are staples here, seasoned with ingredients like saffron, ginger and nutmeg, giving it flavour like no other! Due to its long coastline bordering the Arabian Sea, all kinds of seafood are consumed and the shark is a delicacy!

Food of Oman differs from other food in the Arabian Peninsula, as it is less spicy and seldom served warm. Here is a list of the most delicious and traditional Omani food:

1.  Mashuai

Another delicious dish you will find in Oman is the mouth-watering Mashuai! It is a dish consisting of roasted kingfish and savoury lemon rice. 

2. Mushaltat

A well-known delicacy in Oman is Mushaltat, which is a soft flatbread stuffed with honey, meat, spinach or cheese.  The bread is made out of refined wheat flour and kneaded into thin cakes, stuffed with ingredients and baked for about 5 minutes.

3. Shawarma

Shawarmas are popular sandwiches found in the streets of almost all Middle Eastern countries! This tasty sandwich consists of meat marinated with spices, wrapped in pita bread.  Often consumed with fries or garlic paste, shawarmas are made freshly in the street stalls of Oman and eaten warm.

4. Halwa

Halwa is a sticky, sweet gelatinous Omani food, made from brown sugar, honey, eggs and various spices. It has a lot of flavours, such as rose water, nuts, chocolate, etc. Some halwas are also made from the Omani dates.  It takes quite a while to make as it is slowly boiled over a wood fire. Halwas can last over four months without losing any of its quality! It is often accompanied with Kahwa as another sign of hospitality.

A quick guide to Omani food

 Oman is a nation of seafarers and desert dwellers where influences from far away countries mix to the Bedouin hospitality, and the land and the sea prepared with the best spices brought back from centuries of trading are the signature of the local cuisine. Today, with many influences from India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, it can be tough to identify the authentic Omani cuisine: here is a short guide to help you make the most of your culinary discoveries in the sultanate.

The base of Omani food is rice dishes cooked with the available meat, which can be camel or goat in the desert and spices, omnipresent and never overpowering. As such, the shuwa is the classic Omani celebration dish: the marinated meat is roasted in an underground fire pot for over six hours of slow cooking, and served with a rice delicately cooked in a meat broth with spices such as cardamom, cumin and cinnamon.

Mishkaks can easily be found all over the country: smell the barbecue and you will see these skewers of chargrilled lamb, chicken, squid or prawns cooked with Omani spices and sometimes served with a tangy tamarind sauce.

An authentic southern dish, saloonat rubyan is a coconut curry base with Omani prawns. Mashuai are traditional grilled fish dishes best enjoyed anywhere along the coast.

Oman Food and Drink

 

Food

The cuisine of Oman is a mixture of Indian, Indonesian, Arab and East African influences. Omani people often use various marinades and spices that result in tasty dishes. Various spices, herbs, onions, garlic and lime are used liberally, but unlike other Arabic cuisines, the food of Oman is not hot. Chicken, mutton and fish serve as main ingredients, often accompanied by rice. The main meal in Oman is usually eaten at midday followed by a light dinner.

 

Popular dishes include:

Shuwa: This is a dish traditionally served during festivals. It involves meat that has been seasoned with spices and herbs and then cooked very slowly, sometimes up to two days, in an underground oven. As a result of this process, meat becomes very tender.

Maqbous: This is a rice dish that is yellow courtesy of the saffron used. It is cooked and served over a spicy red or white meat.

Mashuai: This meal consists of a whole spit-roasted kingfish that is then served with lemon rice.

Shows: This is a lamb dish that is cooked in an earth oven for two days with banana and date puree in palm leaves.

 

During Eid, popular dishes include:

Muqalab: Tripe and pluck are cooked with crushed ground spices, usually cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, black pepper, ginger, garlic and nutmeg.

Arisa: This dish is simply lamb meat that is cooked and served with rice.

 

Drink

Favourite drinks include Laban which is a salty buttermilk. Yoghurt based drinks that are flavoured with cardamom and pistachio nuts are common. Coffee is another favourite, and Khawa is prepared from freshly roasted ground coffee that is mixed with cardamom powder.

 

Things to know:

As Oman is a predominately Muslim country, alcohol can only be purchased by residents who have obtained a personal license. It is sold in some licensed hotels and restaurants. Tipping is not expected in Oman, however, it is becoming more common. A tip of 10% is standard in most hotels and restaurants with licensed bars.

Drinking age:

21.

Omani Khabeesa

 

Ingredients:

¾ cup semolina or 120 g 

2 cups or 500 ml of milk 

1 tin NESTLÉ Sweetened Condensed Milk or 395 g 

1 teaspoon ground cardamom 

2 tablespoons unsalted butter 

2 tablespoons rose water 

½ teaspoon saffron powder

Nutritional Info:

• Energy320 Kcal
• Protein8.7 g
• Carbohydrate48 g
• Fats10 g

How to prepare:

1 

In a medium sauce pan combine Semolina and Milk and bring to a boil.

2 

Add NESTLE Sweetened Condensed Milk, Cardamom, Butter, Rosewater and Saffron Powder and continue to cook for 10 minutes.

3 

Transfer to a serving bowl and allow to cook and before serving. The Khabeesa will become slightly thick as it cools down.

Djaj Fouq El Eish Recipe

• 2 cups vegetable oil or 440 g
• 2 medium potatoes or 400 g
• 8 pieces chicken or 1½ kg
• 6 cups water or 1½ liters
• 3 small cinnamon sticks
• 1 teaspoon whole cardamom
• 1 teaspoon whole cloves
• 1 teaspoon whole black peppers
• 3 cups basmati rice or 600 g
• 9 cups boiling water
• A pinch salt, to taste
• ½ cup ghee or 100 g
• 3 medium onions or 375 g
• 4 cloves garlic, crushed
• 3 tablespoons mixed spices
• 2 cubes Maggi Chicken
  

Easy steps to prepare Omani Harees

 

5 Traditional Omani Dishes You Need To Try

 

One of the wonders of the unique Omani culture, is the exceptional mouthwatering traditional cuisine. From dates and coffee, to rice and grilled meat, here are the top Omani dishes that every visitor must try during their visit to the country.

Majboos

Also called Kabsa and Makboos, Majboos is a traditional mixed rice dish that originated in Saudi Arabia. It’s famous in the Arab World especially in the Gulf countries including Oman. The dish consists of rice, usually basmati, vegetables, meat or chicken and a mix of spices. It is sometimes, served with either yoghurt or green salad, traditional bread and tomato sauce.

Shuwa

Shuwa means grilled meat in Arabic. It’s a favourite dish in Oman often prepared for special occasions like Eid. The process of cooking the Shuwa dish takes a long time. In fact, Omanis usually prepare the meat on the first day of Eid, and eat it on the second or the third day. The Shuwa is marinated in Omani spices, then wrapped in banana leaves or palm leaves and put in an underground sand oven, where it gets cooked over one to two days. This may seem a strange method but Shuwa meat is one of the tastiest dishes around.

Dates

Palm trees are the most frequently seen plantations around Oman. They produce mouth-watering dates. Differing in size, color, and tenderness, these dates are one of the essential meal items that are presented to every guest as part of the wonderful Omani hospitality. Sometimes, Omanis mix dried dates with sesame paste and sesame or ground coconut. They also use them in preparing different types of desserts and Omani sweets.

Kahwa

Kahwa means coffee in Arabic. It is famed for its taste and texture, also how it is grown, dried and prepared. Omani kahwa is usually mixed with cardamon powder. Just like dates, it is an essential part of the Omani hospitality and is served with the Omani Halwa (dessert) as well. Most Omanis drink kahwa several times during their day. They also prepare pots and sometimes take them when visiting neighbors.

Meshkak

Also known as kebab, Meshkak is marinated beef, mutton or chicken that is grilled on sticks. It is usually marinated with different spices, especially curry, and served with Omani bread. This is another special Omani dish that is prepared everywhere around the country especially during celebrations.