There is a beautiful custom in Sudan during Ramadan which is especially great for the poor and needy. Of the 37.96 million people in Sudan, 97 per cent follow Islam. And during the holy month, people in neighbourhoods - men and boys only - gather in the streets and sit on long mats or put up tents of food. They wait for passersby to come, and make sure all motorists and drivers stop, dismount and end their fasts with the men in the tents. The tents can be big or small.
If it's the men and boys from five houses, it's a smaller tent, a larger neighbourhood of 15 households, say, can have three tents. The men bring food from home and share with their fellow Ramadan observers. It is customary to stop cars and invite people to share their food. This is visible among other places in the state of Gezira, on the Khartoum-Medani national road that links Khartoum and Gezira.
At times, barriers are placed in the middle of the road to stop traffic before sunset. At other times, younger boys run and stop traffic.
A Ramadan image specific to Sudan is of long lines of men sitting on the streets in white kanduras under neem trees, waiting for the sun to set and for the cannons to announce Iftar. A Sudanese national sahred with Khaleej Times a childhood memory of waiting for the sun to set and watching from the windows of the house with her mother and sisters while the neighbourhood men sat outside. And people greeting others and boys running with excitement when it was time to sit down and end the fast.
Women stay in and prepare the food. They exchange meals with other neighbourhood women. Often a nice fish stew from one house will be exchanged with chicken from a house in the same lane.
Ramadan in Sudan is like a family gathering, with lots of socialising, and going to the mosque.
Iftar
Some Ramadan-specific foods are aseedah (a porridge made from sorghum), gurrasah (made of wheat flour) and salad. A special Ramadan drink prepared from sorghum and different spices is called hilu-mir ('sweet-bitter'). It's often added to hot dishes or served with a side sauce, to add texture and flavour to the main dishes. Hibiscus and lemon juice is also drunk, and also aradaib and tabalde - both bitter acacia fruits.
Other popular Iftar dishes are Baleela - boiled chickpeas of red beans with salt and Tequilia - Keema with okra powder, and samboussek, besides the Arabic usuals - fried chicken, fried fish, hommous salad, foul and felafel with olive oil and cheese
andnbsp;
RECIPE: Aseedaandnbsp;
Ingredientsandnbsp;
andgt; 2 cups of flourandnbsp;
andgt; 3 cups waterandnbsp;
andgt; Honeyandnbsp;
andgt; Butterandnbsp;
andgt; Oilandnbsp;
andgt; Saltandnbsp;
andnbsp;
Methodandnbsp;
andgt; Put water and salt in a small pot or deep pan and bring to shallow boil.andnbsp;
andgt; Add 1 spoon of oil.andnbsp;
andgt; Add flour while stirring the mixture quickly with wide/flat wooden spoon.andnbsp;
andgt; Remove the mix and keep stirring about in a large bowl until it softens (becomes aseeda)andnbsp;
andgt; Add some of the boiled water to the aseeda and let it gently cook for 10 minutes.andnbsp;
andgt; Again beat the mixture till it softens and becomes thick, the consistency of soft play dough. Shape into a small mound in a bowl. Create a small crater with a spoon on top.andnbsp;
andgt; Pour melted butter as a shallow moat around mound, and honey or date syrup on top in crater. Eat with fingers, pulling portions of cooked buttery mound and dipping in honey.
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