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episode • The Cook Up with Adam Liaw • cooking • 25m
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episode • The Cook Up with Adam Liaw • cooking • 25m
G
Growing up in Sydney in the 1990s, the owner of , Myra Karakelle didn’t know anyone else who ate the exact same cultural combination of foods as her.
“My mum is from Uzbekistan and dad is from Afghanistan,” says Karakelle, who migrated to Australia from Uzbekistan at age four. “I don’t know anyone outside my family who has the same cultural mix as me in Australia; I only know people who are either full Uzbek or Afghan.”
But, there was one place where Karakelle’s two cultures in Central Asia were wedded – at the dinner table. Through food, the combination of Karakelle’s two cultures was always celebrated.
“I grew up in a very ethnic household, as far as flavours and food go,” she says. “Uzbek dishes were always placed beside Afghan dishes on a big table spread. Everyone who visited our house loved the food we offered them from both cultures.”
Karakelle joins TV host Adam Liaw on to make a special Uzbek dish known as ‘MJ’s chicken’. The dish, named after her mother, is one that she ate on rotation as a child. It also featured regularly as part of her mum's special Uzbek-Afghan table spread.
“Capsicums are very dominant in Uzbek food and in this chicken dish. MJ's chicken also has spices, onion and garlic. It’s really simple to make and delicious.”
Also on the table spread of Karakelle’s youth was Uzbek plov (lamb pilaf), Uzbek kazan kebab (fried meat placed over lightly fried, sliced potatoes) and an Afghan sticky rice dish called shola. Don’t forget the sides – Karakelle’s mum always made plenty of vegetable dishes, featuring okra, spinach and braised eggplant.
MLK Deli's best sandwiches
It wasn’t until Karakelle was in her 30s that she decided to put her own spin on her mother’s cultural cooking. Earlier this year, she launched MLK Deli (Myra’s Little Kitchen) in Surry Hills and formally extended the representation of her identity on a plate with another element – the great Australian sandwich.
The deli now serves central Asian sandwiches that combine Karakelle’s Uzbek and Afghan food influences with her love of Aussie sangas. On the menu, there’s the Afghan kofta roll and Uzbek chicken sanga. Both are based on recipes that have been Karakelle’s family for generations.
“When I told my mum that I wanted put the Uzbek chicken dish that we've always eaten as a family in a sandwich, she told me it was not going to work. 'We always eat that with rice and flatbread – you don't eat that in a sandwich', she said. But she heard me out and I pushed for it. Now, MJ's chicken is the deli’s best-seller.”
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MJ’s chicken
How to turn any dish into a sanga
Karakelle believes that any cultural dish can be transformed into a sandwich. But first, there are a few considerations that home cooks must take into account.
“If you put too much filling between bread or add too much sauce, the sandwich will collapse. So, if you’re putting a dish that you normally eat on an open plate on a sandwich, you need to first experiment to get the balance right.”
Sandwiches don’t have to be boring and mundane. They can be full of flavours and culture. There are so many possibilities.
For example, Karakelle decided to put MJ’s chicken on a rye ciabatta roll, as the bread is strong enough to hold sauce without compromise. Karakelle also adds lettuce to the sandwich for crunch and a special mayonnaise-style sauce with a secret recipe for extra spice.
“Sandwiches don’t have to be boring and mundane. They can be full of flavours and culture. There are so many possibilities.”
Karakelle encourages people to treat the sandwiches at her deli as an introduction to Central Asian flavours.
“There’s a familiarity that’s comforting when you have a good Aussie sandwich. But for people who want to try something new and experience other cultures, these sandwiches with an ethnic filling are the way to go.”
