MADISON, WISCONSIN: Aushak

With the focus of the national political spotlight having been turned on Madison, Wisconsin and the debate raging inside and outside the halls of its spectacular Capitol regarding budget cuts, partisan politics and the rights of government employees to collective bargaining, I could not help but think back to my time in Madison. It is where I went to law school. It is where Nancy went to graduate school in Geology. It is where we met and fell in love.

People tend to associate Madison and Wisconsin in terms of food and beverages. It is not, however, Afghani cuisine that generally comes first to mind. Strangely, though, when I think of food and Madison it is not brats or cheese curds that first come to mind but, rather, Aushak. I first encountered Aushak — the national dish of Afghanistan — at the marvelous Afghani restaurants of Madison, Wisconsin restauranteur Ghafoor Zafari. His restaurants, the first of which featured an upscale Afghani cuisine, convinced me from the first taste that food from the Middle East could be more than falafels, gyros and shwarma (though there is nothing wrong with those). Before moving to Madison I had very little familiarity with Middle Eastern cuisines – any of them – and none whatsoever with Afghani food.

But there was something very appealing – at once exotic and familiar – about the delicate raviolis of sautéed leeks, the big and comfortable flavors of the meat sauce, and the fresh feeling of the yogurt sauce. As much as each of these elements pleased, Aushak is very much a case of the whole being greater than the sum of its parts.

One aspect of what I found so compelling about the dish was the way in which Aushak – and, by extension, Afghanistan – reached out in both directions, east and west. The dumpling was instantly familiar to me as a version of a ravioli (always a comfort food for me from my earliest dealings with that great Chef, Boyardee). But it also resonated with me as a version of dim sum, the tea pastries of China. Having recently moved from just east of Chinatown in New York, dim sum was very much a part of my life.

While these experiences were, at one level, personal and particular to me and my life at that point in time they are, at a deeper level, representative of Afghanistan itself. As a major stop on the old Silk Road – the trade routes from Europe to China and back, Afghanistan necessarily reached its arms both to Europe in the West and China in the East. Its culture – and not surprisingly, its food – took some from all but was never permanently assimilated by any.

Which, of course, makes Aushak something of particular relevance today. A dish of Aushak might be a nice visit to Afghanistan. But why, one might ask, do we – America – tarry in the graveyard of empires?

AUSHAK

Ingredients

For the Aushak:
24 wonton wrapers
2 leeks, finely chopped
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/3 teaspoon arbol chile flakes
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

For the Meat Sauce:
3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
½ pound ground beef
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon ground coriander
½ teaspoon diced ginger
1 cup water
½ cup red wine (optional)
2 tablespoon tomato paste
fresh green chilis (to taste)
salt and pepper to taste
1 teaspoon grated nutmeg

For the Chakah (Yogurt Sauce):
2 cups yogurt, drained
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 teaspoon kosher salt

For the mint oil:
1 bunch fresh mint
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
Dash of salt

Other Ingredients:
8 cups water
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
2-3 teaspoons fresh mint, powdered (or one bunch finely chopped).

1. Prepare the Meat Sauce. Heat the oil in a sauté pan on medium high heat and sauté the onions for a few minutes until they are translucent. Add the ginger, garlic, ground coriander and fresh green chilis and sauté for two minutes (or until the garlic turns translucent). Add the beef and allow to brown. Add the water and wine until it is reduced by half. Add the tomato paste and allow to continue reducing for several minutes. Season with the salt, pepper and nutmeg.

2. Make the Mint Oil. Blanche the mint bunch in boiling water for 15 seconds. Shock in ice water and wring all water from the parsley. Place the mint in the bowl of a food processor and add a dash of salt. With the processor running, add the oil in a slow and steady stream. Place the herb and oil mixture in a bowl and refrigerate until the rest of the dish is completed.

3. Prepare the Aushak Filling. Eliminate all but the white part of the leeks. Split the leeks in half and carefully clean them. When they are cleaned, halve and then finely chop them crosswise. Combine the leeks in a bowl with the salt, chile pepper and oil. Saute them briefly in a pan until they just begin to turn translucent.

4. Assemble the Aushak. Place 1 won ton wrapper on a lightly floured surface, place 1 2 teaspoons of the Aushak filling into the center of the wrapper and brush the edges with water. Fold one corner of the wonton wrapper over the filling to form a triangle, pressing down around the filling carefully to force out any air. Seal the edges and trim the excess dough around the filling. Repeat with the remaining wontons. As they are formed, transfer the assembled aushak to a dry kitchen towel and turn them occasionally to let them dry slightly.

5. Make the Chakah. Combine all of the Chakah ingredients in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade and pulse briefly to mix. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and pulse again. Set aside.

6. Cook the Aushak. Bring the 8 cups of water to a boil in a large pot and add the salt and oil. Drop in the Aushak and boil for 10 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon.

7. Assemble the Dish. Strain the mint oil through a fine mesh sieve. Arrange four Aushak on each plate. Ladle the Chakah over the Aushak. Top with the Meat Sauce and drizzle with the mint oil.