Love & Orthodontics
  • Love & Orthodontics
  • Online Ortho Courses
  • Enroll
  • Love & Ortho Blog
  • Love & Orthodontics
  • Online Ortho Courses
  • Enroll
  • Love & Ortho Blog

Learning about gahwa in Abu Dhabi

10/26/2016

0 Comments

 
Picture
At Heritage Village in Abu Dhabi, craftsmen create beautiful handmade Arab coffee pots. 
Picture
The gahwa pot is a symbol of hospitality. It's even depicted on the UAE's 1-dirham coin. 
Picture
A traditional Arab pot for gahwa displayed in an Abu Dhabi home. In the old days, gahwa pots were placed on hot coals to brew this coffee. 
Picture
By Claude E. Hammond  
​(guest blogger, Dr Chris' husband)

This morning it was time to get a new ibrik, or Turkish coffee pot — one of those handled small pots used to create fiercely strong little cups of exquisite coffee. Here in Abu Dhabi, there are plenty of stores where you can buy a factory-made ibrik. But this is the Middle East. Coffee — gahwa in Arabic — was discovered here.

​This calls for buying an authentic, hand-made ibrik. We already have a pot for gahwa. 

We get our traditional Arab coffee pots made for us by Mohammed, the coppersmith who works at Heritage Village, a cultural attraction found just across the bay from downtown Abu Dhabi, near the National Theatre.

If you should ever be privileged to attend a function at one of the sheikhs’ palaces in Abu Dhabi, there’s a strong possibility Mohammed the coppersmith made the gahwa pots used there. His handiwork is well-known. It was a short drive from Abu Dhabi’s Khalidiyah area, so I went there before work. He made the perfect ibrik and I bought it. Muhammed made both our traditional coffee vessels.

To Arabs, gahwa represents hospitality and Emiratis are famous for being hospitable. This is a very nice thing for us gahwa-lovers. Gahwa pots are even shown on the front of the United Arab Emirates’ one-dirham coin.

Traditional gahwa consists of ground coffee from lightly-roasted beans, mixed with ground cardamom and cloves. The old-fashioned way of brewing gahwa was to sit a large brass or copper gahwa pot on hot coals brewing a mixture of grounds and water to make this delicious beverage. When you visit a traditional Gulf Arab home, business, or hotel, you are often greeted with a small cup of gahwa and a plate of dates.

Gahwa’s northern cousin is Turkish coffee. Turkish coffee is finely-ground dark-roasted beans with no spices mixed in. It’s a different beverage altogether.

Coffee is addictive. The dates you are served in the UAE can be just as addictive. They come in a wide variety of sizes, tastes and colors. Some dates are stuffed with pistachios or candied orange peel. Some have an explosion of flavor that closely resembles caramel while other dates can taste like honey. Dates are usually not pitted, so expect to find a hard seed within when biting one.

In the Middle East, there are two rules of etiquette to follow when you are offered gahwa and dates. Your host will likely assume you want a refill of gahwa. When you’re finished drinking gahwa, hold out your cup and shake it a little. It’s a gracious way of saying “I’ve had enough.”

​Secondly, when you eat dates, only take an odd number of them… one, three, five, and so on. It’s bad manners to eat an even number of dates.

Modern science shows that dates are a rich source of potassium. Their natural sugars give energy and are healthier than processed factory-made sweeteners. An old Bedu once told me that all he needed in order to work all day was nine dates for breakfast with gahwa.

I can’t argue with that. We enjoy our new coffee pots.
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Picture

    Dr Chris Baker

    America's most-trusted teacher of orthodontic continuing education, Dr. Chris Baker has practiced and taught for more than 30 years, and is a current or former faculty member of three U.S. dental schools.  She is a pediatric dentist, author, blogger, dental practice consultant, and mentor.  Dr. Chris is also Past President and Senior Instructor of the American Orthodontic Society.  She is based in Texas, USA, but lectures around the world.

    Categories

    All
    Abu Dhabi To Texas
    Dental Practice Freedom
    Life & Home
    L & O TV
    Orthodontics
    Pediatric Dentistry
    REAL Brief

    Archives

    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016

    RSS Feed

    Text and images
    © 2020 Dr Chris Baker