Duhok February 2019
The hegemony of the national dish
Having lived a large portion of my life overseas, food traditions played a big part of the experience. One thing I was quick to realize was that some countries had "national foods" that were such juggernauts they virtually nullified the chances as a guest of being offered anything else! This became not only boring after a time, but it also cut down the possibilities of tasting new dishes notwithstanding the noble intentions of the host. Here is my memory lane of national dishes and "alternates" from places I have lived.
USA
Hands down everyone says a burger. I do not disagree and burgers are the summer barbeque food of the USA. All restaurants from the cheapest to the most expensive most likely have one on the menu. However, let me throw my hat in the ring here and say that turkey with stuffing should be a close second. Any time Americans really want to be FESTIVE, there is a turkey and stuffing. Luckily, the USA is huge with a lot of regional variation. I also credit Americans for NOT foisting burgers (or turkey) as the ONLY food choices available on foreign guests. Well done USA!
Japan
In the amazing food universe of Japan, a lot of Westerners would immediately point to "sushi" as the Japanese national dish. The Japanese themselves, however, would drift in a far more "common" direction. Kare raisu (curry rice) is ubiquitous in Japan and well-loved. In a country where it is expensive to eat out, cheap curry rice sustains a lot of workers. On a funny side note, "Vermont Curry" was hugely popular when I lived in Japan in the '80's. I always had to chuckle since in those years there might have only been a handful of South Asian restaurants in that whole state! Japan, like the USA, well done! I certainly ate (and prepared) my share of kare raisu in Japan, but I was not given it uniquely as a foreigner.
Indonesia
My personal food heaven. The acknowledged national dish is nasi goreng (fried rice) and as a foreigner, it is offered to you RELENTLESSLY. I don't mind the stuff and our former maid/cook, E, made an excellent version with fresh coriander. I am not sure if nasi goreng is foisted on foreigners due to Indonesians not being sure if foreigners would actually LIKE anything else? Whatever the case, the best decision Brian and I made was to tell E to prepare food for us like she would back in rural Java. Oh...my....God, the food was fabulous. Our dinner guests were always amazed at the food on our table (their own staff only ever made nasi goreng if they asked for Indonesian food). My recommendation for an alternate? Wow, that is tough, but I think I would go with beef rendang - slow cooked beef in coconut gravy. I have never met anyone who did not like rendang. Sorry Indonesia, very low marks. Stop forcing nasi goreng on everyone - Indonesia is food paradise!
Singapore
Speaking of food paradises... because Singapore is so multi-ethnic, there is not a national dish per se, but informally - most Singaporeans and long-term residents would point to "chicken rice". The name does not even come close to describing the succulence of this dish. Slow-roasted chicken whose fatty droppings are mixed into rice with some spices, it is always a crowd pleaser. Good chicken rice places always have queues in Singapore - that is how you know they are good. Runner up for me? Chili or Pepper Crab - this delicious, yet frustrating-to-eat dish, is a huge favorite among locals and visitors alike. It is MESSY, but that is part of the fun, I guess. I am not a huge fan of crab due to the labor-intensiveness of eating it, but pepper crab for me is worth every ounce of effort. Singapore, well done! You let your guests eat and discover what they like.
Saudi Arabia
Dark music please. The Saudis not only have only one national dish, they eat it proudly and uniquely. They are like lnuit in the long arctic winter who survive in their igloos on whale blubber. Kabsa, my nemesis national dish, is just a bunch of meat and rice with very few spices boiled together and eaten with hands. It got to the point that just seeing kabsa revolted me. Perhaps the previously "poor" Saudis upon improving living standards with oil income realized they could eat anything they wanted, so they took their former "festival/special occasion" food and turned into a daily repast. Imagine if Americans ate turkey and stuffing every single day - something like that. I should not forget to mention that butchering in Saudi Arabia must mean setting a crazed demon on a goat or chicken with an axe and just hacking it to bits, willy nilly. You never knew what exactly you were going to pull out of the kabsa rice. I often got a bit of spine with spinal cord clearly visible. At any rate, except for my very good restaurant meal in Al Khobar [see: searching for Saudi food in mythical al Khobar] where I tasted foods that normally were only available at home, I am not sure I ever had any real Saudi food except kabsa, so no alternate suggestion from me. Saudi Arabia - I have no words for you for making me and all other foreigners eat kabsa EVERY SINGLE TIME we went out.
Iraq
Iraqi Kurdistan, thank you for being food various after Saudi Arabia. Nonetheless, the dish one was served as a guest was always dolma - vegetables stuffed with rice and minced meat. Dolma was delicious, but there were so many OTHER wonderful Kurdish foods, not to mention that dolma was also claimed by other groups in the region. I was not so sure how actually Kurdish it was? My recommendation as an alternate? Kotulk daw - a kind of Kurdish ravioli, stuffed with meat and served in a yogurt soup/sauce. That stuff was the shit! Why did Kurds latch onto some special dish that everyone else made when they had their own true national dish? Sorry, Kurdistan - low marks. Stop serving dolma - you have so many other good dishes!
Bangladesh
I am still learning about this country, but after two months here, one thing is abundantly clear, biriyani is "the dish" to serve to guests. Like dolma, it does taste good, but Bangladesh is FILLED with so many other truly Bengali dishes. Biriyani in some variation can be found from Kurdistan all the way across Asia to Bangladesh. I look forward to discovering my recommendation of the "alternative" dish here. Initial assessment: please Bangladesh, not everyone wants biriyani.