The flavorings I use depend on what I feel like. Often they are Turkish or Persian–in that case I will add a bit of cinnamon, some lemon, and maybe some pomegranate molasses.

If I do Indian, which would consist of cumin, cardamom, chiles, a dash of cinnamon and clove, coriander, chopped fresh cilantro, sliced almonds instead of the pinenuts, and either ghee or vegetable oil instead of olive oil, I usually will make a cucumber raita or a mango or tomato chutney to go with it.

If I do Italian, the herbs reflect that, and I use more tomatoes, and leave out the raisins, and maybe use a few chilies in there just to pep things up. For Italian, I also will use a mixture of ground beef and pork, or use sausage and add a bit of fennel.

It is a really versatile dish–you don’t have to use meat, either, just up the amount of rice you use. Give it a shot this summer.

LisaJulie–we stayed in Laurel, so we passed by Mangos a zillion times and I kept thinking–”I wonder if that place is good?”

Turnip dishes, btw, are pretty common in Kashmir, btw. Just so you know. Sounds weird, but there we are.

Peruvian chicken! I forgot that I wanted to try that! I am so silly. Joe’s Noodle House–where had I heard about that from? But Northern Chinese dim sum–I am so into that.

We’ll be back. Perhaps with an entourage of friends who want to go to the Smithsonian, so I promise to ping you when next we are coming.

Next time you come to this area, do ping me or jon@joss.com. There’s a bunch-o-stuff we’d like to show you.

Like the Persian Market (Yekta), the Russian Market, Joe’s Noodle House (Chinese food from the Szechuan side) or A&J (Northern Chinese dim sum) or the frankly weird Indian buffets (beet dishes? turnip dishes?) And the Peruvian Chicken places along with the variations of which one can do with quail (PDT in Columbia vs. Mangos in Laural).