Did you know that Hamilton Beach Commercial kitchen equipment is sold in more than 95 countries? We’re always amazed to discover how talented chefs use our culinary blenders, immersion blenders, rice cookers and more to put their distinctive stamp on local cuisine. Here are just a few of our favorite global dishes, with recipes and demonstrations.

Mezze

A mezze platter is a delicious global culinary tradition. It’s not a set menu as much as a style of eating: a lavish spread of dips, flatbreads, finger foods and salads that’s served as a communal meal.

Mezze is served across a wide section of the globe: the eastern Mediterranean, northern Africa, the Balkans, and the Middle East. Each country has its own specialties.

Chefs’ secret for perfectly smooth, always consistent mezze dips, spreads, and pastes? The EXPEDITOR™ high-performance culinary blender. Use it to make:

• Carrot hummus with fresh basil and sesame
• Chermoula marinade, a North African blend of onions, garlic, preserved lemon, herbs and spices
• Lentil falafel, a delicious variation on the traditional chickpea variety
• Harissa paste, a red chili paste that originated in Tunisia
• Zaalouk, a coarse blended mixture of roasted eggplant and stewed tomatoes

Another piece of commercial kitchen equipment you’ll need is a rice cooker. A commercial rice cooker is the easiest way to make large quantities, not only of rice (an essential element for pilaf or dolmades) but also of other grain dishes for mezze, such as tabbouleh or couscous.

Flan

Flan is “the dessert of the people” in Latin America, says food writer Victoria Freixa. This concoction of milk, eggs, cream, and caramelized sugar is simple, yet endlessly varied. “It’s beautiful to see how such a simple recipe with such a lengthy background has the power to bring out the individuality in each cook. How my flan will never taste like my mom’s flan, or hers like my grandmother’s. Each flan is different.”

One fresh take on flan is dairy-free: almond tofu flan with mango purée. In this recipe, the EXPEDITOR™
high-performance culinary blender does triple duty. First, make fresh almond milk by blending soaked almonds with hot water and salt, then straining. Blend silken tofu, rice syrup, salt and cinnamon; add almond milk; almond extract, and dissolved gelatin. Strain, pour into molds, and refrigerate to set. Finally, blend a mango puree to top your flan.

Chimichurri

Chimichurri is an Argentinean condiment for grilled meat made with chopped parsley, garlic, oregano and white vinegar. The origin of the name has been lost to time. Some think it comes from tximitxurri, a Basque-style herb sauce. Others say it comes from “Jimmy’s curry,” named for an English soldier.

Regardless, chimichurri is delicious, fresh, and infinitely variable. You can simply whisk together chopped ingredients, or use a mortar and pestle. We prefer to use a blender — the exclusive CHOP function on the EXPEDITOR™ was made for moments like these!  Our chimichurri recipe calls for blanching fresh flat-leaf parsley, cilantro, basil, and oregano. Use the CHOP function to process the herbs with roasted garlic. Then blend with olive oil, vinegar, salt, pepper, fried garlic and red pepper flakes.

Tikka masala

In the 1970s, a customer at Glasgow restaurant Shish Mahal said the chicken tikka was too dry for his tastes. So owner Ali Ahmed Aslam, known as Mr. Ali, added spices, cream and a can of condensed tomato soup. Thus tikka masala was born.

That’s one version of the story, anyway. Other people say tikka masala was being served in India back in the 1940s. Whoever invented it, tikka masala has become an iconic dish. And it’s easy to make! The EXPEDITOR™ allows chefs to grind the garam masala spice mixture right in the jar.

First, toast the spice mixture (cinnamon sticks, cloves, fenugreek seeds, green and black cardamom seeds, and peppercorns). Then, add nutmeg and bay leaves and grind until fine. This wonderfully fragrant blend is used both in the marinade for chicken tikka masala and the creamy sauce. Find the recipe here.

Whether you run a taqueria, a café, or a fine dining establishment, Hamilton Beach Commercial is here to help your business succeed with high-quality, high-performance kitchen equipment.