If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. It’s an old adage that Hoda Kobeissi has heard her entire life.
During her career as a chef, this saying meant, do not mess with traditional Lebanese recipes.
But Hoda’s quest to create salivating new dishes has seen her bypass what she has been told. It has resulted in the meshing of flavours from different worlds – and the results have been spectacular.
For Australia Day, the MasterChef 2018 contestant created a dessert by mixing the all-time Lebanese favourite, znoud el sit, which translates to a lady's arms, with a flavour popular within Australian households, lemon meringue.
And thus, the lemon meringue znoud was created. For Hoda, fusing these two iconic flavours was the best way to mark Australia Day.
“Not many people have tried it. So for me, fusing Australian flavours with my traditionally-made Lebanese sweets is all about that celebration, it is a celebration of the country where we are all together,” she says.
Born in Australia to Lebanese migrants, Hoda grew up in an environment where food - and the rituals that came with it - mattered a great deal.
In Middle Eastern culture, food is considered a way to show appreciation, generosity and hospitality.
Privileged with having the knowledge of both worlds, she learned to appreciate her own culture and heritage, while embracing Australian values and the way of life.
“I belong to a country where we are all free, there is freedom, freedom of speech, freedom of choice, and there is a mix of people, which makes it amazing."
Since big celebrations call for special foods, Australia Day to Hoda means getting together with her extended family for a picnic around the barbecue - but with a special twist.
This is what a regular Australia Day looks like for the chef. Source: Supplied
“Lebanese barbecue differs a little bit to the Aussie barbecue because we always barbecue over coal, and our meat is on skewers, and you know there are a few variations, a few differences."
I’ll never forget those memories, and we actually, till this day, all meet up, and we all use this public holiday to share a meal together and appreciate what we have in this country.
Hoda’s passion for cooking has evolved over the years. One of her biggest influences was appearing as a contestant on MasterChef, where she stunned audiences and impressed the jury with dishes that took the best of her Lebanese heritage and meshed them with Australian flavours.
‘That is not how you make it’
Hoda believes Arabs are “very attached” to their culture, heritage and cuisine, which makes the idea of modifying authentic recipes highly unusual.
“We are just possessive and obsessive about it and if we make something a little bit different, we are not allowed to use the name of the dish.
“If I add quinoa in tabbouleh, I think I’d be on the radar for some people to tell me, 'no, that is not how you make it'.”
However, growing up in Australia has given Hoda a broader perspective; she respects tradition and understands how the original recipes have been working well and tasting amazing for so many decades.
But she also realises just how multicultural the Australian community is, which calls for new versions of authentic dishes.
“I love to eat an Asian stir fry or something like that. I then wonder if I add soy sauce to something, how will that taste? I don’t see any issues.”
Although Lebanese food has gained huge popularity in Australia over recent years, this was not the case during Hoda’s time at school.
Chef Hoda Kobeissi Source: SBS Arabic24
She recalls being asked, “why does your sandwich look like a cylinder and not a square?”
She had to explain what Lebanese bread was and how it can be filled with different fillings, such as labneh yogurt.
Having to explain her food helped her build a strong connection with friends of different cultural backgrounds.
She believes this "confusion" was a key part of her education, as well as the education of her friends.
