Week 1: Poronkaristys from Finland

Basically this recipe was reindeer stew over homemade mashed potatoes with a side of lingonberry jam (we subbed with cranberry jam as the store was out of lingonberry jam). The combination of salty and sweet was perfect! We really enjoyed this dish! The original used a reindeer roast, but those are incredibly hard to find. We went with reindeer sausage and I think it tasted really good.

Recipe used from The Food Dictator

Week 2: Chorizo and Black Bean Soup from Venezuela

This one was a dud for us. Somehow it managed to be both too dry and wet at the same time. I could probably switch out the chorizo and beans to help it along, but we decided the flavors in the broth weren’t amazing anyway.

Recipe used from Closet Cooking

Week 3: Sega Wat from Ethiopia

This was so incredibly delicious! It’s definitely going into our Top 10 of the year and the regular rotation in Paprika. It might even take the top stop. I added more spice than listed in the recipe and so glad I did! This was so incredibly flavorful and full of spice. Those hard boiled eggs and the injera on the side elevated the dish so much. (Full disclosure: We bought the injera from an Ethiopian restaurant in town.)

Recipe used from The Daring Gourmet

Week 4: Jani Me Fasule from Albania

Another dud. This turned into a pastey mess with little flavor. Definitely didn’t want a second helping.

Recipe used from Cookipedia

Week 5: Meatball and Couscous Soup from Morocco

Decent recipe but not amazing. I might try and make this again, but add more spice mix to the meatballs and kick up the broth a bit.

Recipe used from Little Spice Jar

Week 6: Mince Stew from New Zealand

Ehhh…. not amazing. This was like a lesser version of my sloppy joes.

Recipe used from All Recipes

Week 7: Asam Pedas (Spicy Tamarind Fish Stew) from Malaysia

This was very interesting… I loved the flavors but not the complete execution. I definitely want to try making this one again with some minor tweaks. All the ingredients besides the fish needed to be in smaller chunks and maybe simmered longer on the stove before spooning over rice. But it was good and we enjoyed eating it as is.

Recipe used from Roti and Rice