The History & Culture of Ashoora Pudding
Our Ashoora Pudding is a vegetarian dish inspired by tradition. For many, Ashoora is more than just food: over the centuries, it has been cooked in large quantities and distributed among family, neighbors, friends, colleagues, and others, as an offering of peace.
Traditionally, Ashoora Pudding is made from wheat berries cooked slowly and flavored with dried fruits, legumes, or nuts. It is sweetened sometimes with sugar or honey, or seasoned with Cinnamon, Anise, or other spices. Its diversity of ingredients reflects our diversity as human beings. Our Ashoora Pudding is based on this time-honored recipe, but our version substitutes wheat with rice. It is packed with fiber making it a healthy vegan option at breakfast, at snack time, or as dessert. We developed our recipe with the hope that it could help flourish peace in homes and businesses all over the country and the world.
The history of this pudding dates back thousands of years. It was cooked first time on the Ark, thus in many countries Ashoora is known also as Noah’s Pudding. The prophet Noah (peace be upon him) and his family had their supplies dwindling at the end of the 40 days and 40 nights of the Flood. He boiled a large pot of water and asked his family to put in any ingredients they could find. After adding wheat, beans, dried fruits, nuts, etc., the dish they made was the sweet pudding known as Ashoora.
The word Ashoora means 10th. In the Balkans, the Caucasus, and the Middle East this dish is served traditionally on the 10th day of Muharram, the first month of the lunar year. It is the day on the lunar calendar when the Ark was saved from the Flood. Millions of people fast on this day, with prayer and reflection, and have Ashoora Pudding while breaking their fast.
Ashoora Pudding has ancient roots, and as a dessert, it is loved by millions of people in many countries. Through our Ashoora Pudding, we hope to help encourage peace in our country and in the world.
