Food Standards In Dubai

I have lived in Dubai for almost six months now. I am a trained scientist and most recently acquired a degree in Food Safety and Control. I love food, I adore eating, cooking and shopping for my ingredients. I used to grow my own vegetables, back in London. Cooking, baking and making home-made chutneys, jams and similar foodstuff, are my favourite ways of spending free time. My daughter loves my shortbread.

I have not stopped doing any of these hobbies while I have been in Dubai. It is so wonderful to find that there this so much colourful and varied produce from all around the globe.

I learnt to replace my love for Italian and French ingredients for more Middle Eastern ones. Local Labneh (cream cheese) replaced Mascarpone, for a delicious pancakes, with semolina, honey and yogurt.

I tend to purchase Indian, Pakistani, Iranian, Turkish and Egyptian grown-food.

I love locally made cow's milk and plain yogurt, it tastes so good. The hot climate has also changed my habits of eating sweet things. The only sweets I now tend to eat are dark chocolate (Swiss) and honey.

My daughter who is nearly two years old munches raisins, apricots, bananas, drinks milk and refuses to eat ice-cream. Bizarre, I know! 

Let's hope the good habits continue

I was personally, at first, very underwhelmed by the offerings at the local supermarkets and a bit scared of getting ill from potentially badly chilled dairy and meat produce. People who I have meet in Dubai on my arrival had given me some warnings and advice on that.

I bought what they bought and gradually, step by step learned myself what was good.

It took time to find the right eggs (some did not taste nice) and chicken.

I have choice between french super- and hyper-markets and Waitrose or Spinneys (Brits love them) and Indian Lulu's or  the quite arabic Union Co-op.

I avoid iced drinks when out and I only drink bottled water.

Yes. I did get food poisoning. It happened to me twice and it was awful. Aparently it was caused by a virus which only strikes here. Thank God, my daughter and husband did fall victims of this microbes too.

Overall, I am impressed with cleanliness and food quality here. Eating out is a nice experience in Dubai or at least in the places I have been to. For th most part, they really understand that good standards will make a customer happy to buy their products. They tend to follow HACCP, ISO and BRC.

An International Chutney

I made my first chutney in Dubai. I was encouraged by a recent batch I had made in London.

It is a hot period now, here in the region. It has given me something to do, and keeps my husband happy :)

Almost every single ingredient came from abroad. As almost all food in UAE is imported, so my home-made chutney originated in different parts of the globe.

Ingredients as follows:

Apples -lovely crunchy & red apples came from New Zealand,

The onion came from India

The raisins came from California (dark type) and Iran (golden coloured type)

Sugar (brown) from Singapore

Tomatoes from Oman

Salt from Holland

Vinegar from UAE, of caramel colour

Curry powder and ginger powder - Gyma (local distributor of spices)




This is just a picture I like. I hope it gives you some idea of the food situation in the Emirates. Food is costly, but because it comes from far away. OK, you can get good local macaroni and local water. But we are living in the desert...

Patricia