Jalebi's recipe is documented in a 10th-century Arabic cookbook and still looks the same

world cultures & travelWikipedia10th century · Abbasid Caliphate

Jalebi's recipe is documented in a 10th-century Arabic cookbook and still looks the same

the gist

The earliest known jalebi recipe appears in the 10th-century Arabic cookbook Kitab al-Tabikh by Ibn Sayyar al-Warraq, where latticed fritters are dipped in honey perfumed with rose water, musk and camphor. A 13th-century Abbasid cookbook describes a similar dish. The name probably comes from the Arabic zulabiya or the Persian zolbiya. In India, the Jain text Priyamkara-nrpa-katha, composed around 1450, mentions jalebi at a merchant's dinner. A Sanskrit work from before 1600 lists ingredients and a method that match the modern sweet. Some scholars think the dish travelled from the Middle East through North Africa to India, though the exact route is debated.

how it works

A loose batter of flour and water is piped in spirals or lattices into hot oil, where it fries until crisp. The fried coils are then soaked in sugar syrup, which the porous batter absorbs, making the sweet juicy inside and crisp outside.

so what

Jalebi is a good example of how a sweet can travel across centuries and continents, adapting while keeping its core technique of frying batter and soaking it in syrup. Its written record stretches over a thousand years.

fun fact

The medieval Arabic version was sometimes soaked in honey scented with rose water, musk and camphor.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia · text CC BY-SA 4.0

Image: Wikimedia Commons

source: Wikipedia ↗

historyWikipediaclassic1336–1565 · Karnataka, India

Hampi was once one of the world's largest cities, until its Vijayanagara capital was destroyed in 1565

the gist

Hampi is a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Karnataka, India, with more than 1,600 surviving remains spread over 4,100 hectares. It was the capital of the Vijayanagara Empire from 1336 to 1565. Travellers from Persia and Portugal described it as a prosperous, wealthy and grand city with temples, markets and farms along the Tungabhadra River. By 1500 it was estimated to be the world's second-largest city after Beijing, and probably India's richest at the time. In 1565 a coalition of Muslim sultanates defeated the Vijayanagara Empire, its capital was conquered and destroyed, and the city was left in ruins. Hampi remains a religious centre, with the active Virupaksha Temple at its heart.

how it works

The city was built around a fortified core with temples, markets and water structures along the river, supplied by an extensive network of roads and waterworks. When the empire fell, the city was not rebuilt, so its stone monuments were left standing.

so what

Hampi shows how quickly a great city can vanish after a military defeat, and how a ruined capital can remain sacred. Its ruins give historians a view of medieval South Asia that few other sites can match.

fun fact

The name Hampi comes from Pampa, an old name for the Tungabhadra River.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia · text CC BY-SA 4.0

Image: Wikimedia Commons

source: Wikipedia ↗

2 min

politicsshortCNA2:01

False allegations about Singapore’s hand in Indonesia’s markets and a made-up meeting

from CNA

CNA Verify has found close to 400 posts pushing falsehoods tying Singapore to Indonesia’s stock market rout and to a secret meeting that never took place. Together, they drew nearly 12 million views, and some were circulated by accounts that appeared to be working in concert, across multiple social media platforms.

Here’s how the disinformation campaign targeting Singapore was uncovered.

on YouTube: CNA ↗