Shorabet Adas
Artwork Details
| Full Title | Shorabet Adas (Levantine Red Lentil Soup) |
| Artist | Ruba Saqr |
| Medium and Support | Gouache on acid-free paper, using artist-quality gouache brands |
| Dimensions | Height 32cm x Width 32cm |
| Paper Dimensions | Height 32cm x Width 32cm |
| Date Made | 2023 |
| Display Type | The artwork has been scanned in order to showcase it online |
| Notes | The signature at the bottom of the painting has been added digitally for the purpose of crediting the artist. The original artwork is signed on the back |
| Keywords | Levantine food art, Eastern Mediterranean food culture artwork, Middle Eastern food painting, Middle Eastern soup, woman artist, women artists, female artist |
Description
Entitled Shorabet Adas, the Arabic name for a simple lentil soup known all across the Levant, this original gouache on paper artwork is painted on premium, acid-free, 300 gsm watercolour paper.
Part of an ongoing project to explore different aspects of the Middle Eastern, North African, Levantine, and Mediterranean culinary culture, this gouache painting is a celebration of one of the region’s most famous staple foods, enjoyed especially during the holy month of Ramadan.
It is also quite popular among Arab Christians during the Lent fasting season, thanks to it being a plant-based vegetarian dish.
Like other paintings in the series, namely Fattet Makdous and Ftour Arabi, this work of art features the hand of an Arab, Middle Eastern woman – as it takes the viewer on a culinary journey through the lens of a Levantine female artist.
In an attempt to explore food culture in connection with folkloric and Bedouin Middle Eastern fashion, the painting depicts a traditional silver bracelet sitting on the woman’s wrist. It is in the style of old Bedouin jewellery that many women across the Arab region like to wear.
Shorabet Adas: A symbol of the Levantine culture’s connectedness and unity
Red lentil soup is probably one of the food-culture elements that unite the Levant (aka “Bilad al-Sham” in Arabic), beyond just language.
The cultural symbolism of food transcends the ingredients into something much bigger and much more intangible. Generational recipes that travel from grandmother to mother to daughter are part of the social and cultural identity of this region.
As it happens, there are many versions of this lentil soup, as it varies from household to household. As a matter of fact, I remember getting into many discussions about the tastiest recipe to make with friends and family members from Jordan and Syria. Only to settle on one opinion: The simpler, the better.
Made with just a few ingredients, Shorabet Adas is a favourite accompaniment to several Syrian and Lebanese dishes, like fried Kibbeh (stuffed bulgur balls), particularly in wintertime. It is also a mainstay menu item at almost every restaurant serving Lebanese or Syrian food across the region.
But one thing is for sure, every single household in the Levant knows Shorabet Adas, and probably cherishes it as a dish that connects us all in so many unseen ways.
