02x02 - From Kabul with Love

[bunniefuu]

JAMIL KOCHAI: Okay.

PADMA LAKSHMI: Grab him!

JAMIL: Okay. Good, good.
PADMA: C'mon, grab him.

JAMIL: Oh! No, no.
I'm still alive. Okay, we're good.

We've got the Afghan prisoner.

Oh, my God, he does kinda look like you.

- Doesn't he?! Yeah, the--
- Well, the beard is the same.

- The beard, the thick eyebrows. Uh, yeah.
- Yeah, maybe he has more hair.

Poor guy. [laughs]

I wanna know what it's like to be
an Afghan American of your generation.

It's such a specific
and interesting experience.

Men around my age, you know,
this is the stuff they grew up on.

This is the sorta cultural material

that they ingested
throughout their childhood.

You know, Afghans, for, for decades now,

have been almost exclusively the enemies
in-- on all these video games.

PADMA:
But it's not just video games.

Afghan rebels claim control...

They say that they
will fight the Americans.

PADMA: In the 40 years
of U.S. intervention in Afghanistan,

many Americans have just
been exposed to one kind of Afghan:

the anti-American fundamentalist.

But there's so much more to Afghanistan's
diverse people and their cultures.

Wow, this looks so beautiful.

In Afghan culture, in general,
the best meal is for the guest.

♪

PADMA:
Here in the nation's capital,

where policies were made
in the name of freedom and democracy,

generations of Afghans are making a home.

We brought all the good things

from our country
and show it to the people.

PADMA:
And sharing what we have in common.

We supported democratic values,
moderate norms, education, woman rights.

and Taliban hate us for that.

PADMA:
But how are they making a life here

after they were forced
to flee their motherland?

Do you want to become American?

♪

I came to America when I was four.

I'm an immigrant and I'm not alone.

I've spent my life writing
about food and tasting the world.

Now, I wanna explore who we are
through the food we eat.

My game is strong.

What exactly is American food?

And what makes us American?
[camera clicks]

I'm Padma Lakshmi.

Come with me, as we Taste the Nation.

♪

PADMA: America has had
an active hand in Afghanistan

since the 1980s.

And after 9/11, we occupied
their land in our fight against terror,

while also attempting
to establish a democracy.

But after 20 years, we failed at our goal

and tested the resilience
of Afghans and Afghan Americans.

Here at Bistro Aracosia,
I'm meeting with critically acclaimed

Afghan-American author
Jamil Jan Kochai

to better understand what it felt like

to grow up in this country
seeing only one image of yourself.

You know, when you were growing up,

there weren't that many
Afghan Americans, right?

So, all we knew was...

- Yeah.
- ...caricaturization...

- That's right.
- ...of the Afghan in pop culture,

like with these, you know,
violent video games

- that you played as a boy.
- That's right, yeah.

You know, the images that I saw
on the TV screen, on, on film,

and then, especially in video games,

it was, it was largely negative.

While I was in high school,
when Call of Duty 4

came out for the first time,

it was this immensely popular video game

which you played from the first-person
perspective of a soldier.

And so, I would have
these incredibly surreal experiences

because it was me.

Like, I was pulling the trigger
and I was sh**ting these Afghans.

And so, it was this, you know--

This might sound a little extreme,
but it felt, like, self-mutilating.

Like, I was, I was sh**ting
myself in this odd way.

And so, it was sorta
difficult to contend with that

and with this idea that, like,

you know, I was seeing myself
in the enemy, uh, as opposed to the hero.

And so, it was something that,
that lingered with me for a long time

and th-- and would
eventually sort of become,

like, a topic of my writing as well.

How often did you and your family
go back to Afghanistan?

We went back for the first time
when I was six years old,

and, um, and then, and then again
years later when I was 12 years old.

When we'd be living in sorta like a--

like in a, a, a mud compound
in the village, right?

And so, you know, uh,
we complained about it as children,

but it's something that I'm, you know,
deeply, deeply appreciative now.

PADMA:
Many of Jamil's fondest memories

were centered around meals
where he enjoyed items

from Afghanistan's
regional diverse cuisine,

such as aushak and mantu.

This is so beautiful.
JAMIL: It's really beautiful.

Like, I've never seen mantu
and aushak looking this chic before.

Oftentimes, when my mother
was making the dish,

it would be one or the other,
and so, it would turn into a fight over

which one of us would get
the dish that we wanted.

Oh, I can't wait to eat these.

They look delicious.
This is very elegant. Yes.

So this is aushak, what I'm eating.
And what is aushak?

It's a dumpling
and it's filled with leek.

It can be served
with this meat sauce on top,

which we refer to as pashok.

- So delicious.
- Excellent. Yeah, it's really good.

I'm actually very impressed.

The noodles are so delicate

- I can see through them.
- Mm-hm.

They're almost like
very, very thin wonton wrappers.

- Mm-hm.
- And then, the leek inside gives you

just the right amount of aromatic flavor.

All right, so this is mantu.

- Tell me about mantu, please.
- Yeah, so this is similar

in construction to aushak,

but this is gonna be filled with beef.

It's the smell of the mantu
that's gonna get you from a distance.

Mm, it's so good.

It's so rich, so delicate,
so sophisticated.

And I love the yogurt sauce.

- Is that dried mint?
- Yeah.

I'm just eating all this filling now.
It's so yummy.

Mmm. Which one do you prefer?

- I prefer mantu, so--
- Why?

I'm, I'm bit of a carnivore,
um, and so, you know,

the dish with the most meat
is the one I'm gonna be drawn toward.

The mantu is very dear to my heart.

Mm-hm. I'm gonna have another one.

Do you have a preference yet?

I think I like the aushak. [chuckles]

What does that say about me?

'Cause I know there--
some people are like, "Yeah, you would."

Yeah. No, I mean,
you're gonna have to put up, like,

a hashtag "Team Aushak,"
or somethin' like that.

PADMA:
These beloved dumplings

originate from tribes that migrated
to Afghanistan from Central Asia.

But Afghanistan has also
been influenced by other cultures,

giving rise to a multi-ethnic society

with diverse customs,
religions, and languages.

We've seen this huge upshoot...

- JAMIL: Mm-hm.
- ...of the population of Afghan Americans

- in this country.
- Yeah, that's right.

For a long time,
a lot of the Afghan-American community

stemmed from the refugees
of the Soviet invasion,

and then, of course,
also, a couple years later,

the subsequent civil wars that occurred.

That's one kind of Afghan,
probably my mother's age,

who came in the '70s and '80s.

Around 2005, um,
that's when you begin to see

Afghans coming into the States again

through these, uh,
special immigrant visas.

Or the, the SI visas.

And so those are typically where Afghans
who were supporting the occupation,

who were helping the U.S. military,

and, uh, and then sort of as a reward,

they were being given
these visas, uh, to enter the country.

And now, we've had such

a trying time with decade after decade
of occupation and w*r...

- Mm-hm.
- ...in the country.

- Right.
- So, do you think that, in the end,

the American presence
was at least partly positive?

There were these
positive developments, right?

There was an emphasis upon
women's rights and women's educations.

But much of that aid,
much of that development,

much of that assistance

didn't reach a majority of the population,

especially the population that lived
in rural Afghanistan in the countryside.

The, uh-- there was no western dress.
People dr-- behaved very traditionally--

There was no emancipation of women
in the tribal areas, for example.

Yeah, yeah, for, yeah.
And then again, you know,

the most impoverished Afghans, um,

were facing the brunt
of the American occupation.

They were getting drone bombed,
they were getting night raided,

they were getting k*lled
over and over again.

And so, certainly,
there were developments, right,

but, but it came
at an incredibly, incredibly heavy cost.

PADMA: Here in America,

we've almost only seen
the Afghan people in the context of w*r.

But what was Afghanistan like
before all the waves of occupation,

before all the terror and the bombing?

♪

PADMA:
In D.C.'s trendy Adams Morgan neighborhood

Chef Shamim Popal
is reintroducing classic Afghan recipes

at her Michelin-starred restaurant.

- I cook with olive oil.
- Okay.

Today, she's teaching me how
to make Afghanistan's most famous dish,

qabuli palow,

the way it was made before w*r.

SHAMIM POPAL:
So, for qabuli palow,

you make the color
of the onions little bit darker.

So, now I'm going
to put little bit turmeric.

- Okay.
- Turmeric burns fast,

so you don't want
to overcook the turmeric.

PADMA: The name of this palow
comes from the Dari word"qabil,"

meaning well-accomplished,

not the capital of Kabul,
as some may think.

Shamim's qabuli palow is a love letter
to the country she left behind.

Her recipe is from a time
of abundance in Afghanistan

that was free from the scarcity of w*r.

It's her rich blend
of spices, raisins, carrots, and lamb

that make people crave her aromatic rice.

Qabuli palow, in Afghanistan,
it was not an everyday food.

But every time you invited people,

you must have qabuli palow on your table.

PADMA:
Served primarily on special occasions,

qabuli palow is a warm welcome,

a willingness to go the extra mile

for those you've invited
to grace your table.

And every Afghan has
an opinion on what creates

the ideal combination
of deep flavor and fluffy rice.

For me, what makes qabuli palow special,
it's sesame oil and garlic.

The best qabuli palow that,
that I've ever had was in Kabul

in these tiny, little
local traditional restaurants.

My aunt, Ammajon Amalia,

she makes the best qabuli palow.
Hands down.

My mother makes the best qabuli palow.

I think I make the best qabuli palow.
[laughs]

PADMA: But from what I've heard,

Shamim makes the best qabuli palow.

Do you ever have new Afghani refugees

who come to Lapis and say,
"This is not...

- Yeah, I heard that a lot.
- ... qabuli palow"?

- You do?!
- I, I heard that a lot.

- Really? And what do you say?
- Yes.

Do you take out your wooden spoon?
Are you like, "Listen--"

No, I'm like, you know,
"Don't come here." [laughs]

- You say that?
- I say,

"If you don't like the way I cook,
this is the way I cook."

- That is the seared lamb shank?
- Yes.

My mother-in-law, she used to say,
"Clean the side of your pot."

Oh yeah. Definitely. Are you kidding me?
[Shamim laughing]

- That's the taste.
- That's the umami.

- That's where the juicy stuff is, right?
- Yes. Exactly, yes.

- I know.
- That's the taste.

[both laughing]

Once this is all done, you put water,

let it cook little bit,
and then transfer it to the oven,

and the oven is--
makes it moist and juicy, the meat.

- And roasty.
- And yeah.

Look at these onions.
They just turn into a paste, huh?

SHAMIM: I do the original way.

Color the palow with onions.

You want to make the rice to steam out,
so you make some holes In the rice.

Any water you have,
that comes out of this.

Oh, it smells so good. It does.

This enticing aroma emanating from her pot

hints at an Afghanistan long bygone.

SHAMIM:
I'm going to sauté the carrots now.

We are going to add the raisins.

What year did you come to this country?

May 1987.

We just left everything.

So what is the Kabul that you remember?

It was beautiful, Kabul.

We never thought
we will leave our country...

PADMA: Mm-hm.
SHAMIM: ... 'cause we had everything.

We were so free,
and we were wearing European clothes

and high heels, you know?

I remember one day my father said,
"Your skirt is so short." [laughs]

I think all the fashion from Paris
came straight to Kabul.

- Sure, sure. It was that modern.
- This is 1970s. Yeah.

But when the Russian came, that was it.

PADMA:
Under the pretense of upholding a treaty,

the Soviet Union
invaded Afghanistan in 1979

and within a matter of days,
took hold of the city of Kabul.

Airplanes were going and bombing,

so it was so scary,
and I had my oldest son, two years old.

Oh, my God. [chuckles]

- [softly]: Sorry.
- It's okay.

It's okay. Thank you for telling me.

Every time I talk about those days,

- it makes me cry.
- I can imagine.

- [voice breaking]: So sad.
- Aww.

- I'm sorry.
- I'm so sorry.

But look at you now.

- [Padma laughs]
- I'm like, "Ooh."

PADMA: Four decades of conflict

have left Afghanistan in a dire situation

with food shortages across the country.

Many younger Afghans don't even remember,

or have never tasted,
dishes in their original form,

like Shamim's qabuli palow.

- That is beautiful.
- This is how Afghan food is.

We brought all the, um,
good things from our country

- and, and show it to the people.
- It's so nice.

And look how long and intact

every single grain of rice is.

It's kinda incredible.

Was it good?

Shamim, I don't know how much
Top Chef you've watched,

but I am a [bleep] rice snob.

- Yeah. You are? Good, I'm glad.
- And this rice is excellent.

It's so fragrant.

It's so mysterious 'cause it's sweet,

but then it has the clove,

which gives it, like, that
deep, dark, eucalyptol flavor.

Mm, my God... This is so good.

- I don't even like lamb and this is...
- But this is--

...one of the best things
I've ever eaten in my life.

Shamim's "before w*r" palow
hasn't been lost, as she shares it

with the city she now calls home.

But in the years
since she left Afghanistan,

the struggle for political power endures.

And in this tug of w*r,

one minority group
continues to be persecuted.

It's time we hear from them.

♪

PADMA: Belonging to
the ethnic minority the Hazaras,

Chef Homayon Karimy
arrived to D.C. in the late '90s.

His recipes have been featured
in The Washington Post

and although they are Afghan in origin,

he often peppers them
with an international twist.

Tonight, we are cooking
one of his famous recipes.

What is your favorite dish?
What reminds you of home or childhood?

I mean, there's aash.

Aash is a very unique dish in Afghanistan.

PADMA: A hearty noodle soup
hailing from Central Asia,

aash is made with vegetables,
aromatics, and minced meat.

So we're using
just premade, dried noodles.

So could I use, uh, an Italian pasta,
like spaghetti or fettuccine in a pinch?

You could. The texture's
gonna be a little bit different.

These resemble Asian noodles
more than they do pasta,

just from the off-white color.

- Basically, the base is, uh, wheat flour.
- Okay.

- One or two?
- Oh, no, one should be enough.

I break 'em into three.

- Oh, you break the noodles?
- Yes.

Perfect. Just the way I did.
Exact same thing.

I'm a good student.
[both laughing]

I love sumac. Sumac is this beautiful
vermilion-colored Middle Eastern spice.

But, you know,
it also grows in North America.

The indigenous people in North America
will use it as a seasoning, too.

I started using sumac in America.

You see, I don't make
traditional Afghan food...

- Mm-hm.
- ...'cause we lived in so many countries

as we moved out of Afghanistan.

We incorporate
all this new stuff to the aash,

so it's our family recipe.

And traditionally, where is
the Hazara community in Afghanistan?

In central parts,
especially, um, highlands.

Did you always grow up cooking?

So, growing up, we had, um--
it was a family bakery that we had.

And then, next door,
there was a restaurant,

so I used to watch most of the chefs,

so that's how I got interested,
basically, in cooking.

Just this looks so good.
Why do you even need the meat?

Yum. I can see how
the noodles are soft now.

And then I'm gonna grab
a little bit of yogurt from here.

It smells great.

I'm getting the perfect bite.

As you can see,
I'm putting a carrot and a chickpea.

Ha! I always do that.

It's very hot,
but it's really, really delicious.

- Yeah.
- And very savory.

Thank you.

- It's good.
- Thank you.

It's sour, spicy,
sweet with the carrots.

Mm!

True to Afghan customs of hospitality,

we're enjoying our dinner
in a traditional setting,

on a dastarkhān,

which literally means "tablecloth,"

but is usually displayed on the floor.

All right, this looks beautiful!

So, tell me what is dastarkhān?

Dastarkhān, I guess, in translation,
would be a tablecloth, basically,

but in our culture,
it, it goes more than that.

You sit families, guests,

and then you, you, you,
you show your hospitality.

Somebody has a big dastarkhān
means that he has a very big heart.

A lot of times
in, in, in Afghan culture, in general,

and Hazara culture, in particular,
the best meal is for the guest.

Which is a glorious, glorious meal.

Thank you so much.

Afghan hospitality is
an extreme form of generosity.

I remember growing up that the one thing
that my father always used to say is,

"Every guest is a gift from God."

So, I think that's what makes
Afghan hospitality the most sincere.

Afghan people want
to connect with other cultures

and they love to have guests around.

PADMA:
Is Hazari culture, the food culture,

or just the culture in any aspect,

different than general Afghan culture?

There are some dishes that
are probably unique to Hazaras,

especially rural Hazaras.

These are, like, very simple meal

that is made from, uh,
yogurt, and oil, and bread

because that's all people could afford.

And are there many
Hazaras here in America?

TIMOR KARIMY: Unfortunately,
Hazaras constitute a very small portion

of the Afghan Americans

because those that have means,

they left Afghanistan early on,

and mainly, it was
our Pashtun compatriots,

followed by Tajik compatriot.

Hazaras were the poorest
because of the centuries

of marginalization and discrimination.

Been stigmatized
on the base of race and religion.

Like, a version of their Jim Crow.
TIMOR: Exactly. Absolutely.

But just because we had peace
in Afghanistan the past 20 years,

Hazaras... progressed.

Flourishing.
TIMOR: Thousands flourished

and Hazaras became
hospitable to democratic values,

moderate norms,
woman's rights, girls' education.

PADMA:
Why? Why do you think Hazaras

have adopted a more progressive attitude

and a more egalitarian mindset?

I think Hazara women, they want
what they didn't have for themselves

for their daughters.

There was this,
this focus on educating girls.

- PADMA: Mm-hm.
- But the girl who started
their education in 2003,

2015, graduated
from high school and college,

and that's how resulted to, to mindset
change in Hazar-Hazara community.

It was girls' education.

I think Hazara women, they were--
they opened up their own businesses,

they, they were professors,
they were doctors.

You educate a girl,

- you educate a community. Yes.
- Everybody.

And Taliban... hate us for that.

- And so--
- Yeah, that's not their vibe.

Exactly, exactly.
[Padma laughs]

PADMA: The Hazara have
successfully found solace and safety

for their community here in D.C.,

but what about the newcomers?

How are the current refugees
transitioning to life here?

Yes!

♪

PADMA: I wish there were
bowling shoes that were prettier.

[laughs]

This is Taban Ibraz...

[indistinct]

...who arrived here
after U.S. withdrawal in 2021.

As a female host interviewing
prominent figures in a bowling alley

for a TV series called Let's Bowl,

she appeared on TV without a hijab.

Her life is now in jeopardy.

Yes!

Okay. Do you have any tips for me?

You know, 10 of them should be down.

That's your tip?
[both laughing]

TABAN IBRAZ: [laughs] Okay.

Why bowling?
Is it a big thing in Afghanistan?

My generation, they love to bowl.

What do you miss most
about your bowling program?

I was bowling
for a reason there... you know?

- Mm-hm.
- I was doing that show for a reason.

How do you say--

It was a reason for other girls
to believe themselves.

- That I was try--
- Yeah, you were an example.

- Yeah.
- You were a really great example

- of what... could be.
- I tried to be.

And what sort of things
did you report on?

It was different subjects.

Like, social problems in, uh, Afghanistan,

political, um, routine news,
and... everything.

Mm-hm.

Taban believes in progressive values
and her rights as a woman.

During the fall of Kabul,
when the Taliban gained control,

she became a target.

Taban had to abandon her successful
career in order to preserve her life.

Me and my, uh, colleagues,

they-- all of us received
different threats from the Taliban

because of our work.

I'm a woman,
so in television and on the screen,

this was a reason for them.

Oh, just because you were a woman

- on television showing your face.
- Just because I'm woman, yeah.

- And working, that's enough of a reason.
- And working. Yeah.

You know, most of Afghan people
in Afghanistan was hopeless.

Most of people were
in the airport trying to just get out.

I was just scared of losing my family.

I already lost my job, my, my career,

uh, everything in Afghanistan,
so I was like,

"I don't have any other choice."

- You have nothing to lose.
- Yeah.

You were on one of those planes
that we all saw on the news

with the people hanging off.

That-- You managed to get on one of those.

Let me tell you,

it was the worst... experience

and a terrible experience
in my whole life.

The airplane that I came with inside,

maybe 600 or-- people inside that.
PADMA: 600 people inside that plane?

And I never imagined
that I'll be in that plane,

uh, and in that situation,
leaving my family, my friends behind.

I mean, I can imagine
you're still processing

all the stuff that's happened to you,
and you're also so young.

But at the same time, I can't imagine,
also, the sense of relief,

at least, that you did get out.

What was that like?

I was, like, completely numb.

And I didn't feel like I am out

because... still I was just scared.

That w*r took everything from me there,

but not my dreams.

I know it's only six or seven months,

but you are starting
a life here in America.

- Yeah.
- Do you want to become American?

Or an Afghan American, I shall say.

Do I have another choice?

I don't know.

- My roots... is from Afghanistan.
- Mm-hm.

That's my homeland.

But now, if Afghanistan
is not safe anymore,

I am trying to work
for my country from here.

- Mm-hm.
- I'm trying to learn first, the language.

And I, I learn a little bit more
about the cul-culture, about the people.

I love the people here.
Everyone I met, they are so beautiful.

- Good.
- I don't know.

- I'm, I'm not sure about the future.
- On behalf of American people,

I'm very happy.
[both laughing]

Taban's escape has been made possible
by established Afghan Americans

who've been galvanized
to rally their support

behind bringing new refugees in.

Especially to share meals like this one.

Smells like heaven.
[laughter]

[singing]

Ajmal is one of those Afghan Americans

who is helping newcomers
settle into the U.S.

♪

WOMAN: Okay. Yeah.
PADMA: That looks beautiful!

Shall I serve you some eggplant?

Yeah, like, the thing is,
you can't serve.

- I can't serve.
- If you're the guest,

you can't serve.
ALL: Yeah.

- That's just the rule.
- Okay.

That's fine.
I'm very happy to just sit back

and let you guys serve it
the way you want me to eat it.

Also, another rule is
when you say "enough,"

- we do, like, two more spoons.
- Okay, enough.

Like, two spoons ago. Oh, my gosh!
[all laughing]

- Thank you.
- Okay.

Great.

PADMA: Thank you.

This looks wonderful. I love eggplant.

AJMAL:
Borani is kind of like a twist on biryani.

PADMA: It's delicious.
The chutney's delicious, too.

And how did you meet Taban?

For Afghan friends that just got here,

you know, we're really
focused on empowering them,

and so, that means support
with college applications,

helping them find work,

uh, providing equipment
for any of their projects,

a lot of them are very active
journalists, activists, musicians.

And so, we-we're just here to empower
them with mentorship and, and such.

That's great.
AJMAL: Yeah.

PADMA: Did you grow up in a community
with lots of Afghan people or?

I did, yeah. I grew up really
immersed in the Afghan culture,

and the Afghan culture my parents
and their friends were preserving

were, like, centered
around music and food,

but, you know, after 9/11,

I kinda put all of my Afghan-ness
in a bucket, in a box,

and kinda shoved it aside.

I wonder if helping them
and being of service in this way

has also brought you closer in touch
with your Afghan identity.

I feel connected in a way
that I've never been.

And another beautiful thing here is that,

think each one of us represents
a different part of the country.

For example, you know,
uh, she's an ethnic Uzbek.

I'm an ethnic Tajik.

But my neighbors, I saw them raising,
ya know, Taliban's flag.

And for me, I think
I've never been heartbroken,

but

It's very hard to, ya know, go back,

and it's not realistic to see
a united Afghanistan.

Everyone's too different.

This is my second time I'm--
I have become a refugee.

We will go back home.

You have hope that you will return?
EDRIS LUFTI: Uh, yes.

When I see this group of people
and the generation they represent,

uh, I personally am really inspired
because I see a kinda borderless,

all-inclusive Afghanistan,

where you embrace
the different members of your tribe.

Where it's a part of your identity,

but it-- you're not limited
by it... you know?

You still appreciate each other.

And you can see here
in this table, with these people,

a story of Afghanistan.

The other generation, our generation,

Ana was born in w*r,
I was born when Afghanistan was in w*r,

but I'm hoping

this history of w*r one day will be end.

MAN: Inshallah!

PADMA: As thousands more
continue to be displaced

out of their homes in Afghanistan,

and look for safety across the globe,

the community here in D.C.
is welcoming them

with familiar faces and some qabuli palow.

May this be a reminder to the rest of us

to reveal the best of America,

and to offer our hospitality
to these new arrivals.

We will all be better for it.

[all cheering, laughing]

♪

Delicious.