Fil's Newsletter | Palestinian Food Stories & Shatta Tips

Ottolenghi Lands at De Bijenkorf - What a Bigger Shelf Actually Means

Ottolenghi's line of condiments has just landed at De Bijenkorf, two years after it first launched in the UK. It's a small piece of retail news, but it says something bigger: it's a sign of how far the category has come, and is progressing. While we see a widening category opportunity as generally positive, the wider context is a reminder of why we started Fil in the first place. A bigger shelf is a good sign Every dish exists for a reason. Understanding the culture behind a food matters, both...

Food media has quietly spent the last decade building a category called "Modern Middle Eastern" cooking. Whether it’s a course you can take, a food blog you can read, or a set of recipes you can start to add to your repertoire, it’s a term we are seeing more and more - and liking less and less. What does it mean? What exactly is being ‘modernised’? More importantly, who are the people doing the ‘modernising’? The difference between exchange and erasure Cultural exchange is where a dish travels with its...

What's the difference between Shatta, chilli crisp and gochujang? All three are chilli-based pantry items that are mainstays in their respective cuisines — however, they come from different traditions, are made differently, and taste nothing alike. Shatta is a fresh, lightly fermented Palestinian chilli condiment, spoonable rather than crunchy or thick. Chilli crisp is Chinese in origin: chilli, garlic and aromatics fried and suspended in oil, built for crunch. Gochujang is a thick, sticky Korean paste, fermented over weeks or months with glutinous rice and fermented soybean, built for depth...

Shatta has always been the perfect go-to condiment for when you need an effortless uplift to your meal. The benefit that the traditional version had, was that it was pure in ingredients and in flavour. Fil’s Shatta - much like the traditional Shatta's we grew up with - is chillies, salt, a little acid and little extra virgin olive oil. It contains no added sugar, no thickeners, and no preservatives. For someone who is eating less, or who is simply trying to eat clean, that matters more than it used...

First, what actually is Sriracha?! Many of us know Sriracha is the flying rooster sauce that populates the tables of most south Asian or Asian fusion restaurants - and these days, most people’s fridges too. It originally comes from the region Si Racha town of Thailand (hence the name), and was popularised in Los Angeles, USA, during the 1980’s. It’s a smooth chilli sauce built on fermented red chillies and garlic, finished with vinegar and sugar. Three things make it work: it is garlicky, it has umami and a nice...

Food media has been circling two ideas at once this year: zero waste and fermentation. We have seen a no-waste guide to using the parts of an ingredient most people bin, and a feature on making fermented hot sauce, in which the fermentation expert interviewed makes a point of saying fermentation isn't a trend at all, but one of the oldest food techniques there is. He's right, and the same is true of zero waste. Neither of these is new. They're just being noticed again. The trend that isn't a...

za'atar, sumac and baharat at a spice souk in the old city of Nablus

Za'atar, Sumac and Baharat: What Each One Actually Does

Along with Shatta, Za'atar, Sumac and Baharat are staples of the Palestinian kitchen - but what job does each one actually do?

Chilli Oil, Chilli Paste or Hot Sauce: Which One Your Recipe Needs

Chilli oil coats and enriches, hot sauce lifts and sharpens, while chilli paste builds flavour into a dish during cooking. Shatta can do all three.

Grilled halloumi with sweet spicy shatta jam

What is "Fricy"? And why Fil has been making it since 2023

There's a new word doing the rounds in British food media this year: "Fricy". We've been doing it since before it had a name.

The Brine We Didn't Throw Away Just Won Two Great Taste Stars

Two of our zero-waste Shattas — Shatta Jam and Shatta Hot Sauce — just picked up 2 Stars each at the Great Taste Awards. Here's what's in the jar, and...

Come Taste Fil at Whole Foods Market Kensington

Come taste Fil with us at Whole Foods Market High Street Kensington. We’ll be sampling weekly, starting Friday 19 June, with more dates to follow. Meet the team, ask us...

Spice up your snack plate this summer

Ketchup is fine, mayonnaise does the job, but add a spoonful of Fil Shatta on the side of your fries? It's the fresh spicy sauce you didn't know you needed.