Muscat: Natives are busy harvesting dates, the main agricultural crop of the country. All members of the farmer’s family, including women and children, are part of the harvest. Harvesting is done by everyone in the family, singing folk songs and having fun. The intermittent rains this year have led to an increase in production. Dates are an important part of the Omani way of life. Dates are present in Omani homes every day of the year. They are kept at home in many ways. Omani homes also have yautaba, which is made with several ingredients, including cumin, without the boil.
Omanis welcome guests with dates and Kahwa. No party is complete in Omani homes without dates. The first stage of harvesting is to climb into the palm and cut the bunches with a sharp sickle-like knife. These are lowered using ropes etc. The dates that are brought home in this way are cleaned, washed, and the damaged ones are removed and dried. Special mats and baskets are available in Omani farmer’s houses. There are two methods of harvesting, Al-Tabseel and Al-Jidad. The fruits picked from the palm trees are prepared for cooking and brought to the kitchen known as Tarkiba. This is a method of cooking in large pots in an earthen oven.
Harvested dates are processed
The first step is boiling for half an hour using firewood. The dates cooked in this way are dried in the sun in an open place. After drying in the sun for four to five days, they are packed and sent to the market. Al-Jidad method is prevalent in most places. This is done in different steps. After cutting the dates from the palm, they are left to dry in the sun for two or three days. With this, the dates will separate from the bunch. Later the dates will be cleaned by removing the hooks etc. It is again dried in the sun for several days and takes at least two weeks to complete.
There are more than 250 varieties of dates in Oman. The most important of these are Khalas, Kunaisi and Farg. Abu Duhain is a very distinctive fruit. It has less sugar content than other dates and is less sweet. Funcha Souq is the main market place in the northern region.