Hi, my name is Sawsan. I used to be an orthodontist, but now I am a passionate food explorer 🙂

I am Palestinian,I was born in Jenin, but I was raised in Amman (Jordan). I lived, studied and worked in Amman up until June 2014 when my husband got a job offer in Ras Al Khaima (United Arab Emirates).

We packed everything and decided to take on this new journey.A new chapter called our adventure in the United Arab Emirates. That lasted for 5 wonderful years. After that we packed up everything again and moved back to Jordan in 2018.

Here on Chef in disguise I share easy authentic middle eastern recipes along with family favorites from around the globe. You will also get a taste of life in the middle east, the culture, and the famous landmarks.

Food on Chef in disguise

Living in the middle east -despite everything you hear in the news- has its perks. The middle eastern cuisine is rich in healthy recipes that focus on fruits, vegetables, spices and making the best out of seasonal and fresh ingredients.I share many easy and authentic middle eastern, Levantine and arabic recipes. Along with the traditional there are recipes that are my takes on old and popular recipes.

I can’t call myself a food explorer is I didn’t have a sense of adventure. I am a member of the daring cooks, daring bakers and the secret recipe club which means I get to try out and explore new ingredients, new recipes and new cuisines. You will see recipes here from around the globe. Italian and Mexican cuisines are personal favorites but the list of cuisines I’ve explored is long and the list of the ones I still want to explore is even longer 🙂

So you are An Arab, why blog in English?

Before I started this blog, googling many Arabic recipes came up with results that had nothing to do with the real deal. Most of the people writing about the Middle East whether they are writing about the recipes, the people or the culture are doing it from an outsiders point of view. They are people who have only been to the Middle East for a trip or a visit or they believe everything they hear on the news and write from that perspective. I wanted to give people an insider’s view about the Middle East. I wanted to share authentic recipes, the way they are really made here, the way my mum makes them, the way I grew up with them.But it doesn’t stop there, I want to give people a glimpse into what it is REALLY like to be a woman living in the Middle East.

Writing the blog in English was a way to reach a bigger audience. A way to get to the audience that some how thinks that because I live in Jordan then I am surrounded by mountains of sand and camels. There is so much more to the Middle East than what you hear on the news. If you switch off the T.V. and come along this journey with me, you just might change your mind.

I am new here where do I start?

Check out my recipe picture index
For a quick tour of the most popular categories on my blog

If you here because of a passion for middle eastern food yet you find many of the ingredients new to you, stop by my middle eastern and Arabic ingredients page, there you will find information about ingredients like summac, mahlab and mastic and other popular middle eastern ingredients.

If have always wanted to make cheese at home but did not know where to start, my cheese making 101 is the page for you. It will introduce to rennet, cheese curds and tell you what types of milk to use and how.

If you would like to take a walk on the wild side and try baking with a sourdough starter, please visit my sourdough series of posts. You can start with my sourdough 101 that covers all the basics

Photography on Chef in disguise

All the pictures you see on Chef in disguise are taken by me.

The early posts on the blog were photographed using point and shoot Olympus camera, followed by a Nikon D3100 camera with the basic 18-55 lens and a 50 mm lens. posts starting in 2018 were taken using Nikon d7200.

Food photography is something I truly enjoy, be it styling, choosing props or trying to learn more and get better with every picture.If you are interested in my pictures and would like to work with me on a photography project, you’ll find my contact information below.

Copyright and contact info

All the content on this blog is copyright protected. If you want to use my images or recipes please let me know and provide a link to credit my work.

Contact me

Leave me a comment or drop me an email thechefindisguise@gmail.com