Most of those who fast during the holy month of Ramadan savor the delicious dishes laid out on Iftar tables to break their fast. New mouth-watering meals and extraordinary dishes are introduced for the Iftar, but the question remains as to who really cooks these meals? Many housewives prefer to have a great table during Ramadan and would like to buy well-known homemade readymade meals. Dishes such as Farmoza, Samboosa, Mantu, Warag Unab and Kubbah are all made in homes and are sold to busy working housewives. Aseel Al-Alami, a working mother in a bank in Jeddah, said: “I love Ramadan meals, but I have no time to prepare them; I come home at 3:30 P.M. very tired and all I do is rest.” She feels that women who cook and sell food from their homes make it very easy for those who have no time to do so. “As soon as I wake up in the morning I open my freezer and get the things I want to de-frost before I go to work,” she said. According to the latest statistics, more than 66 percent of Saudi females work in a variety of jobs in different places. As such many of them do not have enough time to cook and prepare famous Ramadan dishes. Many housewives are very pleased to have someone to cook the special Ramadan meals. “I don't care if it is expensive. As long as I don't have to cook, I don't mind,” said Reem Abdurrahman, 29 from Jeddah. “My husband thinks that I'm the one preparing these dishes when I don't even know what they contain,” she added with a giggle. Amal Bahamdain, a housewife who sells food from her home, said that she gets calls for some specific dishes to be ready at a certain time especially before the holy month. “I do it as a hobby, not for money; I even sell it cheaper than the market.” She thinks that working women prefer to get dishes from housewives who prepare the food at home instead of the market because they feel the food is healthier. “Some women bring me the ingredients and I just prepare the meal for them,” added Bahamdain. Ruqaya Badawood from Makkah also agrees with Bahamdain and notes that many women have Iftar parties at their homes. They call us and we prepare everything for them, she said.w __
