Tempting choices for Iftar

Mais Imran  
I look forward to lentil soup. I like salads like fattoush and tabbouleh. After a day of fasting, the things you look forward to are grilled food or Levantine cooking like mulukhiyah and mansaf. My favourites consist of Palestinian food like m'sakhan, which is a flat bread made with a lot of onions, sumac and roast chicken. It is phenomenal, everyone has to try it. I am also looking forward to mahashi, which is a stuffed eggplant, vine leaves, as well as maqloobeh. And let us not forget the vimto, tamr hendi and jallab.  These foods are craved during our fasting because they are the most traditional and tastiest food we have. They are made in massive portions, so as to gather people. The nature of the food itself is to gather people.
 
Ruby Hanif
During Ramadan I like to eat pakoras, samosas and dahi baray that is made at home by mom. Along with this, I like the milkshakes she makes at home along with Rooh afza and fruit chaat. I prefer mom's cooking. We eat out too when she doesn't make food at home, especially when she is busy. It is fun eating these things during Ramadan. 
 
Fateha Sabere  
I like eating tamar - a type of cake, haleeb, harira that is a lentil, tomato and chickpea soup. I am from Morocco, so I like to eat traditional food from my country. I also like samboosa, a lot of bread like busheer and baghrir, which is a tender pancake that melts in your mouth. You get all these foods in the UAE. I buy them fresh in Sharjah during Ramadan. I make and eat harira almost every day during Ramadan. It is normal for me to go home every day after work, wait for the Maghrib prayers and then eat. I enjoy cooking my own meals. During Ramadan, I cook a lot.

Marco Dos Santos
Ramadan to me means a period of purity and cleansing. I don't have any favourite foods. It really is business as usual during Ramadan for me. People don't stop working during Ramadan. All that happens in my industry are time shifts where we start work from 11am, instead of 9am, and finish later. Companies are still available and people still work, they just do it at a more convenient time. I have been here for seven years and have only been to Iftar parties thrice because of these timings. You have to work to accommodate work demand, so eating out remains less of a priority for me. 
 
Shegufta Alam  
We are meant to keep Iftar very light, so after breaking fast with dates and water I generally like to eat a lot of fruits because it keeps me hydrated. It is a healthier option, but once in a while when we go out for an Iftar dinner, we indulge in food. I tend to go for anything grilled because it is light on the stomach and fills you up. Most of the time, restaurants bring out Middle Eastern desserts, and umm ali is my favourite dessert during Ramadan. I love watermelon juice, and during family gatherings, we prefer rooh afza. I like mine with a bit of yoghurt. 
 
Eiad Abu Ghazi  
During Ramadan, I like to have soups and salads. I like mushroom soup and salads like fattoush, tabbouleh and Greek salad. We have special Jordanian food maqloobeh, which is rice cooked with eggplant and cauliflower fried with potatoes and chicken. Also, mulukhiyah with rice is another favourite of mine, just like mansaf. I like kofta with potatoes and tomatoes made in an oven. I like anything with rice. I feel it is very important to exercise too.  When breaking fast, I like to save space for desserts like kunafa.

Aashna Mittal  
You get a lot of traditional Arabic food during this time, so I like to binge. I like hummus, khubbus, dates, kunafa and umm ali. Iftar buffets usually focus on Arabic food, so it makes a difference in what I like to eat. I don't eat a lot of meat and prefer vegetarian food like tabbouleh and baba ganoush. Among Indian stuff, I like biryani, all the desi chaat and pakoras. I like having the traditional jaljeera and lemonade. 
 
Mohammad Zamani 
I prefer to eat Arabic food whether it is from GCC or Lebanese stuff like kofta or biryani. I like rice with curry and grilled food. I don't like to eat seafood or pizzas compared to Middle Eastern food. I like shish tawook and kebabs. My favourite drink is laban. I break my fast with six dates and a cup of laban. It is a light way to break a fast before indulging in heavy rice-based dishes or fatty foods.
 
Ovais Qarni 
My mom makes this awesome samosa, which is a highlight during Ramadan. It is stuffed with minced meat; something I look forward to. You need to have a good drink during Iftar so mom makes this mango shake. Honestly it is exhausting to go out during Ramadan for meals, so I prefer sitting home for mom's cooking. For the main course, we have something like chicken and mutton. I love stuffed potato parathas (hats off to her for making such amazing food). We also love Rooh afza, which seems to be synonymous with Ramadan. Fruit chaats, dahi baray and cholas, I love them all. 
 
Imtiaz Ahmed Armar 
The type of food I like include sheer khurma and samosas. I like the tamarind drink (tamr hendi) that is available in hotels during Iftars. There are certain foods I opt for during Ramadan like the ragda chana (Bombay special), haleem (Hyderabadi special) and kebab grills. My favourite dish is from our village Murdeshwar on the coastal side of Karanataka called lonmiri maas, which is either mutton or beef cooked in red chilli spices. When it comes to drinks, two of my favourites during Ramadan are qamr el deen (apricot juice with pine nuts) and tamarind juice.

• Ramadan 2021