Re: Catherine Cartwright Jones, Does the yeast help stain?
Posted by Catherine Cartwright Jones on April 28, 2000 at 23:01:22:
In Reply to: Catherine Cartwright Jones, Does the yeast help stain? posted by Natalie on April 28, 2000 at 21:27:33:
Here's all I know. I haven't tried it myself. When I ask amounts of
my Arab friends in regards to cooking, I don't get a particularly
comprehensible answer. I've seen yeast used in henna recipes twice in
indigenous anthro texts ... Arab recipes. I've never seen an amount.
It should work in theory, particularly in a VERY hot region where
lemon juice might make dye release way too fast. I have the feeling
that yeast in a 110F Ramallah kitchen would behave very differently
than in a 70F Akron kitchen. Ditto lemon juice. Especially with henna
fresh from the market.
Judging by the videos that I've seen where they were using that recipe
at weddings hereabouts .... I wouldn't bother. It didn't look too
good. Pumpkiny color. Maybe it comes out better there, with more heat
and fresher henna.
Dye release here, with henna that has been transported halfway around
the world to a very cool climate is very different than it is in
Israel. However..... The Palestinians that were doing it ditched it
the minute they saw my henna. It was actually a little embarrassing.
The mother-in-law from the West Bank was traditionally supposed to do
the henna, but the bride wouldn't let her because she liked my results
better. They compromised by having me do the big pattern 2 days
before, and I left a circle in the middle of the palm where the MIL
could put the grooms initials on the bride at the Lait-al-henna, (and
the bride's initials on the groom .... they were both massively
hennaed).
That's the important thing .... learn everything you possibly can,
because every henna and every situation is different, and if you have
a wide range of techniques, you'll know the right one for different
situations. Wrapping and lemon in the paste is probably hopeless when
life is 120F by 10am and you have henna fresh off the bush. Here (cold
rusty Akron) ..... a heavy wrap and acidic paste are crucial!
