Whole Story

The Official Whole Foods Market® Blog

What is this Halal About?

By Allison Burch, July 31, 2011  |  Meet the Blogger  |  More Posts by Allison Burch
CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR WINNERS KERI FROM AUSTIN, TX, SUDHA FROM MINNEAPOLIS, MN, MICHELE FROM LOUISVILLE, KY, CHARLOTTE FROM EUCLID, OH AND JESSICA FROM HALETHROPE, MD.  THANKS FOR ALL OF YOUR COMMENTS! Have you heard of halal? If so, you can skip ahead to the end and enter to win coupons for some tasty, convenient halal-certified prepared foods from Saffron Road. But if you’re scratching your head and asking, “What is this halal about?” Read on! Halal is Islamic dietary law that applies, among other things, to meat and poultry, specifically prescribing certain slaughtering and processing practices. Like some other religious dietary practice, halal prohibits pork and alcohol consumption. In order to provide more options to people following a halal diet, Saffron Road has created the first line of certified halal frozen entrees and they’re currently only available here at Whole Foods Market. Saffron Road features ethnic foods with Indian, Asian and Middle Eastern flavors, as well as chicken nuggets and tenders. All of their products are made with lamb and chicken raised on vegetarian diets, with no added hormones or antibiotics. Plus, all of their products are certified halal by the Islamic Food and Nutrition Council of America (IFANCA). Whether you eat halal because of your religious dietary guidelines or you simply prefer to choose food that’s made with high-quality, responsibly farmed ingredients, then Saffron Road has some tasty offerings for you. Take a look:

Lemongrass Basil Chicken

Roasted white-meat chicken simmered in a lemongrass and basil green curry with green peppers and onions.

Chicken Tikka Masala

Prepared with tender, boneless, chicken, and baked according to authentic traditions with freshly-ground tandoori spices simmered in a savory yogurt and tomato sauce.

Chicken Biryani

Traditionally prepared by cooking Basmati rice with succulent chunks of chicken, cashews and raisins infused with an unmistakable blend of enticing spices, aromas and flavors, including a pinch of saffron salt.

Moroccan Stew

Tender cubes of lamb slowly simmered with sweet potatoes, coriander, cumin, cinnamon and ginger until every drop is perfection. Since it tops delicious couscous, no drop is wasted.

Lamb Saag

Australian lamb slow-simmered with a blend of Indian spices, ginger and yogurt and served on a thick bed of savory Saag, a traditional spinach dish.

Lamb Vindaloo

A spicy Portuguese-Indian curry dish dating back to the 16th century. Australian lamb marinated in an exotic tamarind-infused curry sauce, cumin, hot Indian spices and yogurt, then slow simmered for hours until tender and tangy and served with Basmati rice.

Chicken Pad Thai

A delightful version of the Thai favorite featuring wide flat rice noodles topped with roasted white-meat chicken and simmered with carrots and scallions in an exotic peanut sauce.

Lamb Koftis

Lamb marinated in a secret recipe of the most classic spices, and then formed into traditional koftis, or meatballs. The finishing touch? It's served on a bed of aromatic long grain white rice.

Chicken Nuggets, Chicken Tenders, Chicken Bites and Tandoori Seasoned Chicken Nuggets

Made from the meat of chickens raised on a vegetarian diet and never given antibiotics, ever!

What a line up! Are you ready to try some Saffron Road? Good, because we're ready to give some away. We’ll pick five winners at random to receive five coupons for free Saffron Road entrees. To enter, leave a comment below by August 11 and tell us which of the entrees you’d try first and why.

 

291 Comments

Comments

sarah says ...
Thanks so much, Whole Foods, for carrying this fantastic line!! We are so excited to be able to buy delicious, high quality halal food at our favorite grocery store! Thank you for your support of the Muslim community - and for making our Ramadan even brighter....
08/17/2011 10:44:16 AM CDT
Farah silat says ...
Would definitely love to try all but first Chiken Tikka because im a tikka-ahOlic
08/02/2011 10:25:56 AM CDT
Brock says ...
These all sound delicious. The one that stands out to me is the lamb vindaloo. My good friend's mom makes a fantastic vindaloo whenever we visit their home. Her authentic Indian cooking always blows me away. My cooking cannot compare to it, and to be able to buy a tasty ready-to-eat vindaloo would be a dream come true -- my freezer would probably be full of them! It's also very exciting to see a store marketing for Islamic eating guidelines. Im Catholic, but Christian and Jewish interests are always marketed; it's both open-minded and seems like good-business.
08/02/2011 11:55:06 AM CDT
Aaliyah says ...
I would love to try the Lamb Vindaloo. I grew up on Halal meat and truly miss it. Also there is nothing like hot & spicy curry. And have it infused with Portuguese spices just sounds extremely yummy to me. Best of both worlds.
08/02/2011 3:59:15 PM CDT
Samie Ahmed says ...
I'd go for the Chicken tikka masala. Thanks for carrying halal food products in your store. You just gained a new customer and I'll be telling my friends and family about this and we'll def be shopping here. Samie Connecticut
08/02/2011 4:29:29 PM CDT
Kareem says ...
Great job on carrying Halal products. We've always shopped at Whole Food for produce, dairy. Now we can add Halal entrees to our shopping list as well. Thank You for including muslims in your promotions. Much appreciated.
08/02/2011 5:13:13 PM CDT
Birjis says ...
Glad to see interesting Halal products in the market. Timing is good with month of Ramadan too! I would love to try the interesting Morrocon Lamb stew; Chicken Pad Thai, Lemon Grass Basil chicken, Lamb vindaloo and chicken tikka masala, before I try the halal chicken nuggets etc. There are many brands of halal chicken nuggets but halal version with interesting international cuisines is something worth checking out!
08/03/2011 11:02:40 AM CDT
AA says ...
I'm really grateful to WholeFoods for bringing Halal products for its consumers. I'd like to add to the above article by saying that the Islamic way of slaughtering animals for food consumption is more 'respectful' to the animals in the sense that it doesnt reduce it to the 'mechanical' decapitation of animals, but requires God's name to be recited ("In the name of God, God is Great") over each slaughter, only for the specific reason for consumption as food. Animals that were subjected to cruelty (strangled, beaten, gorged, electrocuted) are prohibited, to ensure that even in ending an animal's life (for the purpose of food), it maintains its dignity. Saffron has the added advantage of being 'tayyab' as the animals are raised properly, allowed to graze freely, and permitted to act in the most natural way-- as intended by God. Those who are interested, can read Ibrahim Abdul-Matin's "Green Deen", which has made me realize the significance of the islamic slaughter.
08/03/2011 12:21:14 PM CDT
Shahid says ...
I want to try the Morroccan Lamb Stew since I'm a fan of lamb and I've never had Morroccan food before!
08/03/2011 1:25:15 PM CDT
Shanza says ...
I would like to try the Chicken Pad Thai first because I always order Shrimp Pad Thai at (non-halal) Thai restaurants and it would be great to finally be able to eat the chicken version - thanks to Saffron Road!
08/03/2011 1:38:26 PM CDT
Christopher Kelley says ...
I make a mean Moroccan stew so I would like to try this one the most. I also am very interested in Middle Eastern culture so its great to get a taste for these foods and then try and make them from scratch!
08/03/2011 2:11:01 PM CDT
aamna says ...
I'd love to try the Chicken Pad Thai because I'm a huge fan of Thai food and finding a halal option is certainly an opportunity to take full advantage of! Thank you for providing so many halal choices.
08/03/2011 5:37:33 PM CDT
Akeel says ...
I would try which ever one is in stock first because they all sound great!!! Also I would do it that way because my wife is 9+ months pregnant and hasn't step foot into the kitchen in going on 3 weeks. She is a stay at home mom and great house manager, but without her delicious meals, Saffron Road will make a most excellent replacement. Also during Ramadan everything at iftar is scrum-diliuptious!!!
08/03/2011 5:36:38 PM CDT
Omar says ...
Chicken PAD THAI!!!! OMG!! This sounds amazingggg! I love pad thai and now we can have it with chicken!
08/03/2011 8:00:49 PM CDT
Teri says ...
We have really enjoyed the Lamb Saag and the Chicken Bryiani already but would be very interested to try the Chicken Pad Thai and Lemongrass Basil Chicken. Everyone in our family of five loves thai food and to find halal ready to eat is really exciting.
08/03/2011 8:34:02 PM CDT
Dina G says ...
I would love to try the Chicken Pad Thai! I love chicken and the Thai flavor and preparation, all together in a halal meal?? What more could you ask for?? :) I've NEVER been to a Whole Foods store, but now tha I know they sell halal meals, I'm there!
08/04/2011 4:05:35 AM CDT
Maha says ...
I am a long-time Muslim-American Whole Foods customer. I visit at least 2-3 times a week. Thank you for reaching out to our under-served community. I intend to continue to shop at Whole Foods for my family's grocery needs!
08/04/2011 11:26:59 AM CDT
Bobby Hawley says ...
@HASINA OLUOMI, Saffron Road is nationally available at Whole Foods Market stores, however selection may vary from store to store. Contact the store to check that they have exactly what you want and if they don’t you can always request that they order it. Thanks!
08/10/2011 5:57:13 PM CDT
Sarah says ...
I am so excited about these meals! I can't wait to try them out!
08/10/2011 6:01:58 PM CDT
Bobby Hawley says ...
@Waqas, Saffron Road is nationally available at Whole Foods Market stores, however selection may vary from store to store. Contact the store to check that they have exactly what you want and if they don’t you can always request that they order it. Thanks!
08/10/2011 5:56:14 PM CDT
Renee says ...
Hi.I have just read the article about Whole Foods not advertisting the holiday of Ramadan...I am appalled by this move as my kids (my kids,myself and generations before me were all born in the states and were not Muslim,so don't tell us to go back home) don't get to see decorations or signs ever about our holiday,but we are always forced to see Christmas stuff all over even though the US is not 100% Christian. *****WHAT IS HALAL?****** People are so afraid of halal,yet they don't even know what halal means....it's the way Jews and Christians are supposed to kill the animals,but not all of them do.We are supposed to kill the animal giving thanks to God for the animal,using a sharp knife so that it will not be tortured,you cannot kill the babies that are drinking from their mother,you cannpt kill the animal in front of other animals,they need to feel relaxed,they also cannot be fed other animals or hormones,etc....basically the same as organic.There are no weird things going on like people think,all that is said is "In the name of God"......I don't see people scared of Kosher meat,which we as Muslims can eat since they follow the way we do,so it's just something else people like to look for as a reason to hate us. Anyways,since Whole Foods wants to cater to a handful of ignorant people instead of speaking up for something that is right,I won't support Whole Foods anymore,so I ask all of you muslim and not,show them we don't tolerate dividing and ignoring people by not shopping there to show them that we are all Americans and there is nothing wrong with acknowledging a sacred holiday celebrated by many in this country.I ask people to do your research for yourself about our religion and don't let the media tell you what we believe....I wouldn't have converted to a religion that is so bad and neither would any other convert. Have a great day everybody...let's try to live together without causing conflicts when we don't need to,there's enough crazyness in the world right now.
08/10/2011 5:43:38 PM CDT
aisha manzoor says ...
I have tried the chicken biryani and chicken tikka masala, but now I want to venture out to possibly try the moroccan lamb stew, YUM! I went to WholeFoods today and as promised you kept your Ramadan promise and I saw the sale, so thank you so much for that! American Muslims really need some Ramadan lovin!
08/10/2011 5:26:07 PM CDT
Aqeela says ...
Chicken tikka Massal would be a perfect appetizer to break your fast with! Thank you Whole Foods!
08/04/2011 9:59:29 AM CDT
Dianne Brown says ...
I will buy the Lemongrass Basil Chicken next shopping trip. I love Middle Eastern cuisine and this one looks delicious!
08/04/2011 9:58:53 AM CDT
maria says ...
Thank you Wholefoods for Saffron Road! It is delicious and some of the products are gluton free but most of all my kids love it!!! Thank.
08/10/2011 4:27:07 PM CDT

Pages