Samak Maqlū bi-Khall wa-Rahshī (Salt Fish Fried, with Vinegar and Sesame Paste)
Origin: Baghdad, Iraq
Source: Muḥammad ibn al-Ḥasan al-Baghdādī, 1226
Ingredients
- salt-cured fish
- sesame oil
- kusfara (coriander)
- vinegar
- rahshi (sesame paste)
- mustard
- cumin
- darsini (cinnamon)
- walnut
Instructions
- Wash salt-cured fish well, dry, and fry in sesame oil (shīraj) with a handful of whole dried coriander in the pan.
- Put good vinegar onto rahshī (sesame paste) and work it by hand, adding vinegar little by little to the desired thin or thick consistency.
- Optionally stir in finely pounded mustard (khardal); it may also be left out.
- Lift the fish from the pan while hot and leave it in the sauce; pour over the pan's remaining sesame oil with the coriander.
- Finish with cumin, coriander (kusfara), and cinnamon (dārṣīnī) pounded fine, and walnut; eat hot or cold.