by Gil Marks
This stewed fish is a typical Sabbath eve dish, particularly among Libyans, but also among Algerians, Moroccans, and Tunisians. The fish course usually begins the Sabbath meal, followed by soup, then couscous and an assortment of cooked vegetable salads. H'raimi is also popular as the opening course of the Passover Seder in many Maghrebi homes, with fava bean soup being served as the next course. H'raimi is typically accompanied with plenty of bread or, on Passover, matza.
In the 1950s, North African Jews brought h'raimi to Israel, where it is now found in many restaurants and even Ashkenazic homes. This dish is also popular in Rome, where it was introduced by the three thousand Libyan Jews who fled to Italy in 1967.
Libyan Red Fish (H'Raimi)
5 to 6 servings
[PAREVE]
¼ cup vegetable or olive oil
1 large yellow onion, chopped
6 to 8 large cloves garlic, minced
1 to 3 teaspoons seeded and minced fresh hot red chilies, such as serrano; 1 to 2 teaspoons harissa (Northwest African Chili Paste (Harissa)); 1 to 2 tablespoons red chili flakes; or 1 to 3 teaspoons hot paprika or cayenne
1 teaspoon ground caraway or a pinch of ground coriander
About 1 teaspoon ground cumin
About ½ teaspoon table salt or 1 teaspoon kosher salt
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
¼ cup tomato paste
¼ cup fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon paprika
2 cups water
2 to 2½ pounds fillets or 5 to 6 (1-inch) steaks mild-flavored firm-fleshed fish, such as sea bass, sea bream, cod, grouper, haddock, halibut, gray mullet, pike, red snapper, sole, tuna, or whitefish
¼ cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley or cilantro
1. In a large skillet or pot, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, and chili (if using harissa or dried or ground chili, add them later) and sauté until softened, 5 to 10 minutes.
2. Add the caraway, dried or ground chili, cumin, salt, and pepper and stir until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the tomato paste, lemon juice, paprika, and, if using, harissa and stir for 2 minutes. Add the water, bring to a boil, reduce the heat to medium-low, and simmer for 10 minutes.
3. Carefully place the fish in the sauce. Return to a boil, cover, reduce the heat to low, and simmer until the fish is tender and loses its translucency, 10 to 15 minutes for fillets and tuna, or about 20 minutes for thick, fatty steaks. Transfer the fish to a storage container or serving dish.
4. Increase the heat to medium-high and boil until the cooking liquid is reduced by half, about 15 minutes. Stir in the parsley. Pour over the fish. Serve warm, at room temperature, or chilled. Store in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Hummus
Hummus is a thick dip made from chickpeas and sesame seed paste.
Origin: Near East
Other names: hoummus, hummus bi tahini.
Legumes have long been a staple of the Middle East, where they are often boiled, mashed into a smooth consistency, and served as a dip for bread. Unquestionably, the most popular and famous of these legume dishes is a thick protein-rich chickpea and sesame paste puree called hummus bi tahini (Arabic for "chickpeas with sesame seed paste") or, more informally, hummus. Among some Arabs, hummus is primarily a breakfast food, while others consider it necessary for a proper mezze (appetizer assortment). In the Levant, there have long been numerous hummusia, small restaurants devoted solely to hummus, which is made fresh daily, and its accompaniments, notably pita, pickles, onion, hard-boiled eggs, and coffee.
Hummus primarily consists of four basic ingredients—cooked chickpeas, tahini (sesame seed paste), lemon juice, and garlic. Families in the Levant have secret techniques and flavorings, passed from father to son, for creating prized tastes and textures. A little baking soda is frequently added to the soaking liquid to help soften the chickpeas. Good hummus contains a hint of cumin. Aficionados reject canned chickpeas, insisting on soaking and cooking dried ones, as the flavor is far superior. Some, especially in the Galilee, like little chunks of chickpea in the hummus, best obtained by mashing with a spoon, while most prefer it pureed into a smooth, creamy paste. For serving, the puree is typically spread over a plate or a widemouthed bowl, then drizzled with olive oil and lightly sprinkled with some sumac, sweet paprika, or even cayenne. Some people scatter pine nuts, whole chickpeas, chopped parsley, or minced garlic over the top as well. A popular Arab breakfast version is hummus bi ful, in which the hummus is topped with a heaping spoonful of cooked fava beans. Hummus is usually eaten with warm pita bread and sometimes crudités.
The same ingredients in hummus bi tahini can also be used to make masabacha, also called hummus masabacha and, in the Galilee, mashausha. Masabacha is a chunky, warm mixture made with hummus mingled with whole chickpeas and sometimes hard-boiled egg—eating it is an experience in contrast—while hummus is a smoother, cool puree. As with hummus, masabacha is eaten with fresh pita.
The exact history of hummus is unclear, as this dish, once peasant food, was unmentioned in most medieval Persian or Arabic texts. The earliest record of a related chickpea dish was a recipe for "Hummus Kasa" (kasa means a "coarse woolen cloth") in the anonymous thirteenth-century Cairo cookbook Kitab Wasf al-Atima al-Mutada. The recipe directed, "Take chickpeas and pound them fine after boiling them. Take vinegar [rather than lemon juice], oil, tahina, pepper, atraf tib [mixed spices], mint, parsley, dry thyme, [ground] walnuts, hazelnuts, almonds, and pistachios, cinnamon, toasted caraway, dry coriander, salt, salted lemons, and olives. Stir it and roll it out flat and leave it overnight and serve it." Some people trace the contemporary simpler chickpea and tahini version to the Ottoman Empire.
A number of the European Jews arriving in Israel in the nineteenth century, especially kibbutzniks, were ardent socialists. Rejecting the culture and foods of Europe, they attempted to replace them with idealized local Levantine fare, in particular hummus, along with another widespread chickpea dish, falafel. These new culinary habits were further reinforced by the arrival of Jews from Near Eastern countries, who had long enjoyed hummus.
Initially, hummus was not everyday fare among Israelis. To make it at home required time and effort to cook and smash the chickpeas, while the hummus sold in restaurants, at numerous hummus stores, and by street vendors was expensive for the average person. Then in 1994, the Strauss Group introduced to Israel prepackaged refrigerated salads, including hummus, sold under the brand name Achla (from the Arabic meaning "awesome/great"). Strauss launched a simple ad campaign focusing on hummus at home, hummus at school, hummus on family outings, and hummus for soldiers. In 1999, the Osem Company began competing with the Strauss group by offering its own hummus and salads under the Tzabar label. To be sure, some families still insist on fresh homemade versions, often adding their own special touches, because hummus is so easy to prepare with a food processor. Also, making their own hummus allows them to control the flavor. However, most Israelis, including Arabs, now purchase their hummus in markets. The industrialization of hummus transformed it from a beloved Israeli food into a ubiquitous one.
More recently various exotic seasonings have been incorporated, including za'atar, red bell pepper, roasted garlic, olives, spinach, and sun-dried tomatoes. Some find these additions heretical, feeling that they overwhelm the basic ingredients.
The word hummus first appeared in English in the December 16, 1949 issue of the Pittsburg newspaper The Jewish Criterion. In "A Guide for Tourists," the paper refered to "the bland succulence of 'tehina and chumus,' eaten with hunks of the platter-shaped bread peeta." By the end of the twentieth century, hummus had also emerged as part of the American culinary fabric. England adopted hummus (where it is typically spelled houmous) even more eagerly; in 2008, more than eight million Brits ate hummus on a regular basis as compared to fifteen million in the United States, although the U.S. has five times the population. As with many standard Middle Eastern foods, it was Jews returning from visiting Israel, along with wa
ndering Israelis, who initially popularized hummus in the West. Beginning in the 1980s, regional commercial brands of hummus became commonplace in American markets. In addition, in the early twenty-first century, Israeli expatriates increasingly opened hummus restaurants across New York City and other large urban areas, further popularizing it in the American mainstream.
The gastronomic and cultural significance of hummus in modern Israel cannot be overstated. The 2008 Adam Sandler movie You Don't Mess with the Zohan poked fun at the Israeli passion for hummus— characters even brushed their teeth with it and used it to put out fires. Hummus has become more than a mere food; it is now ubiquitous at every celebration and mezze and is on the table at most weddings and bar mitzvahs. Israelis typically keep an extra container on hand in the refrigerator for a quick meal or to offer to unexpected guests. Many Israelis consume hummus on a daily basis and almost all enjoy it on a weekly basis; hummus is eaten at any time of the day, and can be either an appetizer or the focus of a meal.
(See also Chickpea and Tahini)
I
Iab
Iab is a slightly tangy, soft white curd cheese made from buttermilk and flavored with fresh herbs or spices.
Origin: Ethiopia
Other names: aiyb, ayib.
Iab, a by-product of making butter, is the most popular cheese in Ethiopia. The Beta Israel there only use cow's milk for dairy products. The buttermilk is heated in a clay pot over a low fire until the curds and whey separate; the mixture is allowed to cool, then drained through a muslin cloth. Readily available soft curd cheeses mixed with ergo (Ethiopian fermented milk, which is similar to yogurt) or gevina levana (Israeli white cheese), and a little lemon can be substituted for the original.
Iab accompanies injera (Ethiopian pancake bread) or various other breads and vegetarian wots (fiery stews). It is spooned over the top of or mixed into gomen (collard greens). Iab is also frequently offered at the end of a meal to cleanse and soothe the palette.
Ethiopian Curd Cheese (Iab)
about 2 cups
[DAIRY]
6 cups buttermilk (if making your own iab), or 1 pound fresh goat cheese, sheep cheese, farmer cheese, or pot cheese mixed with ¼ cup gevina levana (Israeli white cheese), quark, or plain yogurt
3 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley or cilantro
1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil or ½ teaspoon dried basil
1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano or chives, or 1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 to 3 teaspoons grated lemon zest or 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
About 1 teaspoon table salt or 2 teaspoons kosher salt
About ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
1. To make your own iab: In a large saucepan, heat the buttermilk over medium-low heat until the curds and whey separate, about 25 minutes. Drain through cheesecloth, press to extract the liquid, and let the solids stand in the cloth and drain until thick, at least 30 minutes. Or use the packaged cheese mixed with the gevina levana.
2. In a large bowl, combine the iab or packaged cheese with the remaining ingredients. Cover and let stand in the refrigerator for several hours for the flavors to meld.
Ijeh
Ijeh is a small fritter-like omelet.
Origin: Middle East
Other names: Egypt: eggah; Iran and Iraq: edjeh; Levant: iijjeh, ijjet, ujja; Maghreb: aijjah, eggah.
A beloved Middle Eastern specialty is ijeh, a small omelet pan-fried in enough oil to produce a fritter-like exterior. The ijeh mixture can also be cooked en masse as a large omelet and cut into bite-sized pieces like the Persian kuku.
Whether the idea of the large and small omelets originated in Moorish Spain, where eggs were plentiful, and spread to the rest of the Arab world, or whether it came from Persia and spread westward is unknown, but the concept is found throughout the Mediterranean and central Asia. Arabic-style omelets are firmer and contain more vegetables, cheese, or meat than the fluffy French types, the eggs basically serving as a binder for the filling. No variation contains more than a few ingredients. A favorite simple flavoring is made by adding chopped parsley and scallions. Mixing in a little bread crumbs, matza meal, or flour produces a pancake-like texture; omitting the yields for a more custardy texture. Various vegetables or bits of meat are generally mixed in, a tasty way to use up leftovers and produce a more substantial dish.
Jews in central Asia serve edjeh bi jiben (cheese omelets) on Hanukkah, during the week before Tisha b'Av, and for other dairy meals. For meat occasions, parsley, cooked vegetables (such as artichokes, cauliflower, spinach, and squash), or ground meat are substituted for the cheese. Ijeh are featured on their own with jam or yogurt, as a side dish, as part of a mezze (appetizer assortment), or, with pickles and tomato slices, in pita bread.
Among many Syrians, both children and adults, ijeh is a favorite food. On special occasions, such as a bar mitzvah, ijeh are frequently featured as appetizers, sometimes packed into pita bread as sandwiches. Because ijeh can be served hot or cold, they are also common on the Sabbath and at picnics. In many Syrian households, ijeh are served, generally accompanied with a salad, any time there are a lot of leftovers, especially on Sundays, when the remains of the Sabbath meals need to be used up.
Syrian Omelets (Ijeh)
about 12 small omelets
[PAREVE, DAIRY, or MEAT]
4 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 small onion or 2 to 3 scallions (white and light green part), minced
1 to 2 tablespoons fine bread crumbs, matza meal, or all-purpose flour
About ½ teaspoon table salt or 1 teaspoon kosher salt
¼ to ½ teaspoon ground allspice or nutmeg (optional)
4 cooked and chopped artichoke hearts; 2 cups cooked and chopped cauliflower; 8 ounces chopped mushrooms; 3 peeled and grated medium potatoes; 1 pound cooked and chopped fresh spinach or 10 ounces thawed and squeezed frozen spinach; 2 peeled, seeded, and diced medium zucchinis; ¼ cup chopped fresh mint; ½ to 1 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley; 1½ cups (6 ounces) grated white cheese or Parmesan cheese; or 6 ounces chopped beef, lamb, or veal
About ½ cup vegetable oil for frying
Plain yogurt or harissa (Northwest African Chili Paste (Harissa)) as a condiment
Salad or pita (optional)
1. In a medium bowl, combine the eggs, onion, bread crumbs, salt, and, if using, allspice. Stir in the artichokes or flavoring of choice.
2. In a large skillet, heat about ¼ inch oil over medium heat. In batches of 4 to 5, drop the mixture by heaping tablespoonfuls and slightly flatten with the back of the spoon or a metal spatula to form 3-inch patties about ¼ inch thick. Fry until the edges turn golden brown, about 2 minutes. Turn and fry until golden brown, about 1½ minutes. Drain on paper towels. Serve warm or at room temperature. If desired, accompany with yogurt (except for the meat ijeh) or harissa and a salad, or serve in a pita.
Ikre
Ikre is the Slavic word for fish roe. In Ukraine and Romania, besides meaning caviar, it refers to various finely chopped cooked vegetable salads. These are made with many different vegetables, including beans, beets, mushrooms, zucchini, and especially eggplant, whose seeds resemble fish eggs. Ukranian and Romanian Jews typically serve seasonal ikres with bread for the Sabbath and holidays.
(See also Eggplant)
Impade
Impade is an S-shaped cookies filled with almond paste.
Origin: Venice
Jewish life in Venice centers around Campo di Ghetto Vecchio and Campo di Ghetto Nuovo (the latter was the first ghetto in Europe, established in 1516 and abolished by Napolean in 1797)—which contain five sixteenth century synagogues, a handful of kosher restaurants, and two kosher bakeries including Vople, in the Ghetto Vecchio. The small store's assortment of traditional Jewish baked goods includes bollo (sweet breads popular for Rosh Hashanah), orecchietta di Aman (triangular cookies filled with plum or poppy seeds), amaretti (macaroons), bissa ("viper," referring to a snake-shaped cookie), and its signature
cookie impade (the name of an Italian lamp). Impade are a traditional Purim dolci (sweet), but are also enjoyed at other times of the year.
Venetian Almond-Filled Cookies (Impade)
about 42 cookies
[PAREVE]
Pastry:
3 large eggs
½ cup vegetable oil
1¼ cups plus 2 tablespoons (9.5 ounces) sugar
Pinch of salt
3½ cups (17.5 ounces) all-purpose flour
Filling:
9 ounces blanched almonds (2½ cups finely ground)
1 cup (7 ounces) sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
Confectioners' sugar for dusting
1. To make the pastry: In a large bowl, combine the eggs and oil. Stir in the sugar and salt. Stir in the flour to form a soft dough that holds together. Wrap in plastic wrap and let stand for 30 minutes.
2. To make the filling: In a food processor fitted with a metal blade or a nut grinder, process the almonds into a powder. Add the sugar, eggs, and zest and process into a paste.
3. Preheat the oven to 375°F. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper or lightly grease the sheets.
4. Divide the dough in half. Roll each half into a ¾-inch-thick rope, then cut the ropes into 2-inch-long pieces. Flatten each piece and roll into a thin rectangle. Spread a heaping teaspoon of the almond filling along the center of each rectangle, leaving the edges uncovered, then bring the long sides of the rectangle over the filling and press to seal. Bend the cookie into an S shape and place on the prepared baking sheets.
5. Bake until golden brown, about 20 minutes. Immediately roll in the confectioners' sugar, then place on a wire rack and let cool.
Inchusa
Inchusa is a tart containing a sweet or savory filling.
Origin: Spain
Vegetable custards, varying in the amounts of eggs, cheese, and other ingredients, are ancient and important components of Sephardic cuisine, including enchusa, which evolved into a tart called inchusa. The original dish incorporated enchusa, an herb from the borage family, but that was soon replaced with spinach, after its arrival in Spain.