Sumac Onions

Is it really a recipe if it's just combining two things together? When the combination is this good, I think so. At least it's a combo that's a shame to keep to myself! Anyone who has been to an authentic falafel bar and stared at the dozens of fixings and sauces has definitely come face to face with these lovely onions, sliced thin and dotted with a fragrant violet spice. Did you try them? Do you remember that lovely flavor? Sour, vibrant, fresh.

Photo from Wikipedia

What is sumac?

Sumac is a spice made by crushing the berries of a middle eastern bush (Rhus coriaria) and making it into a powder. Its sour flavor made it a great substitute for fresh lemons when they were off season. Today it's a great option for adding a fresh sour flavor to a dish without adding acid. Middle Eastern cuisine uses it mostly as a flavoring on fish, chicken and vegetables. However, its use is most often associated with thinly sliced red onions.





To make this great condiment, take a sweet red onion and slice as thin as you can. If the onion is too spicy, soak the slices in warm water for a while to take the edge off.  Liberally sprinkle on the sumac and let it soak into the onions overnight. The fresh onion flavor mixed with the sour sumac creates a new, zesty flavor that adds a kick to any of your favorite recipes. You can find sumac at most Middle Eastern markets. I get mine from Bazaar Spices in Union Market.

Personally, I love to put sumac onions on my morning bagels and lox.

More traditional uses include:

Onion and Parsley Salad: A great side dish for lamb or fish. Finely chop parsely and mix together with sumac onions, a little lemon, olive oil, salt and pepper.

Chickpea Salad: Chop up the sumac onions and mix together with canned chickpeas, fresh mint, parsley, crushed garlic, lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper. (If you like, you can include a little pomegranate syrup or fresh pomegranate seeds for sweetness.)

But feel free to get creative! If you have a favorite recipe using sumac onions, please leave a comment! I'm always looking for new things to eat. ;)

Zhug (or Skhug)

Just pronouncing the name of this fabulous condiment brings you to the Middle East, with the harsh "kh" sound that sounds like you are clearing your throat. It originated in Yemen and is said to have great medicinal qualities.

Zhug comes in both red and green varieties and is the essential hot sauce for adding heat to falafel, meat dishes, fish dishes, well...pretty much anything. I am partial to the green variety, mostly because it's the one my mom made for us when I was growing up, so it tastes like home.  The cilantro and cumin add an earthiness that gives the heat an added dimension.

It keeps for a really long time in the fridge, which is great because a little bit of this stuff goes a very long way.  A fun gift idea is to put zhug into small glass spice jars as a fun holiday treat.  You can bring both red and green zhug together as a fun Christmas gift.

For today, we will focus on green zhug.  You will need:

2 whole heads of garlic, separated into individual cloves and peeled
1/2 cup of chopped hot pepper (I used red this time because I didn't have really hot green ones on hand, but you can use either, depending on how strikingly green  you want it and the level of heat you can handle)
2 cups of chopped, fresh cilantro leaves
1 TBS salt
1/2 lemon
Spice mix (grind together 10 cardamom seeds, 10 garlic cloves, 1 TB peppercorns, 1 TBS cumin seeds - for best results toast the spices first and then grind)






Using either a food processor or mortar and pestle, mix the pepper flakes, garlic and cilantro until well combined.  Add the spice mix to the cilantro mix and finish with salt.

Pour into a jar with a tight seal and top with lemon juice to seal in the flavor.

Matboucha

Matboucha literally means "cooked" in Arabic, and this dish is named so for being a "cooked salad." However, it really is less of a salad and more of a wonderful dip or spread for warm pita or toast. It's spicy without being too hot, and oily without feeling greasy. The shine it gets from the oil makes it a very impressive looking dish.

You will need*:

5 fresh, large tomatoes
4 red bell peppers
4 jalapeño peppers
10 cloves of garlic, crushed
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 TBS hot Spanish or Hungarian paprika
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp salt
1 pinch of sugar
1 TBS canned tomato paste

With a paring knife, cut a small X at the bottom of each tomato and blanch them in boiling water for a couple minutes, remove, peel, take out seeds and chop.

Roast both green and red peppers on the grill or on your range. (For details on how to prep the peppers see my post on Smoky Charred Peppers). Peel, remove seeds and membranes and chop.

Cook the chopped tomatoes in a saucepan for about 10 minutes, stirring continuously, until the consistency is thick and there is no more water.  Add everything else, except the tomato paste. Lower the heat and cook for 2 hours, stirring occasionally.

Add the tomato paste and cook an additional 30 minutes. The sauce will begin to have a very shiny gloss to it and will be very thick.

Serve it in a small bowl with pita or as a topping for falafel.

*I use the recipe from "The Book of New Israeli Food" by Janna Gur

Fried Eggplant Slices in Lemon Brine

Eggplant is probably my absolute favorite ingredient. It's so incredibly versatile. It can be light and refreshing as a summer vegetable dip, or slow cooked in a stew to almost mimic the heartiness of meat.

This dish is a childhood favorite from my mom. I love how the eggplant serves as a sponge for the tart lemon and sharp garlic. Definitely brush your teeth after eating this if you plan to be around other people!

You will need:
1 large eggplant
2 lemons, juiced
1 garlic clove, chopped fine
Kosher salt
Vegetable oil, for frying


Wash the eggplant and remove the stem and the very bottom.  Slice the eggplant into 1/4 inch thick rounds. Lay the eggplant rounds on a flat surface and sprinkle generously with Kosher salt. This helps eliminate the bitterness that is trapped in the eggplant's liquid. In addition, the eggplant fries much better when it's dry and not filled with water. After about 30 minutes, use a paper towel to blot the eggplant and remove all the liquid that has seeped out. I then turn the rounds over and salt again for 30 minutes. Blot the liquid again and really try to get the extra salt and liquid off so they will not be too salty.

In a large frying pan, fry the rounds in a little vegetable oil (you can also use a generous spray of Pam). Fry until both sides are golden and let cool on a paper towel.

Using a shallow dish with a cover (I just use tupperware) begin to layer the rounds of eggplant with a sprinkling of garlic and the lemon juice. There is no need to add any salt, as the eggplant will already be salty from earlier. Once you have put in all the eggplant, garlic and lemon, close the dish/tupperware and give it a good shake to make sure all the dressing has covered the eggplant.

Keep it in the refrigerator for 2 days before eating for the best flavor. It will keep for up to 2 weeks.  You may wish to shake it up a few more times before serving.

The eggplant gets pretty wilted, but the skin holds nicely, so you can easily serve it with a little fork and grab each round by the skin.  They are delicious in a falafel sandwich, served as a salad layered with fresh tomato rounds and feta, or served simply on a small plate, with some chopped fresh parsley on top.

Salt Preserved Lemons

A mix of black, green and red peppercorns
and some Turkish Bay Leaves

Pickled, or preserved lemons are a staple in North Africa and the Middle East.  The lemons are used as an ingredient in all kinds of dishes, or as a treat by themselves. They take about a month to peak in flavor, so you need to plan ahead if you want to use them for a specific dish. There are many variations of spices that can be used. Moroccans add cinnamon sticks, coriander or chili; Egyptians use Nigella seeds, and I've seen lemons preserved with star anise and fennel. Purists don't add any spice at all and just enjoy the natural flavor of the salt and lemon.

I am making a double batch of these lemons because I plan to use them for everything. I went with a simple bay leaf and peppercorn mix. (I find that when preserved in cinnamon or other strong flavors, it doesn't pair as well with fish.)  Feel free to halve the recipe for one quart-sized jar (6 lemons).

I used Meyer Lemons, which have a delicate lemon flavor and are used a lot in desserts. They are smaller lemons and their rinds absorb the flavor of the salt and spices really well. If you can't get your hands on Meyer lemons, any lemons will do. If you have lemons with particularly thick rinds, you may want to quickly blanch them first.

For my double batch I used:

A dozen Meyer Lemons

Extra lemon juice (8-10 lemons)*

1-2 cups Kosher salt

4 bay leaves

1 tsp peppercorns

To start off, wash and scrub your hands and the lemons and sterilize your jars. Because the lemons will spend the first week of their journey at room temperature, you want to avoid any bacteria contamination.

Cut the stems off the lemon tips and "almost" quarter the lemons the long way, meaning, start to quarter them and stop about 1/2 inch from the bottom, so they look like flowers.

Using your [clean] fingers, rub about 2 teaspoons of salt in each lemon, making sure to get all the openings.

Squish the lemons into your jars and add 2 bay leaves and 1/2 tsp peppercorns per jar (or whatever spice you plan to use.) Cover the lemons completely with lemon juice.

*This is where I cheat. Meyer lemons are NOT CHEAP. So for the extra lemon juice to cover the lemons, I buy about 10 cheaper lemons and use that for the extra juice. The real reason for the Meyers is the rind, so the juice is less important.




Don't forget to label and date your jars so you know when they are ready! The rule of thumb is to let them sit about a week at room temperature. During this time, shake them up a bit, even turn them upside down, just don't open them. After a week, put them in the fridge. They will be ready in a month and they will keep anywhere from 6 months to a year.

Once they are ready, you serve them cut up and add them to a nice mix of olives and pickled treats for cocktail hour.

Once you have this awesome ingredient, play with some recipes. Add them into your favorite dishes for a kicked-up lemon flavor. Here are some fun ones to try:

Fettuccine with Preserved Lemon and Roasted Garlic

Grilled Wild Salmon with Preserved Lemon Relish

Chicken Braised with Preserved Lemons and Cinnamon

Moroccan Lamb Stew with Preserved Lemons