lawn yahūdī maḥshū maḍfūn

Discussion

This is one of the six explicitly Jewish dishes presented in ASA, representing Andalusi Jewish culture at our feast. It displays the characteristic casserole style of cooking, favored by Jews who observe the Sabbath by refraining from work – including housework, and therefore cooking. This dish specifically can be cooked and held, sealed in its own cooking vessel, with instructions to break it open when it is time to eat it. In addition, the methods for cooking the dish are entirely within the home. Many other dishes in our source achieve browning by carrying a dish to the communal brick oven. Others talk of using the oven at home, but the Jewish dishes use a technique of housing live coals in potshards above the surface of the dish – creating a broiler effectively – to brown it. The final layer of eggs itself, called Takhmir, is a process used ubiquitously in our sources across all recipes.

In a lecture working from her book Jews, Food and Spain, Hélène Jawhara Piñer uses ingredient frequency to create a cohesive idea of what a “Jewish” dish means using the six dishes in our source. This dish includes a large amount of Rose Water, present in four of the dishes, Onions, Mint, Cinnamon, Salt and specifically Pine Nuts which appear in five of the six, and Oil, Eggs, Meat, Cilantro and other nuts (pistachios in this case) which appear in all six.

The recipe instructs us to pound meat into thin pieces and poach them in rose water, onion juice, and a wide array of aromatic spices. Meanwhile, we make small meatballs – a hallmark of many Andalusi and Jewish dishes – and two thin omelets between which the meats will be sandwiched. The meatballs are then added to the pot with the poaching meat slices. Note that the type of meat is not specified clearly in the English translation. I have seen this dish made by others using red meat, however it appears in ASA in the middle of a section of recipes for fowl, and does not specify what portion of meat should be used, which makes me firmly believe that chicken is the intent.

Once all of this is done, we are to take a new clay pot filled with a generous amount of olive oil, and layer the first omelet, followed by the contents of the pot of meat, then the second omelet, and finally a mixture of yet more eggs freshly beaten with any remaining mix from the meatballs. Potshards with live coals are then placed over the top, creating a broiler effect, and left in place until the dish is fully cooked. Once ready to eat, the pot is broken – another common technique in Andalusi recipes – to dispense the dish onto a serving platter where it is garnished with the tips of mint sprigs, pistachios, and pine nuts, and sprinkled with more aromatic spices.

Although this dish is complex due to its many elements, preparing it in a modern kitchen is not especially difficult with the right equipment to closely simulate what is described above. Most notably, we do not live in a society of seemingly disposable earthenware, so I suggest using a springform pan to simulate the same process. I chose to purchase ground chicken rather than grind my own, seeing very little difference in any final result. As noted in the recipe for Afāwih, I took the list of potential spices and created my own blend that I thought was representative and well-balanced, specifically omitting cumin as directed. I “pounded” my chicken thighs using a tortilla press. While anachronistic, it is an excellent tool to accomplish the task cleanly, easily, and quietly. I put each piece of chicken between pieces of plastic wrap before using the press to keep it clean and easy to handle. If you prefer to take a mallet to the meat, as al-Tujibi often says, “then do so.”

I also recommend making the omelets in a 9″ nonstick skillet. The one usage for which teflon pans truly shine is making eggs. And, of course, I did use my modern oven rather than the unique live coals method. If anyone feels inclined to provide me with a number of disposable earthenware pots, I will gladly make this in the traditional way! However that is out of reach of my, and I think most people’s, hobby budget.