Prep time 15 min cook time 15 min
This recipe uses seared filets of halibut coated with a creamy and lemony sumac flavored tahini sauce garnished with toasted ground hazelnuts.
In the Middle East there used to be a saying that “Egyptians, with their creativity wrote most of the Arabic books. The Lebanese, noted for their mercantile skills, published them and Iraqis with their millennia of culture read them.”
Iraq, land of the Gardens Of Babylon and the Biblical Tree of life, that some believe was part of the Garden of Eden, has for centuries been a vibrant part of the region known as the Fertile Crescent. Dating back to 7500 BCE, it is one of the earliest regions in the world where agriculture first emerged as people started the process of growing domesticated crops. With such a long and rich history, it is not surprising that Iraqi cuisine has evolved into one of the region’s most complex and diverse.
Nawal Nasrallah has brilliantly recorded Iraq’s history and how its cuisine has evolved. In her book, Delights From The Garden Of Eden, she weaves into that history a collection of delicious, traditional recipes.
An Iraqi friend of mine who is a cooking enthusiast and well versed in Iraq’s culinary history, recommended this gem of a recipe. Called Samak Summaqiya, it reminds me of a Lebanese recipe I published a while back for cod with a tahini and pine nut sauce but the spices and flavors are quite different.
This delicious recipe uses seared filets of halibut coated with a creamy and lemony sumac-flavored tahini sauce garnished with toasted ground hazelnuts for a little crunch. The recipe also works with any firm white fish filets like cod or mahi mahi.
After you have prepped the ingredients, the dish comes together very quickly and you will be delighted with the result.
Seared halibut with sumac and toasted hazelnuts.
by
Derek Farwagi
Equipment
- A 10" cast iron skillet.
- A small bowl.
Ingredients
- 2 filets of halibut any white fish - cod, snapper, halibut
- 1 large white onion finely chopped
- 4-5 tbsp olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves crushed
- 1 tsp ground coriander seeds
- 2 tsp sumac
- 3 tbsp tahini
- juice of one lemon
- 2 tbsp water
- ¼ cup toasted and coarsely ground hazelnuts
- ½ tsp ground black pepper
Instructions
- Rinse the fish well, pat dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper.
- On medium heat, heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a pan. Add 1 tsp ground coriander seeds and sear the fish skin side down for 4 to 5 minutes, undisturbed (Will vary depending on type of fish and thickness of filets). When the skin is crisp and has a golden color, carefully turn the filets onto the other side using a spatula. Cook undisturbed for another 1 to 2 minutes.
- Drain the fried fish on the paper towels before transferring to a serving dish. Keep warm, tented with aluminum foil.
- Add a little more oil to the pan if necessary and toast 1/4 cup of coarsely ground hazelnuts. Remove nuts with a slotted spoon and set aside on a plate with kitchen towel to absorb the oil.
- In a small bowl, mix the juice of one lemon with 2 tbsp tahini and 1 tbsp water until you get a thick runny sauce and set aside.
- Add more oil to the pan and fry the finely chopped onion, the two crushed garlic cloves, the 2 tsp sumac and 1/2 tsp of ground black pepper and cook until the onion is golden brown.
- Add the tahini sauce and hazel nuts ( keep a couple of tablessponfuls for garnish) and cook for about 3-4 minutes. Add a little water if the sauce thickens too much. You want to end up with a consistnecy of heavy cream.
- Plate the filets, pour sauce over the filets and and garnish with hazelnuts.
- Serve with steamed rice, bulgur wheat of freekeh.
Nutrition
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