[115]From the Cook Book of Ibrahim b. al-Mahdi

[p. 48, verso] And Among Them Is Himmasiyya (a garbanzo dish)

Cut the meat in proportionate pieces and put in the pot, with water to cover and enough oil; do not throw in salt at first, for that would spoil it; put in all the spices. And let the amount of water in this dish be small as you will substitute vinegar; then put the pot on the fire, then grind the garbanzos, sieve them, clean them and throw them on the meat, and when it is all done, grind up a head of garlic and beat with good vinegar and put in the pot; then put in the salt and stir so that all parts are mixed together, and when the pot is done, take it off the fire and leave it to cool and clarify; then sprinkle with fine spices and serve. It is best, when preparing the garbanzos for this dish, to begin by soaking them in fresh water overnight; then peel and throw in the pot, and when they have cooked, take them out of the pot and grind them in the mortar, then return them to the pot and finish cooking, God willing.

Stuffed Burâniyya

Take meat and chop it small; put, after washing, in a closed or sealed pot and cover with water, throw in enough oil, vinegar, murri, salt, fennel sprigs, citron leaves, a head of garlic and a whole onion; then put on a moderate fire and take the flesh of a leg, pound it very well and clean it with great care, throw in some white flour, cinnamon and what spices you can, egg white and enough of the meat; beat very well and make meatballs of the right size, throw in the pot until done and when it is done, take them out and fry them and also boil an egg, take off its shell and roll it up in some of this meat in the mortar and fry it also until it is browned; then take a handful of eggplants, which have been washed and boiled and take out what they have inside, beat in the mortar with the rest of the meat from the meatballs and stuff the eggplants with this, and cloak them also on the outsides [with the meat mixture] and fry in the skillet until brown; then, when you have fried that, throw it all in the pot after throwing in the first meat, and pour in the pot the rest of the oil in which the things were fried. And when that is done, take the pot to the embers until its surface cools and cover with crumbs of cold bread and the whites of four eggs and cook the yolks in the pot; then spoon out on the platter and garnish with its meatballs; slice those eggs wrapped with meat into quarters and garnish the platter with them along with the yolks [p. 49, recto] which remained in that (crumb-and-eggwhite) covering. Also cook an egg, peel it and chop it very small with some tender rue leaves and sprinkle with fine spices. If you wish to serve this dish with saffron, do so, God willing.

Honey Recipe

Take flesh from [a sheep's] tail, rump, belly and brisket or a fattened hen, whichever you have, after washing it, and put it in a new pot; cover with water and throw in a sufficient quantity of salt, a spoon of oil and another of honey, cleaned and split almonds and sufficient saffron, some two dirhams or thereabouts; then put the pot on a coal fire and when it is done, take out the meat and strain the broth. Then take six ratls of white honey, skimmed, and pour it on the sauce; take to the fire and do not stop stirring for any reason and when the honey is cooked, take a ratl of starch less a fourth -- this is for six ratls; and if it is less or more, use equivalent amounts. Add water; take off the fire and leave for its heat to break, then throw in starch and stir well until it is all mixed; then pour over all this four ratls of fresh oil and put on a very low fire and do not stop stirring it with the greatest care, as this will make it good or bad, and when it reaches the state of fâlûdhaj,[116] take the pot off this fire to the hot embers; after pouring in the rest of the oil and returning the meat to it, take white flour, make it into a dough and from this make very small sanbûsak (samosas), and stuff them with sugar and pounded almonds, spiced with cinnamon, spikenard, Chinese cinnamon and pepper; knead all this with rosewater and then fry in the skillet; then ladle the dish of honey in an earthenware dish and put these sanbûsak on it and add some shelled pine nuts, then sprinkle with ground sugar and cinnamon, God willing.

Preparing Saqlabiyya (Dish of the Saqaliba)

Take mutton, preferably from the front legs, feet and chest, wash and put in the pot with two spoons of oil and one of murri, good bread, coriander seed, caraway, ground pepper, sprigs of thyme, citron leaves, two heads of garlic, whole, and about enough water to cover the meat, with sufficient salt; then take ten onions, chop them finely, wash and throw in the pot and make meatballs, like those for tafâyâ, stuff with this meat the lower intestine and sprinkle with [chopped] boiled egg; cook all with the meat and when it is all done, take it to the embers and to decorate it take the meatballs and egg yolks; cut the gut with the egg which is inside and beat between the meatballs and sprinkle with fine spices and serve, God willing.

[117]Fresh Beans With Meat, Called Fustuqiyya

Take the flesh of a young sheep or lamb, preferably from the forelegs, the durra, the jaus and the 'anqara[118] and after washing put in the pot with two spoons of fresh oil and water to cover the meat; put on the fire and then take a handful of fresh beans which have been shelled from their pods and throw over the meat; when it is done, take out the meat and knead the beans vigorously with a spoon until none of them is left whole; then pour in the pot a spoon of vinegar, another of fish murri and some salt, however much is enough; then throw the meat in the pot and fry a little; then take it to the embers until its face appears, dish up and use.

Recipe for a Good Dish

Joint a lamb and after washing it put it in a clean pot and throw in coriander seed, caraway, two spoons of oil and three of perfumed wine and enough water and salt, sprigs of fennel and citron leaves; cut up five sliced heads of onion [they are described as muqaddad, which can mean either sliced or sliced and dried, jerked; perhaps these are dried onions?] and also peel five heads of garlic and throw all of this over the meat with some garbanzos; take the pot to a moderate fire until it is done, then put on the embers and shove the spoon into these onions and garlic and mash vigorously until they have the consistency of brains; then cover with a little flour and four or five eggs and cook the yolks in it; powder some cumin and pepper, and throw in the pot with some seasoned murri and leave a little until its face shows; then dish up and sprinkle with spices, decorate with the egg yolks and serve.

Recipe for the Chicken Dish known as Sabâhi (of morning)

Wash the hen, after keeping it overnight in its feathers, then place it whole in the pot and throw in four spoons of strong vinegar and one of seasoned murri, and if you do not have any seasoned, two spoons and the same amount of water as vinegar, a spoon of oil and an adequate amount of salt, fennel stalk, citron leaf and whole peppercorns; put on the fire until done and leave on the coals; take out the hen and cut the breast through its two sides and break its back; then fry in the pan with oil, [p. 70, recto] fresh. And fry excessively so that it browns. It is best not to put it in the pan until the oil is good and hot. When the chicken has browned, carry it to the pot and pour in the rest of the oil which you have fried. Then put it in a dish and sprinkle it with fine spices.

Recipe for a Dish of Partridge with Honey

Let it hang overnight in its feathers after cutting its throat. Clean it in the morning and put it in a pot with half a spoonful of vinegar and three ûqiyas of good honey, peeled almonds and sufficient water and salt, three spoonfuls of oil, and half a dirham of saffron. Put it on the fire and when it is all done, take it down, having a large clay dish. Then cover it with cold breadcrumbs and two eggs without flour, and throw the two yolks in the pot. Then leave it until the surface is clear and shiny. Put it in a large clay dish and chop up the two egg yolks and garnish the dish with them. Then sprinkle it with fine spices and present it.[119]

Recipe for the Dish Known as Maghmû m (Veiled)

Take shoulder of a sheep, or the base of the neck, or the membrane of its kidney, and if shoulder or membrane, cut it in pieces not too large. Wash them and put them in a pot and throw in a spoonful of good murri and two of fresh oil, stalks of fennel and citron leaves. Take five onions, cut them and put them in the pot with some salt and a little water. Carry it to the fire and when it is done, break four eggs or more over it, and throw in pepper. If you send it to the bread oven and do not cook it at home, fine. But if you cook it at home, after it has finished cooking well, fill a potsherd with live coals and put it on the mouth of the pot so that they brown what is in the pot. When what has been described has been finished, put it on a platter, dust it with fine spices, and serve it, if God wills.

Recipe for a Dish of Pullet or Partridge

Clean whichever you have of them, after letting it hang overnight in its feathers. Put it in a pot with dried, ground coriander, caraway, pounded onion, sufficient salt for the pot and two spoonfuls of fresh oil. Take the breast of whichever fowl, before it touches the water, pound it and make well-shaped meatballs, and throw them in the pot. When it is almost done and it is just ready, take it to the coals. Take some mint juice and beat it with cold breadcrumbs and some flour with five or six eggs, after taking out some yolks. When the crust has congealed, make a tharida out of thin flatbreads of fine flour and moisten it with the sauce [p. 70, verso] until it is soaked evenly, and put the fried fish [or: the boiled bird] on top, after cutting it down the middle so that the eggs are sliced which you inserted in the center of it, the interior of it.[120] Pile it up with the meatballs and garnish the tharida with them and with almonds and pine-nuts, and present it, God willing.

A Jewish Dish of Eggplants Stuffed with Meat

Boil the eggplants and take out their small seeds[121] and leave [the skins] whole. Take leg meat from a lamb and pound it with salt, pepper, cinnamon, Chinese cinnamon and spikenard. Beat it with the whites of eight eggs and separate six eggyolks. Stuff the eggplants with this stuffing. Then take three pots and put in one of them four spoonfuls of oil, onion juice, spices, aromatics and two spoonfuls of fragrant rosewater, pine-nuts, an "eye" of citron [leaves], another of mint, and sufficient salt and water; boil well and throw in half of the stuffed eggplants. In the second pot put a spoonful of vinegar, a teaspoon of murri, a grated onion, spices and aromatics, a sprig of thyme, another of rue, citron leaf, two stalks of fennel, two spoonfuls of oil, almonds, soaked garbanzos, some half a dirham of ground saffron, and three cut garlics. Boil in sufficient water until it boils several times, and throw into it the rest of the stuffed eggplants. And in the third pot put a spoonful and a half of oil, a spoonful of cilantro water, half a spoon of sharp vinegar, crushed onion, almond, pine-nuts, a sprig of rue and citron leaves. Sprinkle with rosewater and dust with spices. Decorate the second with cut-up eggyolks and cut rue and sprinkle it with aromatic herbs; cut an egg cooked with rue over the third pot, sprinkle it with pepper, and present it.

A Sicilian Dish

Take fat meat from the chest, the shoulder, the ribs, and the other parts, in the amount of a ratl and a half. Put it in a pot with a little water and salt and some three ratls of onions. Then put it on a moderate fire, and when the onion is done and the meat has "returned," throw in four spoonfuls of oil, pepper, cinnamon, Chinese cinnamon, spikenard, and meatballs. Finish cooking it and when the meat is done, cover it with eggs beaten with saffron, or you might leave it without a covering, as you wish, [and cook it either] in the oven or at home.

Chicken In the Oven

Take a cleaned, plump chicken and put it in a pot. Throw in a spoonful of fresh oil and half [a spoonful] of murri naqî', pepper, a piece of Chinese cinnamon, and eggyolks -- whole, as if they had been found [p. 71, recto] in the chicken. Then you put the lid on the pot and place it in the oven, and when it is known to be cooked and done, take off the lid and empty it out for what ...
[Some text has been dropped in the MS our copyist copied.]

[Title missing]

It is known that all the cooked dishes and dried dishes (mutabbakhat and mujaffafat) that have been mentioned are good for the aged, and those with tender [or moist] stomachs. Those dishes with murri naqî' are most efficacious for drying and even more for loosening. Chopped and eaten, they are beneficial for him who complains of a sluggish stomach.

Information About Baqliyyat (Vegetable Dishes) and Mukhaddarat (Greened Dishes)

All dishes which one cooks with meat, saffron, vinegar, garden produce, such as turnips, eggplants, gourds, carrots, or heads of lettuce without their leaves, are called muthallath.

How You Make It

Take tender meat and cut it in small pieces. Put it in a pot with salt, pepper, coriander seed, cumin, saffron, garlic and oil. Cook it until the meat is done. Then cut up whatever of those vegetables mentioned that you have on hand and boil them and cook them separately in a[nother] pot. Throw away their water. Then put them with the meat in the pot and when it comes to a boil, add strong vinegar in enough quantity to note its taste. When everything has finished cooking, put it on the hearthstone until the fat rises and use it. Some prepare this with eggplant and gourd together. This is the real muthallath. According to this recipe muthallath is also made with carrot and turnip, and with turnip alone, and thus with the remaining vegetables mentioned.

Qar'iyya, a Dish of Gourd

Know that a condition of the dish known as qar'iyya is that for meat it should have fresh, fat, tender mutton, newly killed. Immediately after slaughter, while still twitching, cut it into pieces and put it in the pot with salt, a little onion juice, pepper, coriander seed, thyme and a lot of oil. Put it on a moderate fire, and when the meat is done, put in a sufficient amount of young, tender gourd, cut into big pieces. When it is done and has finished cooking, throw in cilantro juice. Put it on the hearthstone a little while and use it. This gourd dish is a feminine one according to cooks' doctrine [see "How the Service of Dishes is Ordered, and Which is Fitting to be First, and Which Last" above].

Preparation of Plain Liftiyya Also

Take tender, fat meat and cut it. Put it in a pot with salt, onion, pepper, coriander seed and a little cumin. Cook it and when it is almost done, take the turnip and peel it [p. 71, verso] in big pieces. If you boil it by itself, it will be better and the same for the vegetables. Add them to the meat and leave them until they finish cooking. Then put it on the hearthstone and if you squeeze over it cilantro juice, it will be much better.

[122]Recipe for White Karanbiyya, a Cabbage Dish

Take young, fat meat; cut it into a pot with salt, onion, pepper, coriander seed, caraway and oil. Put it on a moderate fire and when it is nearly done, take a coarse cabbage, throw away the outside and take the heart and surrounding parts, and clean it of its leaves. Stick a knife between the "eyes" and throw away the rest of the leaves until it remains white like the turnip. Peel it and cut it in regular pieces and throw them into the pot, after boiling them, as has been indicated. When it is done, put it on the hearthstone and squeeze over it some coriander juice. He who wants this dish as a muthallath, let him add vinegar and saffron.

Recipe for Clarified (or Repeated) Liftiyya

Take fat meat and put in what was said in the previous recipe. When it is nearly done, take a closed head of cabbage. Throw away the outside, fold its "eyes" and cut them. Take the tender leaves near the "eyes," cut them very small and bruise them in a dish with water and salt. Press and cook separately and when done, take out of the water and pound in a wooden or stone mortar and throw over the meat. Then squeeze some cilantro juice and when it is done, take it to the hearthstone and serve it. You can make it according to another recipe, taking the previously mentioned leaves and pounding them instead of cutting them, with some cilantro. Squeeze the juice over the "eyes" without putting any of the vegetable in its hole and omit cutting it with the "eyes." It is very acceptable in all of its kinds.[123]

Muthallath with Heads of Lettuce

Take meat from a young, fat sheep and cut it in small pieces and put it in a pot with salt, a piece of onion, pepper, coriander seed, clove, saffron and oil. Put it on a moderate fire and when it is almost done, take heads of lettuce and their shoots without leaves, peel and cut up and add to the meat in the pot, and when the lettuce is done, add good vinegar and finish cooking it. Cover it with beaten egg, saffron and spikenard and take it to the hearthstone.

Making Baqliyya (Vegetable Stew) of It

Take meat from a young sheep and cut it, put it in a pot with salt, onion, coriander seed ... [following recipe, which is of a pastry of some kind, does not seem to continue this one, which should add vegetables to meat]
[p. 50, recto] sweet, and put on a moderate fire; when the meat is ready take lettuce hearts and some of the tender inner leaves and cut very fine; soak in water and put with the meat in the pot, and when it is all done, take the pot to the hearthstone (radaf) and squeeze in the juice of fresh cilantro; leave a little and use. The food in this dish is very evenly balanced, tending to humidity and moderate cold; it is a good soporific for cold temperaments.

Baqliyya Mukarrara (repeated or refined dish of vegetables)

Cut up young fat lamb meat, put in the pot with salt, onion, pepper, coriander seed, caraway and oil; put on a moderate fire and when the meat is ready, take spinach, wash and chop finely, soak in water and wash until its greenness and blackness come out and hang up to one side until it falls apart; then drain the water out of it and place with the meat and squeeze in the juice of moist coriander. When it has finished cooking, take to the hearthstone for a while and then serve. You might add cooked meatballs, and if you have no spinach, make it with saltwort (yarbûz), qataf [literally, something picked; maybe a mixture of garden greens], Swiss chard leaves, lettuce or chicory from the garden.

Basbâsiyya (a dish of fennel)

Take young fat meat and cut up, place in the pot with salt, onion, pepper, coriander seed and oil; cook and when the meat is done, take tender "eyes" of fennel and chop finely, macerate with the hand and then throw on the meat and squeeze juice of tender coriander over it and finish cooking and take it to the hearthstone a while and use. There are those who chop their tender sprigs and squeeze over them water from pounded roses with some coriander juice and there are those who cook the meat in tafâyâ meatballs and squeeze over them the juice of crushed fennel, squeezing it without its body[124] with coriander juice and some mint [not spikenard] juice, as if they were making fennel tafâyâ, and you might make a covering layer (yukhammar).

[125]A Baqliyya of Ziryab's

Take the flesh of a young fat lamb, put in the pot with salt, onion, coriander seed, pepper, caraway, two spoons of oil and one of murri naqî'; put on a moderate fire and then take cabbage, its tender "eyes"; take off the leaves and chop small with the heads, wash, and when the meat is almost done, add the cabbage. Then pound red meat from its tender parts and beat in the bowl with eggs [p. 50, verso] and the crumb [that is, everything but the crust] of bread, almonds, pepper, coriander and caraway; cover the pot with this little by little and leave on the coals until the sauce dries and the grease comes to the top and serve.

Safarjaliyya, a Dish Made With Quinces

This is a good food for the feverish, it excites the appetite, strengthens the stomach and prevents stomach vapors from rising to the head. Take the flesh of a young fat lamb or calf; cut in small pieces and put in the pot with salt, pepper, coriander seed, saffron, oil and a little water; put on a low fire until the meat is done; then take as much as you need of cleaned peeled quince, cut in fourths, and sharp vinegar, juice of unripe grapes (verjuice) or of pressed quince, cook for a while and use. If you wish, cover with eggs and it comes out like muthallath.

Tuffâhiyya, a Dish Made With Apples

Take meat as mentioned in the recipe for safarjaliyya and prepare the same way; then add tart apples, peeled and cleaned, as many as needed... [Huici Miranda estimates 4 words missing] and when you take it to the hearthstone, put in a little sugar, and cut with musk[126] and camphor dissolved in good rose water. The acidity is most efficacious in lightening and strengthening the heart and it can be made with the flesh of birds, such as fat hens or young squabs of the domestic dove or stock-dove and then it will be finer and better.

[127]Preparing Narjisiyya (Narcissus-stew) With Carrots

Take tender fat meat and cut into the pot with salt, pepper, coriander seed and oil; cook till half done and then cut several peeled carrots into "reeds" smaller than a finger, and throw in with the meat with a little water and a little vinegar and saffron; then sprinkle with a little washed rice and when it is all done, pour in enough eggs beaten with saffron to bind. Take down [from the fire] and when it has cooled, cut with a knife, as if it were narcissus flower, and finish cooking in the pot.[128]

Preparing Râhibi, the Monk's Dish

This dish is made in various ways and it is necessary that its taste be improved because of the smell of the onions, which is sweetened with a syrup of sugared roses; also it is made with syrups of fruits such as pomegranates, apples or grapes, and at times it is moistened with vinegar and preserved prunes, and there are some who are accustomed to make it with the flesh of ... very fat and the same as in the murri dish; the cooking of these two dishes is not prepared and they are not tasty unless cooked in the bread oven. These concentrates [p. 51, recto] mentioned have sweetness and acidity; they make fragrant and give color and make saffron unnecessary.

How to Make Râhibi

Take very fat young meat from the good, fat parts and from the neck of its paunch and put, cleaned and cut up, in the pot with salt, pepper, coriander seed and a lot of oil; put on a moderate fire, and when it is nearly done, take it off and leave it; then cut up as much onion as you need and put in another pot with water to cover and cook till done; then remove its water and put on a platter and rub with a spoon or pound in a wooden or stone mortar until disintegrated, and then add to the meat in its pot; add what you need of oil and more, pepper, ginger, saffron, spikenard, cinnamon and rose preserve or some of the syrups, cook with the lid on and put in the bread oven and leave a while until the sauce dries, it is brown on top and most of the grease rises; take out and leave a while to cool and use.

Another Recipe

Take fat meat, as told earlier, and prepare as before, and when the meat is done, squeeze over it the juice of a pounded onion and add the aforementioned concentrate of pomegranates, rose preserve and put in the bread oven, with admirable results.

Another Dish of the Same With (Onion) Drippings

Take the meat as I have indicated, and when it is almost done, take a cut up onion and put in a pierced couscous pot [the colander that forms the upper part of a couscousiere] and put the meat in the pot and cover it with dough, also cover its top with a lid and leave while the juice from the onion drips into the pan of meat, and when the liquid is all gone and it is dry, throw (in or out) the remains and finish cooking, either in the house or in the [community] bread oven, after throwing in the things we have mentioned.

Râhibi in a Tajine [round clay casserole]

Take the fattest parts of sheep or calf, as I have told you, and put in the pot with salt, spices and oil; cook until almost done and take down [from the fire]; then take an onion of great size and cook it alone and whole in its own pot, without cutting it, and when it is done, pour off the water it was cooked in, pierce its sides and put with the cooked meat in the tajine; add what has been mentioned of spices and pomegranate concentrate; cover with a lot of oil and put in the bread oven, and leave it there until it is done and then leave it until dry ...[word or words missing]... its upper part and take it out.

Sanhâji

Take a large deep tinjir [brass or copper boiling kettle, specifically used for making confections such as khabîs and fâlûdhaj], put in three parts sharp vinegar and one part murri naqî' and the required amounts of pepper, [p. 51, verso] caraway, cumin and saffron; put on a moderate coal fire and have prepared beforehand what is needed, such as beef cut in small pieces, and when it has boiled one or two times, put in the same amount of ewe meat; then some cut up hens, cut up partridges and squabs of domestic and stock doves cut up in the same way and whatever birds you can get and add some soaked peeled garbanzos, peeled chopped almonds and chestnuts peeled of their skins, garlic and citron leaves; cover with a lot of oil and when it is almost done, add whatever you have of vegetables cooked separately and finish cooking them, such as turnips, carrots, eggplants, gourds, "eyes" of cabbage without their leaves and heads of lettuce without the outer leaves; use whatever vegetables are available, according to the season and the present time. Cook in a separate pot with salt, their spices and onion until done; pour off the water and then add to the aforementioned meats in the said tajine and you need to have meatballs and mirkâs made only from these ingredients, because if not they will be an excessive and disapproved mixture. It is the property of this dish to be good for all states and temperaments, for it unites all the meats and the classes of vegetable and because you put in it vinegar and murri naqî', spices and so on.

Making Dishes Prepared With Eggplants

Preparation of Burâniyya, attributed to Buran, daughter of al-Hassan b. Sahl,[129] who they say first invented the dish.
Take fat sheep flesh and put in the pot with salt, onion, pepper, coriander seed, a little cumin, saffron and oil; put on a moderate fire and add a spoon of murri naqî' and two spoons of vinegar, cook until half done, then take it off and add fried eggplants, which will be described later; put on a layer of meat and another of fried eggplants until used up. Add the prepared meatballs and the chopped almonds and color with a lot of saffron; then cover with eggs beaten with spikenard or cinnamon and saffron and crown with egg yolks; then put in the bread oven and leave until the sauce is dry and it holds together and the grease remains; take it to the hearthstone and leave for a while, then use.

Preparing The Complete Burâ niyya

[p. 52, recto] Take the red meat of sheep, wash and pound as though making meatballs, mix with pounded boiled eggplants and beat until mixed with whatever you need of the said spices, such as pepper, coriander, spikenard, some murri naqî', cumin, cinnamon and chopped almond; make with this flatbreads the size of your fist and throw in the pan with fresh oil; leave on one side and then throw in eggplants prepared as is customary and leave also to one side; then take the flesh of fat lambs and cut up and cook with pepper, coriander, saffron, cinnamon, cumin, spikenard, murri naqî', vinegar and a little garlic, until it is nearly ready; then throw in the pot a layer of the partly-cooked meat, one of the fried eggplants and another of the loaves prepared with the pounded meat and eggplants, and a layer of the cooked meat, and so on till finished and add to it meatballs, chopped almonds, egg yolks and cover with a lot of oil; put in the oven and leave until bound, dried and browned on top; cover with a little egg, as told before.

A Dish of Eggplants Without Vinegar

Take fat young flesh of sheep, cut up and put in the pot with salt, a little onion, pepper, coriander seed and a lot of oil; put on a moderate coal fire and when the meat is done, put in it some eggplants cut in halves or quarters, after boiling and pouring off the water; then throw in with the meat and squeeze over it the juice of tender coriander in great quantity and less than this of ground squeezed mint; finish cooking and then take it to the hearthstone for a while and use.

Dish of Eggplant

Cut up mutton and put in the pot with salt, pepper, coriander, cumin, thyme, two spoons of murri naqî' and three of oil; take to the fire and cook and when the meat is done, add eggplants cut in quarters and boiled separately. When it has boiled, grind up white bread crumbs beaten with the right quantity of eggs in coriander juice; cover the pot with this and then take it to the hearthstone.

Preparing Tuffâhiyya (Apple Stew) with Eggplants

Take three ratls of lamb, cut up and put in the pot with onion, salt, coriander, pepper, ginger, cinnamon and four û qiyas of oil, let it evaporate in the pot on the fire, until it gives up its water; then cover with juice pressed from apples and cook; when the meat is done, [p. 52, verso] put in eggplants peeled and boiled separately and whole peeled apples without cutting them up and prepared meatballs; then add some of the meat, pounded and "dissolved," and some eggs and cover it [masculine verb; this may mean that only the added meat is covered] with them, or leave [feminine verb, meaning leave the pot] without covering [khamira, the word meaning "dough" which is also used in this sense in Stuffed Buraniyya above], and leave it to rest on the hearthstone.

Preparation of Musa'tar (a Dish Flavored With Thyme) of Eggplants

Take a pot and put in it three spoons of vinegar and one of murri naqî' with two of oil, pepper, coriander seed, cumin, thyme and rue; put on the fire and when it has boiled, put the eggplants in it and cook, after boiling the eggplants; then throw in eggs and leave to cool; serve cold, God willing.

[130]Preparation of Arnabi

Take sweet eggplants of great size and cut in half. Boil with water and salt, then take out of the water and leave to drain. Then take a tajine and put in it sharp vinegar and a smaller quantity of murri naqî', pepper, cumin, thyme, saffron, chopped garlic and a lot of oil; put in it the boiled halves of eggplant and roll in this broth; then arrange in the said tajine and put in the oven, where you will leave it until the sauce is dry and [only] the oil remains; take out and leave until it loses its heat and use. There are those who break in eggs and then put it in the oven.

Description of Mahshi (a stuffed dish) With Eggplants

Take sweet eggplants, peel them and boil in salted water until done, then remove their seedy flesh to one side. Make mahmiyya for the eggplants in a tajine. Add as much bread crumbs [as the quantity of eggplant], and pepper, coriander seed, cinnamon, saffron, chopped almond and as many eggs as you need; beat it all and cover with plenty of oil and bury in it whole egg yolks. Then plant the seedy flesh in it and put in an oven at moderate heat and leave until it has finished cooking and binds and is brown on top, then take out and leave until its heat flags and leave it. You might pound in it whatever meats of fried fowl you have ready, and each will result in a different dish; there are some who serve it with juices of coriander and mint.[131]

Preparing Mahshi with Eggplants and Cheese

Take boiled eggplant and beat, according to what has been mentioned, in a dish with its aforementioned flavorings and with cut-up cheese, almonds and enough eggs; put in the tajine and cover with oil, put in the oven and leave until brown [p. 53, recto] on top and take out.

Another Type of Mahshi

Take nicely-shaped sweet eggplants and take out their seedy flesh carefully so that they keep their shape, and cut out the site of the seedy flesh carefully with a sharp knife so that they remain empty. Then boil what you took out from inside in salted water until it is ready. Drain the water and rub it [the boiled flesh] to pieces, as mentioned earlier, with white bread crumbs, egg and cooked pounded meat. Fill the empty skins with this and replace the seedy flesh as it was. Throw them into and arrange them in the tajine and pour in the rest of the stuffing and some oil; put in the oven and leave until thickened and completely done. Take out the eggplants and put them as they are on a platter, whole, as if nothing had been done to them.[132]

Another Recipe for the Same

Take large [eggplants] and cut in half without peeling them. Boil in the pot with water and salt, then take out of the water and empty each half separately and let the half remain, conserving its shape. Then take its flesh [viz. the removed eggplant flesh] and rub to bits in the platter with cooked pounded meat, as told earlier. Beat with eggs and spices, as told for Mahshi, and fill the empty halves with this and dust with white flour; fry in the pan with oil as they are until brown; take out and use with the sauce or without it. Can be made also in a tajine with a coating in the oven like Buraniyya.

Recipe for Eggplant Mirkâs

Peel the eggplants and boil in water and salt; then take out of the water, squeeze and pound with a spoon or in a wooden or stone mortar. Put in a dish and add some murri naqî', pepper, cinnamon, spikenard, onion juice, coriander seed and a little egg, enough to envelop it with, and beat it all with enough chopped fresh fat, as usual in other sausages; then fill with this the small intestine in the pan with fresh oil and eat hot, if you wish, with broth or without.

[133]Recipe for Dusted Eggplants

Take sweet ones and split in strips crosswise or lengthwise and boil gently. Then take out of the water and leave to drain and dry a little. Then take white flour and beat with egg, pepper, coriander, saffron and a little murri naqî'; when it is like thick soup, put those eggplants in it and fry with oil in the hot pan; then brown them, then immerse them and do a second time and [p. 53, verso] a third.

Recipe for the Fried Version of the Same

Take sweet ones and cut, however you wish, lengthwise or crosswise, as mentioned before; boil with water and salt, then take out of the water and leave till dry and the water drains off; then dust[134] in white flour and fry in the pan with fresh oil until brown and add to them a cooked sauce of vinegar, oil, some murri naqî ' and some garlic. You might fry in the same way boiled gourd, following this recipe.

[135]Eggplant Isfîriyâ

Cook the peeled eggplants with water and salt until done, take out of the water and rub them to bits in a dish with grated bread crumbs, eggs, pepper, coriander, cinnamon, some murri naqî' and oil; beat all until combined, then fry thin breads, following the instructions for making isfîriyya.

A Vegetarian Version of the Same[136] Prepared by Ibn Muthanna[137]

Take eggplants and with a stick pierce them on all sides and boil. Then press out the water in which you boiled them and put in a pot; pour on them vinegar, murri naqî', plenty of oil, pepper, saffron, cumin, cinnamon, cloves of garlic wrapped in sprigs of thyme and two whole onions, place on a coal fire and cook; then put a lid [heated] from the fire on the pot and leave until brown on top and the sauce is dry; then take out of the fire and throw out the two onions and then use. This dish keeps for many days without going bad and does not change, like Arnabi.

Recipe for the Same Dish, Browned Version

Take sweet eggplants and cut them in small pieces and with them cut ... two or three times of the onion and boil all; then drain the water from both and put in the pot with salt, pepper, coriander seed, thyme, saffron, a little murri naqî' and plenty of oil; cook in the pan until dry and only the oil remains; then take it out.

Recipe for the Boiled Version of It

Take eggplants and slice in two opposing and ... [word incomprehensible] pieces. Boil with water and salt until just done; then take out of the water, pour on them oil and take vinegar and a little pounded garlic; boil until the vinegar penetrates it and the pungency of the garlic is lessened. You can also make this boiled dish in another way. After boiling, sprinkle with cheese grated on a grater [iskanfâj]; add chopped garlic and plenty of oil, give it a light boil and leave to cool; then [p. 54, recto] use.

Recipe for a Dish of Gourd Resembling Fish, with which you may deceive the invalid who desires fish and the like.

Peel the gourd and clean it inside, then cut lengthwise for the width of two fingers or so; then boil and form a head and tail in the shape of a fish and leave for the water to drain away; then take a large dish and throw in it what eggs you need; add white flour, cinnamon and coriander seed and beat with the eggs; then place in the skillet on the fire with fresh oil, and when it is boiling, take the fish-shaped gourd and fry; then immerse in those eggs beaten with flour and spices and return to the pan; then go back and immerse in the eggs beaten with flour also. When you see that the eggs are set, return them several times until cloaked with egg and no trace of the gourd can be seen. Then turn out on the platter and sprinkle with vinegar and a little murri or juice of fresh coriander or other things.

A Muzawwara (Vegetarian Dish) Beneficial for Tertian Fevers and Acute Fevers

Take boiled peeled lentils and wash in hot water several times; put in the pot and add water without covering them; cook and then throw in pieces of gourd, or the stems [ribs] of Swiss chard, or of lettuce and its tender sprigs, or the flesh of cucumber or melon, and vinegar, coriander seed, a little cumin, Chinese cinnamon, saffron and two ûqiyas of fresh oil; balance with a little salt and cook. Taste, and if its flavor is pleasingly balanced between sweet and sour, [good;] and if not, reinforce until it is equalized, according to taste, and leave it to lose its heat until it is cold and then serve.

Jannâniyya (the Gardener's Dish)

It was the custom among us to make this in the flower and vegetable gardens. If you make it in summer or fall, take saltwort, Swiss chard, gourd, small eggplants, "eyes" of fennel, fox-grapes, the best parts of tender gourd and flesh of ribbed cucumber and smooth cucumber; chop all this very small, as vegetables are chopped, and cook with water and salt; then drain off the water. Take a clean pot and in it pour a little water and a lot of oil, pounded onion, garlic, pepper, coriander seed and caraway; put on a moderate fire and when it has boiled, put in the boiled vegetables. When it has finished cooking, add grated or pounded bread and dissolved [sour] dough, and break over it as many eggs as you are able, and squeeze [p. 54, verso] in the juice of tender coriander and of mint, and leave on the hearthstone until the eggs set. If you make it in spring, then [use] lettuce, fennel, peeled fresh fava beans, spinach, Swiss chard, carrots, fresh cilantro and so on, cook it all and add the spices already indicated, plenty of oil, cheese, dissolved [sour] dough and eggs.[138]

Advice on Fish Dishes in Their Varieties

You should know that all the classes of fish, above all those of large body, need to be boiled lightly in boiling water, after scaling them and cutting them in pieces; then clean them, after taking them out of the boiling water, and let the water drain off; then cook them well in the tajine or other utensil. From the flesh of fish is made all that is made with meat or fowl; it is made into meatballs and ahrash. You might have the fish covered in a pot in the oven instead of [cooking] in the tajine, as do the people of Cordoba and Seville, with the fish which they call shad[139] and sturgeon.

[140]Recipe for Large Fish Such as Qabtû n and Fahl and Those Similar to Them

Take what is available of these, scale, clean and cut up; then boil lightly with water and put in the tajine. Stuff the inside with the stuffing made of white breadcrumbs, pounded walnuts and almonds and spices ground up and dissolved in rosewater; cover with thin bread and arrange what is inside the pie on all sides; then pour over it a great deal of oil, to the height of the bread. Then put in the oven and leave until the loaf is brown, and take care that it does not burn. Then take it out and throw away the bread on it and leave to cool: it is one of the dishes of the Christians [literally, the Byzantines].

Green Tafâyâof Fish

Scale large fish, cut up and boil; then wash and put in a tajine or a new pot and cover with juice of mint, juice of fresh cilantro and onion juice, pepper, coriander seed, ginger and caraway. Pour in plenty of oil, fennel "eyes" and meatballs made for it; put in the oven and leave until ready and the sauce reduces; take out and leave a while and serve.

Basbâsiyya, a Fennel Dish

Peel [fish] and do with it as before. Put in a tajine or a pot and squeeze on it [p. 55, recto] enough juice of pounded tender fennel to cover it and onion juice, pepper, coriander seed and ginger; pour on plenty of oil, adjust salt and put in the oven. Leave until the sauce reduces a little.

White Tafâyâof the Same

Take a large fish, cut up and boil a little, then wash with cold water and put in a clean pot and add pepper, cinnamon, ginger, coriander seed and onion juice; you must have meatballs made of its flesh and add peeled almonds and walnuts with pine nuts steeped in rosewater or in fresh water; pour on plenty of oil, put in the oven and leave a while until it dries and the sauce reduces and take it out.

Recipe for Fish in the Style of Jimli

Take one of large size as indicated, scaled, and keep overnight in ground salt; then wash in the morning and boil lightly, then arrange in the tajine and pour on two spoons of vinegar, one of murri naqî', three of oil and the meatballs made for it, pepper, saffron, cumin, citron leaf, thyme, pine nuts, laurel leaf and celery seeds, garlic, cinnamon and a little mastic, put in the oven and leave until the top is brown; then take it out and turn the contents over from top to bottom, and put again in the oven so that it browns on both sides and the sauce dries; then take out.

Another Version of the Same

Take a fish, such as sarda (pilchard) or tardanis (red mullet) or some good fish like them; scale, slice and plunge in boiling water. Take out immediately and wash with cold water. Arrange in the tajine and throw in vinegar and a little murri naqî ', pepper, saffron, cinnamon, spikenard, galingale and a little mastic, citron leaves and pulped prunes soaked in vinegar; scatter over it chopped almonds and garlic cloves wrapped in sprigs of thyme and plenty of oil; put in a moderate oven and leave until the sauce is dry and the top browns, then leave a while and take out. And you might make this dish in a pot instead of a tajine in the oven.

Dish made with Sarda (Pilchard), One of the Good Classes of Fish

Take what you have on hand of them, scale and cut up if large, or [if small] filet them. Boil and wash, then fry in the pan with fresh oil until browned, and do not sprinkle with flour; then take out of the pan and put in a tajine. Pour on vinegar and of murri naqî' [p. 55, recto] a little, pepper, coriander seed, ginger, cinnamon, some cumin, thyme, citron leaves, prunes soaked in vinegar and cover with plenty of oil; put in the oven and when the sauce has dried, take out and leave to cool and use.

Recipe for Munashshâ, a Dish Made with Starch

Take what fish you have on hand, scale and clean, and if large, cut up; boil in water with salt, then wash and put on a platter and remove the bones. Take its flesh and pound until it is like the meat for meatballs; then add a little wheat flour, pepper, coriander seed and cinnamon; squeeze on mint juice and beat with it; then [make it into the shape of a pilchard or some other type of fish, whatever you like, cover with flour and][141] dust with flour, fry with fresh oil until browned and done, and when you have finished doing this, make a sauce of vinegar, oil, garlic and cumin boiled together and pour it on.

Fish Murawwaj

Take whatever fish you like, scale, cut up, boil lightly in water with salt and leave for the water to dry up. Then take a tajine and put on a moderate fire, pour in oil enough to cover the fish and put a lid on it and shut it, and when the oil is boiling, put in the mentioned pieces of boiled fish and leave to fry until browned. Then take it out of the oil and leave on one side; then take another tajine and put in it two parts of vinegar and less than one part of murri naqî', pepper, cumin, a little garlic and some thyme and cinnamon; cover with fresh oil and take it to a light fire. When it has boiled, take the pieces of the fish and put them in it, [the fish that were] fried in oil, little by little. Turn it over and leave it until it dries and and nothing remains but oil; take it down [from the fire] and leave until it cools. Thus the people of Ceuta and of western al-Andalus[142] used to do.

Mahshi of Mixed Fish

Take whatever you have of them and scale and cut in pieces, boil with water and salt, take out and slice lengthwise, take out the bones and remove the spines. Fry in the pan with fresh oil until browned, and, if small, like sardines, fry whole, scaled and washed without boiling and continue frying until they are browned and lose their moistness and you see they are tender; and leave, then return ...[two words missing]... and put in grated crumbs of wheat bread or ground ka'k (biscotti), pepper, coriander seed, clove, cinnamon, spikenard and saffron; [p. 56, recto] add salt to taste, or murri naqî' in place of the salt, and sprinkle on chopped almond and cover with plenty of oil. Then pound into it those pieces of fried fish prepared earlier and put in the oven and leave till it sets and the top browns; take out and leave until it cools and use.

Dusted Fish

Take what fish you have which are good and esteemed, scale and boil with water and salt, then take them out, wash and open the pieces as slabs and remove from them whatever is there in the way of bones and spines, then take ground bread crumbs or wheat flour and add some egg, pepper, coriander, cinnamon and spikenard; beat it all together and roll the pieces of fish in it one after the other, then fry with fresh oil until browned and repeat several times until browned and done; then make a sauce of oil, vinegar, a little murri and cumin, boil and throw it over (the fish). There is another recipe for this also, which is: take the flesh of the fish, after boiling and removing the bones, pound and add the said spices and eggs, I mean [the said] spices; beat it all together and cover those bones which have preserved the original shape, and make of them semblances of the fish as they were, then fry until brown, put in the sauce you have made and the result is a different dish.

Meatballs and Patties (Ahrash) of Fish

Take a large fish, like the qantûn [scribal error for qabtûn] and the fahl or one like them, scale it and boil it in water and salt, then take it out and remove the backbone and the bones, then pound it until it becomes like the meat of meatballs. Add wheat flour or ground ka'k (biscotti) and the amount of egg needed to gather with it and make it cohere, and pepper, coriander seed, spikenard, cinnamon, some juice from a crushed onion, juice of mint, some juice of murri naqî' and oil, beat it all together until it melts and blends. Then you make ahrash and thin breads the size of a fist or less; make meatballs with it in the form of a fish, fry this ahrash in the frying pan with a lot of oil until it browns, then boil a sauce of vinegar, oil and pounded garlic, that you pour on top.

[143]Burâniyya of fish

You make it with pieces of boiled fish, washed and fried, and fried eggplant, as you make the bûrâniyya with lamb and fried eggplant, and the mentioned spices likewise, [p. 56, verso] and similarly the muthallath of fish is like the muthallath of meat, eggplant and turnips, and its preparation is likewise.

Preparing Fish Roe

Take what you can of the roe of a big fish, boil it lightly and wash it; if you want, leave it or cut it and put it in a stew pot with coriander seed, pepper, cinnamon, ginger, some murri naqî ' and a quantity of oil; break eggs into it and mix it all, beat it and put it into the tannur; when it is cooked, take it out and let it cool; cut it in pieces and chop on top rue or mint. You might fry it in the frying pan with oil; then put it in a sauce of vinegar and oil. And you might make it as a râhibi in the oven with onion and oil.
It is known that fish is slow to digest and not agreeable to those with phlegmatic temperaments and moist bodies, but agreeable to those of hot and dry temperaments. It is very quick to spoil if it is not digested much, unless you make it, according to this mentioned recipe, with medicinal plants. It is prepared it with vinegar and murri naqî' and covered with a quantity of oil after boiling with water and salt, as indicated, until the scum [literally, phlegm] leaves and it is easy to eat. After this you should use a little of syrups or thickened fruit juice and so on that can mellow it, adjusting it to the temperament of the user, his age and his custom.