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Use
fresh herbs when possible. Israel has the best. But you can usually find fresh in most places.
Ful Moodamas (Temani Chili) Ingredients:
For Spices (flavor):
Preparations Soak the ful in water for duration of the whole night. Later—put the soaked ful in the pot, and cover the ful with a good amount of water and eggs. Cook over a small flame until there is a softening of the ful and lower the highness of flame. Crush a little of the ful with a little of the fire’s liquid. Take out the eggs and peel them, serve them in bowls with puree of ful, pour the olive oil over the ful, tehina, sprinkle cumin and salt, sprinkle (spread) the parsley, crushed garlic, add a small drop of lemon juice and one complete brown egg in center small dish (bowl). Serve hot… This ful was traditionally eaten by the people of Egypt (perhaps the Jews of Egypt). Back to top of page
Cooked Fish Ingredients & Spices (flavor):
Preparations Thoroughly clean fish. Put the fish in a clean pot. Mix onions, mint, haweeg, black
pepper, oil, salt, and water together and pour on the fish (in the pot). Cook on a low flame and when the fish will soften, lower the flame. Cool and
refrigerate when finished. Serve cold. This recipe serves four to six people. This
is a true Yeminite dish. 1 tbsp. olive oil 3 lbs. firm white-fleshed fish fillets, such as whiting, flounder or cod, cut
into 3-inch pieces 1. Mix oil, water, tomato sauce, fish spice and hawaij in a large
skillet and simmer on a low flame for 15 minutes. 2. Add scallion to pan. Slide fish pieces carefully into pan, making sure not
to break them up. Simmer on a low flame for 15 minutes. Remove from flame and
let cool. Remove fish pieces to a serving dish and pour sauce on top. Serve
slightly warm or at room temperature. Serves 4 as a main dish, 6 as an appetizer. 3 tbsp. black peppercorns In a spice or coffee grinder, or with a mortar and pestle, grind spices
together finely and store in a tightly closed container. 3 tbsp. cumin Follow the same procedure as in the fish-spice mixture. ---------------------------------------
The recipe, which I am making with success: ------------------------------------------
ZHOUG Temani (Modern version): Warning: Eating too much
of this can cause dehydration (over a period of time). Eating the right amount
is very good for the body - and destroys many harmful bacteria. RaMb"M spoke of avoiding
(hot) spices in the summer. * 2-3 bunches of cilantro leaves (bugs removed by pre-soaking in salt water).
You must break off the stems and only use leaves - or it ruins the taste.
Certain batches of cilantra are better than others - (IE: some are harder to
blend). Variation: Some use dried red or green peppers in combination or instead of the above. In old Yemen, the peppers were better for this purpose. So now, most improvise by experimenting with different pepper types. * 1 teaspoon of freshly ground cumin powder - or to taste. Regarding all of the spices used above -- it is best to pre-grind whole seeds in your own spice or coffee grinder beforehand. Store extra ground spices in the freezer, to maintain freshness for next time. The best spices are fresh from the middle east. Directions: In a very strong blender, add the pre-soaked cilantro, pealed cloves of garlic and peppers. Then add the cumin, black pepper, cardimon, coriander and clove. DO NOT ADD ANY WATER. Add tomato (optional). Puree the ingredients in the blender, carefully pushing (and working) down the ingredients. I use a cucumber to constantly work down the mixture while the blender is on. This works well for me, because if worse come to worse, the cucumber gets chopped, instead of a utensil. But be careful that none of the spices fly into your face: :-) It could take some time to blend it (with no moisture). Be careful not to burn out your blender or get anything foreign things caught in the blades. Do not add any water. It will eventually puree. I puree for a few minutes at various speeds (working it down), until it does flow through the blender. Sometimes I have to turn off the blender and restart. Perhaps other blenders are stronger or weaker. In the end, I make sure to blend it for a few minutes on the highest it will go (smoothly). That's how I know it is done. Mine comes out smooth and dark green. Depending on the cilantro, it sometimes comes out lighter. The type of cilantro really does effect the taste. Enjoy and don't eat too much! It takes a lot of experimentation to get it just right. Ice cubes help a hot tongue - for the newly initiated. Zehoug is made to mix with other foods. It's not really meant to be eaten by itself. SO it is meant to burn - a bit. Studies of cilantro, garlic and spices suggest great health benefits- especially in such a raw, uncooked mix. In my opinion, the health benefits are tripled, when eaten with HILBEH on a regular basis. But be careful not to burn out your stomach lining.
Ingredients: * ~ 2.5 tablespoons of
well ground Fenugreek seed (Hilbeh). The best comes from the middle east. Directions: Slowly sprinkle dried (well ground) hilbeh into a container of water, being sure to spread it out over the entire surface. This will allow the hilbeh to disperse, as it slowly settles to the bottom. I recommend using a very deep bowl with cold water, so it cleanses and separates the hilbel as it falls to the bottom. The ground hilbeh is than left in the water over night (and placed in the fridge with still in the water). There should be a good deal of water above the settled water. Some of that will be absorbed into the Hilbeh. Aftering doing this, place the lid on the container, and put into a cold place. Let it sit overnight in the fridge. This soaking serves two purposes. It dispels the initial, bitter taste of the fenugreek, and it also causes it to rise a bit (like dough). The next day, pour out all of the water - leaving only the mushy hilbeh. Then take ~ 1 table spoon of the soaked hilbeh (without the water), and place it into a small blender. Then start blending it fast (without adding any water). Some like to start the whipping it by hand (at first) in order to produce foaminess (which is the goal). After blending it, it will START to take on the popular, frothy appearance of hilbeh. Then slowly add a tiny bit of water mixed with crush ice, so that it starts to rise a bit. This is really an art form, and takes practice. Eventually, add more hilbeh, and reblend. Then add some more water. The idea (for most) is to create a puffy, frothy composition. This is a learned skill, that takes trial and error. Near the end, add in some cilantro leaves (never stems) - for the green color. The idea is for the cilantro to alter the color of the Hilbeh from yellow to pale green - without losing the Froth. Then add the salt and lemon juice to taste. Some also add tomatoes into the blend, which makes it VERY tasty. Enjoy. Yemenites use this as an accompanying sauce on almost everything. They even throw it into chicken soup, as their tastes have so developed. They love it in everything. The health benefits are well documented. When used regularly with Zehoug, this food is extremely healthy. PS: Don't use too much sodium, which is NOT healthy.
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