A Garlicky Sauce: Food Challenge Ten: A&S 50 Challenge

Garlicky sauce
Adapted from: Recipe for Thûmiyya, a Garlicky Dish
Andalusia 13th century recipe
Redaction by Sayyeda al-Kaslaania

Take a plump hen and take out what is inside it, clean that and leave aside. Then take four ûqiyas of peeled garlic and pound them until they are like brains, and mix with what comes out of the interior of the chicken. Fry it in enough oil to cover, until the smell of garlic comes out. Mix this with the chicken in a clean pot with salt, pepper, cinnamon, lavender, ginger, cloves, saffron, peeled whole almonds, both pounded and whole, and a little murri naqî'. Seal the pot with dough, place it in the oven and leave it until it is done. Then take it out and open the pot, pour its contents in a clean dish and an aromatic scent will come forth from it and perfume the area. This chicken was made for the Sayyid Abu al-Hasan and much appreciated.

5-8 oz of garlic cloves, peeled
1 tsp ginger, ground
¼ tsp cloves, ground
6 Tbl sesame oil
½ tsp salt
½ tsp pepper, ground
1 tsp cinnamon, ground
¼ cup almonds, ground
[pinch lavender, crushed]
¼ cup tamari or soy sauce
Olive oil for roasting garlic

Murri is fermented sauce, similar to soy sauce. Tamari is a soy-only sauce which is therefore gluten free. Soy- and wheat- sauce (sold commonly as soy sauce) would likely be closer to true murri.


Roast garlic: toss in olive oil and spread on a baking sheet. Bake for 10-15 minutes at 350 degrees F, stirring occasionally. When cooled, mash with the other ingredients. Let sit over night to allow the flavors to blend. Stir vigorously (or store it in a covered container and shake) just before serving. This sauce was made for Baroness Marwen de la Rivere of Northshield and much appreciated.

Clearly this recipe is far removed from the original-- and it turned out to be stunning. In preparing a feast which included some people who eat vegetarian and others with gluten intolerance, I revised this recipe to accompany roast chicken and savory crepes of chickpeas. Because I had already included in my feast one recipe that would be a culinary adventure, I did not include the lavender in this attempt. I certainly will for the next. ~~Sayyeda al-Kaslaania

Translation and original redaction from: How to Milk an Almond Stuff an Egg And Armor a Turnip: A Thousand Years of Recipes By David Friedman and Elizabeth Cook ISBN: 978-1-460-92498-3 http://www.daviddfriedman.com/Medieval/To_Milk_an_Almond.pdf  Used with permission.