Today’s plate is a very traditional dish in Lebanon and it’s called Sayadiyah. I got this recipe from Jounaya who’s a very dear friend of mine. Even though there are many steps to making Sayadiyah, however I assure you that the end result is very satisfying and pleasing.
Ingredients:
4 lbs of sea bass or any other white fish
2 cups rice (not short grain)
8 medium sized onions, sliced
1 teaspoon cumin powder
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon salt
4 cups water or vegetable broth
1/2 cup flour
2 cups canola oil
1 cup of nuts (pine nuts, slivered almonds or cashews)
Method for fish:
Rinse, drain the selected fish and cut it into thick chunks. Coat the pieces with the flour. Heat a pot of canola oil and fry the fish until it’s golden brown. Drain on paper towel and set aside.
Method for topping and rice:
In a deep casserole, heat 1/2 cup of the canola oil you just used and cook the onions until they’re crispy. Take out half of the onions and set aside. Keep the other half in the casserole and add the rice, cumin, salt and pepper. Stir for about a minute then add the water/or vegetable broth. Wait until the mixture starts boiling then reduce the heat and simmer for about 30 minutes.
In a separate pan, toast the nuts in some canola oil. Remove from pan and let dry on a paper towel.
To serve, plate the rice in a nice platter, place the fish on top and dress it with the remaining fried onion and nuts.
Bon Appetit!