Now, when you entertain people to a Greek meal, you can impress them with your knowledge of Greek! The letters in bold italics show where the accent should go when you pronounce it. almond – ameegdalo (soft d) aniseed – anitho apple – meelo apricot – vereekoko artichoke – aggeenara (hard g) asparagus – sparangee (hard […]

Original Recipe: Mystron: Athenaeus, The Partying Professors ‘Nicander of Colophon is the author who employs the word mystron when describing the use of the word barley groats in the first of his two books On Farming. He writes: “But when you are making a dish of fresh kid or lamb or capon, put some barley groats in […]

Andalusian p. A-8 Take a young, cleaned hen and put it in a pot with a little salt, pepper, coriander, cinnamon, saffron and sufficient of vinegar and sweet oil, and when the meat is cooked, take peeled, crushed almonds and good white sugar, four ounces of each; dissolve them in rosewater, pour in the pot […]

al-Baghdadi p. 191/8 (GOOD) Take eggplant, and boil lightly in water and salt, then take out and dry for an hour. Fry this in fresh sesame-oil until cooked: peel, put into a dish or a large cup, and beat well with a ladle, until it becomes like kabis. Add a little salt and dry coriander. Take some […]

(Andalusian p. A-9) It is made with hens, pigeons, ring doves, small birds, or lamb. Take what you have of it, then clean it and cut it and put it in a pot with salt and onion, pepper, coriander and lavender or cinnamon, some murri naqi, and oil. Put it over a gentle fire until […]

(al-Baghdadi) Cut fat meat small, put into the saucepan with a little salt, and cover with water. Boil and remove the scum. Cut up onions, wash, and throw in on top of the meat. Add seasonings, coriander, cumin, mastic, cinnamon, pepper and ginger, well ground. Take dry apricots, soak in hot water, then wash and […]

Ingredients: 1 lb. ground lamb (may be pounded if you like) 1 grated onion 2 cloves of chopped garlic 6 Tbs natural barley (crush it coarsely in the blender of food processor) 3 Tbs chopped parsley 2 Tbs mint or basil (fresh) 1 Tbs dried oregano or thyme salt 1 egg slightly beaten 5 cups […]

Serves four. This recipe, from the manuscript of Yahya ibn Khalid al-Barmaki, makes striking use of murri,the indigenous Middle Eastern barley “soy sauce.” Most dishes flavored with murri were vinegary, but this is the exception, being quite sweet. The result is surprisingly reminiscent of a Chinese “red-stewed” meat dish. The name comes from the Persian word for […]

Serves two. Mulahwajah means “hasty.” The book says that this recipe was often prepared for Harun al-Rashid. Galangal is sold in Arabia as ‘irq al-hail or khulanjan, and in Southeast Asian markets under such names as kha and laos. Dried ginger could be substituted. Use the rue sparingly—it’s very bitter. Ingredients: 2 tablespoons oil 1 onion […]

Summary Pan fried Liver. Chicken, lamb or beef liver. For when you’re mad at the kids! Servings: 5 Ingredients 1 lb of beef’s liver 2 cloves (optional) a little flour for all purposes, for dredging 1 lemon, squeezed a little oil, for frying 1 pinch of oregano 1 pinch of pepper 1 pinch of salt […]