Recettes de cuisine familiale juive d'Algérie

[Al-khiyal]

100 recettes de cuisine familiale juive d'Algérie de Mélanie Bacri

[Al-khiyal]

SAINT-REMY, France -- It was a Friday, and I was in France's Provence, in the quaint walled town of Saint-Remy, once the end of a trade route that started in the distant East and Yemen and wound through such places as Cairo and Marseilles. Because Provence was a center of learning and home to many Jews - Nostradamus was born here - the Babylonian Talmud and other Jewish wisdom was passed along this trade route. Yet the only obvious reminder of this past greatness is the town's 14th-century Jewish cemetery with two bright blue Jewish stars emblazoned on the mostly closed doors.

That night, a friend took me to a meeting of the Association Culturelle des Alpilles des Juifs, an organization created to spread Jewish tradition within the community, which today doesn't even have a synagogue. The Jews in Saint-Remy must go to Avignon or Carpentras to pray.

When a young Tunisian Jew, Ilyo Lussato, founded the association to spread Jewish tradition, he was surprised at how many Jews there were in Saint-Remy. Within two years, the number of families who joined increased from three to 60, and it continues to grow. I had the privilege of eating Shabbat dinner with them, tasting a Jewish meal from Algeria.

Dinner was hosted by Algerian-born Hubert and Jocelyne Akoun in their charming stucco home on the outskirts of town. Their house also offers lovely bed-and-breakfast accommodations (go to www.lacigaleetlafourmi.fr). It was clear that Jocelyne enjoys every aspect of cooking, from creating it to feeding others, putting up food and giving parties.

Two freezers are stocked with carefully marked dishes of couscous, tomato sauce and roasted peppers. Her summer canning kitchen, built by her husband outside near the swimming pool, holds all the preserves and tomato sauces she makes when peppers, tomatoes and peaches are perfectly ripe. To get the best deal for her canning projects, she goes to the local farmers markets at the end of the day.

Our dinner, served on the salmon marble sideboard of her kitchen, started with brik, a typical North African turnover - this one filled with tuna, hard-cooked egg and cilantro. I had never tasted any as good as Jocelyne's.

The food kept coming. There was couscous; cooked tomato salad served in little pastry cups; meatballs, one served in a tomato sauce, another with a sweet raisin-and-onion sauce; eggplant salad; and almond brik turnovers dipped in honey for dessert.

"This is typical Pieds Noirs food," Hubert said, referring to the French nationals living in Algeria who were distinguished by their black boots. "We were in North Africa before the Arabs," he said. "Some Jews arrived there when the first temple in Jerusalem was destroyed and have lived there ever since." Others were Berbers who had converted. Still others arrived during the Spanish Inquisition.

Jocelyne described a few Algerian Jewish dishes she remembered from her childhood. One was a spring soup eaten at Passover, filled with fresh fava beans and other vegetables, such as peas and scallions. As we were leaving, Jocelyne handed us jars of preserves to take home. When we thanked the Akouns for their hospitality, Jocelyne stopped for a moment and said, "I believe that we are the last generation that will cook like this." I hope not.

Algerian haroset

I am fascinated by haroset. This one shows the wandering of the Jews throughout North Africa. It is made with figs, dates and nuts and rolled into little balls the way it was done in Spain hundreds of years ago.

French Jews do not use the sweet wine that we have in the United States, so their haroset includes a dry red wine, which can be made a little sweeter with the addition of sugar, if desired. This recipe was adapted from one by Jocelyne Akoud.

8 ounces dried figs
8 ounces dried dates, pitted
4 tablespoons red wine, sweet or dry
½ teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
Sugar to taste, if using dry red wine
1 cup walnuts

Place figs and dates in a food processor with red wine, cinnamon and nutmeg. Process until chopped. (If using dry red wine, sprinkle in a little sugar to taste.) Add walnuts and pulse enough to bind. Roll into little balls about the size of pecans, or serve haroset mounded into a bowl. Makes about 32 balls or 4 cups haroset.

Algerian julienne of vegetable soup for Passover

Because I have so many vegetarians at my own Seder, I have made this soup both ways, as vegetarian and as beef soup. It is refreshing and colorful, with the fresh green fava beans swimming in the broth. A sign of spring throughout the Mediterranean region, the green fava beans are used by Moroccan and Algerian Jews as a Passover food. This recipe was adapted from one Mrs. Akoud serves at Passover.

1 pound shoulder of beef, optional
1 pound marrow bones, optional
1 bay leaf
2 cloves
5 peppercorns
Water
Salt
1 onion
3 leeks
3 carrots
1 stalk celery
4 large potatoes (about 1½ pounds), peeled
2 turnips (1 pound), peeled
½ small head cabbage (8 ounces)
Vegetable oil
½ tablespoon turmeric, or to taste
Pinch of saffron
1 pound fava beans, peeled, fresh or frozen
4 tablespoons chopped parsley for garnish

If using meat, place beef, bones, bay leaf, cloves and peppercorns in 8 cups water in a large soup pot. Bring to a boil and add a teaspoon of salt, or to taste. Skim off any scum that accumulates, lower to a simmer and cook, covered, for 1 hour.

Remove bones, pour liquid through a sieve and return liquid to pot. (Discard bones but eat the marrow!) Cut meat into tiny cubes.

Dice onion, leeks, carrots, celery, potatoes and turnips. Shred cabbage. Saute onion in a little oil. Then add vegetables to broth or, if making vegetarian version of this soup, to 8 cups water in a large soup pot, stirring after each addition. Season with turmeric and saffron to taste. Bring soup to a boil, cover and simmer for about 20 minutes, or until potatoes are cooked. Add fava beans and cook for 5 minutes more. Sprinkle with parsley. Makes about 10 servings.

Algerian cooked tomato, pepper and eggplant salad

This recipe was adapted from one by Mrs. Akoud.

1 eggplant (about 1 pound)
2 pounds red bell peppers
2 pounds fresh tomatoes or a 28-ounce can San Marzano tomatoes
Boiling water
6 tablespoons olive oil
6 cloves garlic, chopped
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Juice of 1 lemon
4 tablespoons chopped cilantro
Greens for serving, optional

Pierce eggplant and place along with bell peppers in preheated 450-degree oven. Roast for about 20 minutes, or until soft.

Cool slightly and remove pulp from eggplant and peel peppers, seed and slice. Peel fresh tomatoes by plunging them into boiling water for a minute or two to loosen the skin. Remove, peel and dice.

Heat oil in heavy frying pan and add garlic. Cook a minute or so to soften but not brown. Then add eggplant, bell pepper and tomato, cooking very slowly for about 2 hours.

Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cool and squeeze lemon juice over all. Serve sprinkled with chopped cilantro on a bed of greens, if desired. Makes about 8 servings.

Algerian-flavored Seder

[Al-khiyal]

The Apple Sesame Honey Dip

Algerian Jewry has a rich history. Before the French took control of the country in 1847, Jews spoke Judeo-Arabic and read Arabic literature, all the while maintaining their own Jewish traditions. Algerian Jews constituted one of the most sophisticated Jewish communities in North Africa. Anti-Semitic unrest began after the establishment of Israel in 1948, but it was the Algerian fight for independence from France in the 1950s that ultimately led to the disintegration of this once vibrant Jewish community. Arab nationalists regarded all non-Arabic Algerians as secretly aligned with the French, and because the Jews had integrated the French language and culture into their own traditions, they were perceived as a threat. According to Martin Gilbert (Jewish History Atlas), from 1956 to 1962 Jews were slowly forced to abandon their shops and professions, synagogues and Jewish-owned shops were burned, and Jews were deprived of their economic rights. By 1965, all Jewish commerce ceased and the Algerian Supreme Court declared that Jews were no longer under the protection of the law. Of the 140,000 Jews who once resided in Algeria, most fled to Israel, France, and the United States. Today, fewer than 100 live in the country, mostly in Algiers and Oran. But their Sephardic culinary traditions, combining Arab, French, and Sephardic Jewish influences, live on. Algerian chefs incorporate vegetables in cooked dishes (rather than fruits and nuts, as is the Moroccan custom), and they prefer mild seasonings (unlike the hot sauces of Tunisia). Jewish cuisine is often tied to holidays. On Rosh Hashanah, for example, symbolic foods such as carrots (symbolizing prosperity), onions (the thwarting of enemy intentions), squash (the extolling of our merits), peas (new life), and beans (increasing our merits) are mixed into stews served over delicate Pate brisee, a rich, unsweetened pastry similar to pie crust. As for the most popular New Year’s dessert, cigars, the lemon-scented almond filling is also encased in fine pastry, then deep-fried and soaked in honey syrup. Just as we do, Algerian Jews dip apples in honey, wishing for a sweet and fruitful year. In addition, to enhance the symbolism, they add a very thick (almost 1⁄2-inch) layer of sesame seeds over the bowl of honey. Each guest dips a wedge of apple through the sesame seeds into the honey in the hope that as many seeds as possible adhere to the apple. Each sesame seed represents a monetary coin—a French franc in the old days, a dinar in Algeria today, or any international monetary symbol. The more seeds, it is said, the more prosperous you will be in the coming year. This year, may your apples be sesame-seed white and the sweetness of honey linger in your lives.

Algerian Chicken with Quince

According to Clemence Barkate, an Algerian now living in France, the traditional Rosh Hashanah dish served in her home city of Constantine was chicken with eggplant, honey, and quince (a hard and crisp fruit resembling something between an apple and a Bartlett pear and has a perfume-like fragrance when cooked). The last two ingredients are symbolic of the sweetness of the coming year and the new fruit of the season. I created this recipe based on her recollections.

2 quinces
1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice
11⁄2 cup water
4–5 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, divided use
1 4-inch onion
3⁄4 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
20 grindings of black pepper
1 chicken, cut into 8ths
3⁄4 cup dry white wine
1⁄2 cup water
11⁄2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 Tablespoon honey, or to taste
2 8-inch Japanese eggplants
Additional salt and pepper

1 Cut the quinces in quarters and remove the hard core and seeds. Peel each quarter, then cut crosswise into about five 1⁄2-inch slices per quarter. Place the cut pieces in a bowl of lemon juice and water. Set aside.

2 Cut the onion in half lengthwise, then cut each half into 1⁄2-inch dice.

3 Heat a 12-inch sauté pan for 15 seconds over moderately high heat. Add 2 Tablespoons of olive oil and heat for another 10 seconds. Add the onions and stir to coat with the oil. Cover the pan for 3 minutes to let the onions caramelize, then remove the lid and stir the onions. Cook for about another 3 minutes, until the onions are golden. Remove the onions from the pan and set aside.

4Combine the flour, salt, and pepper in a gallon-size plastic bag. Rinse off the chicken pieces and remove large pieces of fat. Shake off any excess water. Place 2 or 3 pieces of chicken in the bag at a time. Shake the chicken well enough to thoroughly coat with the seasoned flour.

5 Heat the pan used for sautéing the onions. If the pan appears dry, add 1 Tablespoon of the remaining olive oil and heat for 10 seconds.

6 Place the coated chicken pieces skin side down in the hot oil and cook until the skin is crisp and brown (about 3–5 minutes). Turn the chicken over and cook another 3 minutes.

7 Combine the wine and water and add to the hot pan, being careful not to burn yourself with the gusts of steam that will come from the pan.

8 Return the onions to the pan. Add the cinnamon and honey, and reduce the heat to a simmer. Cover.

9 Remove the quince slices from the lemon water and pat dry. Heat a 10-inch sauté pan for 15 seconds, add 1 tablespoon of olive oil, then heat for another 10 seconds. Add the quince slices and stir. Reduce the heat, cover, and cook for about 10 minutes, until the quince slices are lightly golden and softening.

10 Transfer the quince slices to the pan with the chicken pieces. Try to evenly distribute the slices around the chicken. Cover and continue cooking while you prepare the eggplant.

11 Slice the eggplant in half lengthwise, then cut each half crosswise into 1⁄2-inch slices. Add the eggplant to the same pan used for the quince. If the pan is very dry, add 1 Tablespoon of olive oil and lightly sauté for 5 minutes, softening the eggplant slightly.

12 Add the eggplant slices to the chicken and place the onion-wine sauce on top. Cover the pan and cook for another 15 minutes, until the eggplant is soft but not disintegrating and the chicken is tender.

13 Serve either with couscous (traditional) or rice. Serves 4.

Tina’s Tidbit :

Quince tastes quite tart when eaten raw, but becomes mild and lightly floral-scented when cooked.

Algerian Vegetable Mélange in Pastry Shells

This simple, but elegant holiday dish is served at the Aferiat home. Yolande Aferiat, from Oran, taught her daughter-in-law Kathy how to make it, and Kathy, who now lives in Dallas, described it to me. Kathy’s use of peas rather than fava beans is a sign of the Americanization of Yolande’s traditional dish.

6 carrots, peeled and cut diagonally into 1⁄2-inch chunks
1 bay leaf
10 medium pitted green olives
2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 large onion, cut into
1⁄2-inch dice
1 large clove of garlic, finely minced
8 ounces mushrooms, sliced
1 Tablespoon flour
3⁄4 cup chicken or mushroom stock
1 cup frozen green peas
Salt, if needed
Freshly ground black pepper
Frozen puff pastry shells
Minced parsley for garnish

1 Place the carrot slices in a 1-quart saucepan and cover with salted water. Add the bay leaf and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer, cover, and cook for approximately 10 more minutes, until the carrots are tender but still firm. Set aside.

2 Rinse and drain the olives. In a small covered saucepan, boil them in water for 3 minutes. Drain and rinse with cold water. Cut crosswise into 1⁄4-inch slices. Set aside.

3 Heat a 10-inch sauté pan over high heat for 15 seconds. Add the olive oil and heat for another 10 seconds.

4 Mix in the diced onions and sauté until they’re soft and medium golden brown.

5 Stir in the garlic and mushrooms.

6 When the mushrooms are soft and lightly golden, add the flour. Stir for about 1 minute, until the flour is totally incorporated.

7 Add the chicken stock, stirring constantly so that the flour dissolves and the mixture begins to thicken.

8 Add and combine the cooked carrots, sliced olives, and frozen peas. Cover the pan and simmer the vegetables until the peas are just cooked—about 4 minutes. Check for seasonings and add as needed.

9 Bake the pastry shells, following the package instructions.

10 When ready to serve, remove the center “lid” of dough and place the vegetable mélange in the cavity of the pastry. Garnish with minced parsley, if desired. Serve at once. Serves 4–6.

Tina’s Tidbit:

Avoid using yellow-green bay leaves in your dishes: they’re old, and may add a bitter taste. Instead, seek out freshly dried, bright green, firm, and only slightly brittle bay leaves for their earthy-sweet, subtle flavor. You’ll be very glad you did.

[left2000]

Wow! who knew that, ya?

I guess some of our traditional clothes resemble Turkish style, and the same with our matching colours casual clothes, they look like Jews ones, as well.

What a mix?

[Al-khiyal]

Slow cooking a tender, delicious Passover stew

The expansive nature of the Passover Seder gathering can present an opportunity to use food to bring together the different elements that are part of each family’s history. Since Jews have spread to all parts of the world, dishes that may be traditional at Passover for many families often take on regional characteristics that can make the meal downright exotic, says Jewish cooking researcher Joan Nathan, author most recently of Quiches, Kugels and Couscous. During her Seder, Mrs. Nathan serves several varieties of haroset, a mixture of sweet fruits and nuts that is meant to symbolize the mortar used by Jewish slaves to build for their masters. She always includes two versions of a traditional Eastern European haroset made of apples, walnuts, cinnamon and wine to celebrate her and her husband’s heritage. But then Mrs. Nathan offers versions of the dish from other regions, such as a Venetian variation based on chestnut paste, dates, dried figs and nuts. Mrs. Nathan also always includes a course of gefilte fish, a minced fish quenelle, which she prepares from her mother-in-law’s family recipe. When it comes to the main course, Mrs. Nathan plans to include an Algerian-style beef cheek stew with cilantro and cumin that she discovered from a friend in Paris. One benefit of this exotic stew is that it is meant to be made a day ahead, then reheated. This improves flavor and frees up the host during dinner preparation. The low-and-slow cooking results in an incredibly tender meat with lots of flavor. It also is a particularly versatile recipe. If you have trouble finding beef cheeks, use beef or veal shanks, beef stew meat or flanken, a cut of beef from the same area as short ribs.

Beef cheek stew with cilantro and cumin

5 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided

3 large yellow onions, chopped

4 cloves garlic, crushed

2 pounds beef cheeks, beef or veal shanks, beef stew meat or flanken, cut into 2 pieces

2 bay leaves

Salt and ground black pepper, to taste

1 tablespoon cumin

1 bunch fresh cilantro, chopped

2 cups chicken broth

* In a large skillet with a cover or a large Dutch oven over medium, heat 3 tablespoons of the oil. Add the onions and garlic and saute until the onions are golden, about 10 minutes. Transfer the onions and garlic to a plate and set aside.

* Add the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil to the pan and increase heat to medium-high. Add the meat and brown on all sides.

* Return the onions and garlic to the pan. Stir in the bay leaves, salt, pepper, cumin and all but 2 tablespoons of the cilantro. Pour the chicken broth over the meat. Bring to a boil, cover and simmer over low heat for 1½ to 2 hours, or until the meat is very tender. Remove the pan from the heat, let cool, then remove the meat with a slotted spoon and cut into 1-inch cubes.

* Return the meat to the pan, cover and refrigerate overnight.

* The next day, remove any fat that has accumulated on top and reheat the stew over low, adjusting the seasonings if necessary. Serve topped with the reserved fresh cilantro.

Serves 4