1,000 Jewish Recipes (199 page)
Read 1,000 Jewish Recipes Online
Authors: Faye Levy
My sister-in-law Mati Kahn prepares these savory Sephardic-style fish balls for Shabbat in the summer. You can serve them as a fish course but they also make a tasty main course when the weather is hot and many of us want a lighter meal.
If you're serving them as a hot entree,
Israeli Rice Pilaf
garnished with pistachios is a good accompaniment.
2 slices stale white bread, crust removed
1 pound halibut or cod fillet, any bones removed, cut into pieces
1 teaspoon ground cumin
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
1
â
4
teaspoon ground white pepper
1 large egg
1 large egg white
2 medium onions, minced
6 tablespoons finely chopped fresh Italian parsley
2 pounds ripe tomatoes or two 28-ounce cans whole tomatoes
2 or 3 tablespoons olive oil or vegetable oil
1 large clove garlic, minced
1 bay leaf
1 or 2 teaspoons strained fresh lemon juice
Lemon wedges
1.
Put bread in food processor and grind to fine crumbs. Remove to a bowl.
2.
Remove any bones from fish. Cut fish into pieces and put them in food processor. Pulse to chop fish finely. Add cumin, 1 teaspoon salt, white pepper, egg, egg white, and bread crumbs. Process until blended. Transfer to a bowl. Stir in half the minced onion and 4 tablespoons parsley. Moisten your hands and form mixture into small balls, using about 2 tablespoons mixture for each. Roll them between your palms until smooth. Put them on a plate.
3.
Peel and seed fresh tomatoes, reserving juice; if using canned tomatoes, drain and reserve juice. Coarsely chop tomatoes. Heat oil in a medium saucepan, add remaining minced onion and sauté over medium-low heat 7 minutes. Add garlic, tomatoes, bay leaf, salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil. Cover and cook over low heat 20 minutes. Remove bay leaf. Transfer sauce to a sauté pan.
4.
Measure reserved tomato juice, adding water if necessary to make 1 cup. Add measured juice to sauce. Bring to a simmer.
5.
Gently add half the fish balls to the sauce. Cover and cook, without stirring, for 20 minutes or until they are firm. Carefully remove them with slotted spoon. Cook remaining fish balls in the same way. Add 1 or 2 teaspoons lemon juice to sauce, or to taste. Taste sauce and adjust seasoning. Return all fish balls to sauce. Serve hot or cold, sprinkled with remaining parsley and garnished with lemon wedges.
DISHES MADE WITH COOKED OR CANNED FISH
This has long been a favorite entree in our family. I have been fond of it since I was a child. Now my mother finds that her grandchildren in Israel like it too. She prepares it for Shavuot and occasionally for a meatless Shabbat lunch.
3 large russet potatoes (1 pound), unpeeled and quartered
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 medium onions, finely chopped
2 to 4 tablespoons butter, cut into small pieces, or vegetable oil
One 15-ounce can red or pink salmon, drained and mashed
2 large eggs, or 1 large egg and equivalent of 1 egg in egg substitute
3
â
4
cup yogurt
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
About
3
â
4
cup bread crumbs
Paprika, to taste
1.
Put potatoes in a large saucepan with water to cover and a pinch of salt and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer over low heat about 25 minutes or until very tender. Drain and leave until cool enough to handle but still fairly warm.
2.
Preheat oven to 350°F. Heat oil in a large skillet, add onions, and sauté over medium heat, stirring often, about 7 minutes or until golden.
3.
Peel potatoes and cut each into a few pieces. Put in large bowl and mash with 1 tablespoon butter. Stir in onions. Stir in salmon, eggs, yogurt, and salt and pepper. Mix well.
4.
Grease a 13 Ã 9-inch baking pan and sprinkle bottom and sides with bread crumbs. Add salmon mixture and smooth top. Sprinkle lightly with more bread crumbs and dot with remaining of butter. Lightly sprinkle with paprika. Bake for 45 minutes or until firm. Serve hot.
Flavorful smoked whitefish is great not only with bagels and cream cheese, but with pasta as well. Instead of cream cheese, I like to make a quick cream sauce for the pasta and heat the fish in it. Tomato noodles make the fish the most colorful but you can use plain egg noodles also.
6 ounces smoked whitefish
1
â
3
to
1
â
2
cup whipping cream
1 tablespoon butter (optional)
12 ounces dried tomato noodles, egg noodles, or fusilli
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
4 teaspoons chopped fresh tarragon or 1
1
â
2
teaspoons dried
3 tablespoons snipped fresh chives
4 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
Freshly ground pepper, to taste
1 cup diced fresh tomatoes, room temperature
1.
Remove skin and any bones from whitefish. Cut fish into
1
â
2
-inch dice.
2.
Gently heat cream and butter, if using, in a small saucepan over low heat. Stir in diced smoked whitefish. Keep warm over very low heat.
3.
Cook pasta uncovered in a large pot of boiling salted water over high heat 5 to 7 minutes or until tender but firm to the bite. Drain well. Transfer to a shallow heated serving bowl, add oil and toss.
4.
Stir tarragon, chives, and 2 tablespoons parsley into sauce and add pepper. Add sauce to pasta and toss. Add tomatoes and toss again. Adjust seasoning. Serve immediately, sprinkled with remaining parsley.
Tabbouleh, the mint-flavored Middle Eastern salad of bulgur wheat and chopped vegetables, is a favorite in Israel, especially among Jews of Lebanese extraction. Unlike many versions of tabbouleh in the United States, theirs is not mostly bulgur wheat, but is mostly parsley. It's very fresh and light and has lots of bright green flecks. Tuna adds good flavor and turns it into an easy, refreshing main course. It's perfect for a summer buffet and needs no cooking. The dish is especially delicious if you use tuna packed in olive oil.
1 cup bulgur wheat
3 cups boiling water
Three 6-ounce cans tuna, drained
3 tablespoons strained fresh lemon juice, or more to taste
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
Cayenne pepper to taste
5 or 6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1
â
2
long (hothouse) cucumber or 1 medium cucumber, peeled and finely diced
3 green onions, sliced thin
2
â
3
cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
3
â
4
cup chopped fresh mint
5 plum tomatoes, finely diced
Lettuce leaves
1.
Put bulgur wheat in a large bowl. Pour 3 cups boiling water over wheat and let stand until it is completely cool and tender, about 1 hour.
2.
Meanwhile, combine tuna, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, salt, pepper, cayenne, and 3 tablespoons oil in a bowl. Cover and refrigerate while preparing remaining ingredients.
3.
Drain wheat in a colander. Gently squeeze out excess water and return wheat to large bowl.
4.
Gently mix diced cucumbers with onions, herbs, and wheat. Add tuna mixture. Gently fold in tomatoes and add remaining oil and lemon juice. Adjust seasoning, adding more lemon juice, oil, and cayenne if desired. Serve on a lettuce-lined platter, either cold or cool.
SAUCES
If you find that straight horseradish is too strong for you, here is a creamy sauce flavored with horseradish. You can serve it with gefilte fish or with simple poached, baked, or steamed fish. It's also good with poached beef.
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1 cup mayonnaise, regular or low-fat
2 to 3 tablespoons freshly grated or bottled white horseradish, or to taste
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley or dill
Salt and white pepper, to taste
2 to 3 teaspoons water
Whisk vinegar into mayonnaise in a bowl. Stir in horseradish and parsley. Add salt and white pepper, if needed. If sauce is too thick, gradually whisk in water. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Horseradish is the classic accompaniment for gefilte fish and is popular in some homes with other fish and with boiled meats as well. When fresh horseradish roots are available, many Jewish cooks like to make red horseradish at home. It's easy if you use a food processor. Grating fresh horseradish on a hand grater makes your eyes sting and tear badly and must be done in a well-ventilated room. Even if you use a food processor, be sure to avert your face when you open the processor because of the strong fumes from the horseradish. Most people mix the horseradish with raw beets but you can use cooked beets for a softer texture.
The strength of horseradish roots varies greatly. Using the higher proportion of beets in this recipe helps to tone it down. Some people make their horseradish very salty, sweet, or sour, and some use lemon juice instead of vinegar. This version has modest amounts of vinegar, salt, and sugar. Gradually add more if you like. Horseradish loses its strength the longer it stands.