African

Small skate, tender enough to fry quickly, should be used for this Tunisian dish. The wings are bought already dressed from the fishmonger.

This makes an exciting cold first course or buffet dish. The fish is fried, then marinated in a beautifully flavored dressing. Make it at least an hour before you are ready to serve. You can use Mediterranean fish, such as bream, or any firm-fleshed fish, such as cod or haddock.

Fish cooked in tomato sauce is ubiquitous in the Middle East. This wonderfully flavored North African one may be used with all kinds of fish. Use whole fish such as red mullet, Caribbean goatfish, sea bass, or red snapper, or fillets such as haddock, cod, turbot, catfish, or salmon.

This hot, spicy, garlicky mixture is the all-purpose, ubiquitous Moroccan sauce for fish. It goes on every kind of fish—fried, grilled, baked, and stewed. It is marvelous, and I strongly recommend it, but not for a fish with a delicate flavor. Use half of it to marinate the fish in for 1/2 hour before cooking, and pour the rest on as a sauce before serving.

In Tunisia, where egg dishes are ubiquitous, they call this a tajin because it is cooked in a clay dish of that name. It can be eaten hot or cold.

This Tunisian specialty is easy to make and quite delicious.

Here is a simple Egyptian omelet with a pleasant texture, to serve as a snack.

This is an Egyptian favorite.

Cardamom gives a delicate Arab touch to this substantial Egyptian omelet which can be served as a main dish.

A hot and peppery Tunisian omelet.

A dish of Tunisian origin that is eaten in most Middle Eastern countries, it makes an ideal snack meal. There are many versions. I like this one, called “nablia,” which is a specialty of Nabeul.

This Egyptian feast-day soup which is eaten seventy days after Ramadan is made of the leftover meat and bones of a sacrificial lamb. It is the custom to slay a lamb in the name of God, and to distribute the meat among the poor. The family of the donor must eat some of the lamb in order to benefit from the sacrifice, and this soup is a good way of doing so.

Another Moroccan soup, this one too makes a good meal to serve at a party.

This is the much-loved national soup of Morocco. During the holy month of Ramadan, when Muslims fast between sunrise and sunset, the smell permeates the streets as every household prepares its own version to be eaten when the sound of the cannon signals the breaking of the fast at sunset. It is eaten with dates and honeyed cakes. A particular feature is the way it is given what is described in Morocco as a “velvety” touch by stirring in a yeasty batter or simply flour mixed with water.

This is one of my favorite soups from Egypt.

For this spicy and aromatic Tunisian soup, use any firm white fish, like cod or haddock, and serve it as a main course.

This soup is popular in Egypt, where sick and convalescing people are encouraged to eat it to regain their health. It is plain but delicate in flavor, and highly nutritious, made with the same large fava beans as ta’amia (page 61), sold without their skins (they are a pale cream without their brown skins).

This tangy, aromatic soup was a family favorite in Egypt. The strong taste of lemon is the main feature. It was usually served over rice.

With this fresh-tasting and aromatic Egyptian soup, it is best to cook the rice separately and add it just before serving, as it gets bloated and soft if it stands in the soup.

In Greece it is made whenever chickens are boiled. In Egypt we called it beid ab lamouna and shorba bel tarbeyah. The stock can be prepared in advance, but the rest must be done at the last minute.