Pescado in Sharmila

This is an enticing dish to eat on hot or warm days. “Pescado” (means “fish” in Spanish), and “Sharmila” (Charmila, Chermula or Chermula) means “marinade” in Haketia (the language the Moroccan Jews speak).

I learned how to prepare this dish when I lived in Margarita Island, Venezuela  (1979-1998), and a family friend invited me for Shabbat (Saturday) lunch at their home. I loved this dish, and she kindly showed me, after Shabbat, how she prepared it.  Since then, most of the time, during Shabbat lunch, I serve that dish and remember the wonderful time I spent on the Island.

Some months ago, I saw a friend, now living in Spain, who prepared the dish — but a little differently.  She adds tomatoes to the recipe. This is not really my preference.  However, you are free to try it too. 🙂

 

Skill Level: Medium 

Serving: 6-8 people

Time to Prepare: ~2:00, day before serving  

 

 

 

Ingredients

• For the Fish:
  • 2 pounds of boneless Salmon or Seabass (filets or steak)
  • 2 cup of Seasoned Bread Crumbs (I prefer to use Jason’s brand)
  • 3 or 4 soupspoons of Seafood mix spice (I use Pereg brand)
  • 1 teaspoon of Mixed Spices-Soup/Hawaij Blend [optional] (I use Pereg brand)
  • 2 cups of oil for frying

• For the Sharmila sauce:
  • 2 cup of Cilantro, washed and chopped
  • 8 or 10 Garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 or 1/2 teaspoon of Cumin (I use Pereg brand)
  • 1/2 cup of Lemon juice
  • 1 cup of water

Note: This recipe will require couple hours (1:30 the first step,  0:30 to prepare the sauce)

Tools

• 1 large plastic mixing bowl
• 1 glass(Pyrex) bowl
• 1 wooden spoon
• 1 silicone slotted (perforated) spoon
• 1 medium pot
• 1 knife
• 1 plastic bag (to mix the fish with breadcrumbs)
• 1 measuring cup

Steps to prepare the dish

First step (Prepare the Fish):

1. Rinse the fillets or fish steak and diced them into diced approximately 1.5” or 2″, as you wish.
2. Put the pieces in a bowl, add the Seafood mix spice, cumin, Hawaij blend and stir everything  well.
3. Take a plastic bag and add the seasoned breadcrumbs.
4. Add two spoons of the seasoned fish (with the wooden spoon, do not use metal spoon) and shake the bag. Let it rest.
5. Take the pot and add the oil. Heat the oil over medium heat.
6. From the plastic bag, take one small piece of fish and throw it into the hot oil. If you see that the piece floated to the surface, it means that the oil is hot and you can place some pieces of the fish into the hot oil. Please be careful not to come close to the stove with the plastic bag. Be careful of splattering hot oil! Dangerous!
7. When you see the pieces turning brown and float to the surface, take them from the pot and place them into the  glass bowl
8. Repeat the process until you fry all the fish pieces.
9. Let it cool and then  while you complete the second step.
10. Wash the wooden spoon and the plastic bowl, you will use it for the second step of the preparation.

 

Second step (Prepare the Sharmila sauce)

1. Take the chopped cilantro and put it into a plastic bowl.
2. Add the garlic, already minced, to the cilantro and mix it with the wooden spoon.
3. Add the lemon juice and the water and mix everything.
4. By now the fish is room temperature, and you can add it to the mix you just prepared.
5. Mix everything, cover with Glad Press’n Seal Plastic Food Wrap, (or any plastic wrap)and refrigerate overnight.

 

Third step (Serving)

1. While still cold, serve the fish on individual plates or family style platter.
2. Enjoy with your guests – In Haketia we will say: Beracha se te haga! (Bon appetite!)

 

Notes

• While frozen fish will work to prepare this dish, it is preferable to use fresh fish.
• If you want to use more than 2 cups of cilantro or more than 10 cloves of garlic, please feel free to do it. The more you use these two ingredients, better the taste will be.  I love cilantro, so I use more than 2 cups :).
• This recipe will taste better if it sits overnight. If you want to eat it the same day, please wait at least 5 or 6 hours before you serve it.

History

• Haketia is the language of the Jews who live in northern Morocco. When King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella expelled the Jews from Spain, in 1492 and thereafter, the Jews went to several lands, one place was in the north of Morocco, such  as Fez, Meknes, Marrakesh, Sale, Tunisia they took along the Spanish they used to speak in Spain, adding words in Arabic and Hebrew. Today this is the language that ties them to their descendants.
• Something interesting: Pescado in Sharmila is also known as Mediterranean Fish Stew. And as a “curious fact”, there is an Argentine dish called Chupín de Pescado == when I saw the picture of this dish, it looked quite similar to that made by my friend in Spain. However the Moroccan people do not add potatoes to their recipe, neither do I. Moreover, perhaps the Argentineans imitated this dish from the Italians, who arrived in Argentina in 1857.

Fun Facts

Sometimes the sauce is prepared using a food processor to chop everything up. It is being used  in meat, poultry, and vegetable dishes. Its appearance resembles the “chimichurri” created in Argentina or Uruguay, the mojo verde venezolano, or the Green Schug (in Israel is called harif [term for spicy in Hebrew], and they add jalapeño with the seeds to make it more spicy) and so on. You can freeze the sauce.  However, I recommend not doing so — because there is nothing tastier than sauce which is fresh!