Sayadieh

Sayadieh (Lebanese Spiced Fish with Caramelised Onion Rice)

Sayadieh is a classic Levantine dish of rice cooked in a richly spiced fish stock and served with crisp fried fish. It balances warm, earthy spices with the sweetness of slow-cooked onions and a gentle chilli heat.

Prep

20 min

Cook

55 min

Total

75 min

Serves

4

Difficulty

Medium

Recipe ingredients

• •800 g (1¾ lb) whole white fish (such as sea bass, snapper or hammour), gutted and scaled; filleted at home, or ask the fishmonger
• •60 g (½ cup) medium-grain rice, rinsed until water runs clear
• •500 g (1.1 lb) onions, about 3 large, half thinly sliced, half roughly chopped for the stock
• •2 g dried red chillies, or ½ tsp chilli flakes, adjust to taste
• •2 g (2 tsp) ground cumin
• •2 g (2 tsp) ground coriander
• •3 g (1 tbsp) ground turmeric
• •2 g (2 tsp) sweet paprika
• •1 g (1 tsp) cinnamon
• •1 g (1 tsp) black pepper
• •15 g (3 cloves) garlic, crushed
• •15 ml (1 tbsp) tomato purée
• •30 ml (2 tbsp) olive oil
• •30 g (2 tbsp) pine nuts, or slivered almonds, toasted; ingredient note: traditional sayadieh often includes toasted nuts, optional but recommended
• •5 g (1 tsp) salt, plus extra for seasoning the fish
• •1 L (4¼ cups) water, for the fish stock
• •1 piece bay leaf
• •1 piece cinnamon stick
• •250 ml (1 cup) vegetable oil, for shallow-frying the fish
• •1 piece lemon, cut into wedges, to serve

Steps

1. 1 Make the fish stock: place the fish heads, bones and trimmings in a pot with the roughly chopped onion, garlic, bay leaf, cinnamon stick, dried chillies, ½ tsp turmeric and 1 L / 4¼ cups water. Bring to a boil, skim any foam, then simmer gently for 25 minutes. Strain through a fine sieve, pressing the solids to extract flavour; you should have about 700 ml / 3 cups of stock.
2. 2 Prepare the fish: pat the fillets dry with paper towels, season generously with salt, half the cumin, half the coriander and the black pepper. Set aside while you cook the rice.
3. 3 Build the rice base: heat 30 ml / 2 tbsp olive oil in a heavy saucepan over medium heat. Add the thinly sliced onions and a pinch of salt and cook slowly for 12–15 minutes, stirring often, until deep golden brown and caramelised. Add the crushed garlic and cook 1 minute more.
4. 4 Add spices and tomato: stir in the remaining cumin and coriander, the rest of the turmeric, the paprika, ground cinnamon and tomato purée. Cook for 1–2 minutes until the mixture darkens and smells fragrant.
5. 5 Cook the rice: pour in the hot fish stock (700 ml), add the rinsed rice and bring to a brisk simmer. Reduce the heat to low, cover tightly, and cook for 15–18 minutes without lifting the lid, until the liquid is absorbed and the rice is tender. Remove from the heat and rest, covered, for 10 minutes.
6. 6 Fry the fish: while the rice rests, heat 250 ml / 1 cup vegetable oil in a deep skillet to 175 °C / 350 °F. Fry the seasoned fillets for 3–4 minutes per side, depending on thickness, until the flesh is opaque all the way through, flakes easily with a fork, and the surface is crisp and golden. Internal temperature should reach 63 °C / 145 °F. Drain on paper towels.
7. 7 Fluff the rested rice with a fork and stir through the toasted pine nuts. Pile the spiced rice onto a warmed serving platter.
8. 8 Lay the fried fish fillets over the rice (or alongside), scatter a few extra chilli flakes if desired, and serve immediately with lemon wedges for squeezing over the fish.
9. 9 Safety note: cook the fish until it reaches an internal temperature of 63 °C / 145 °F and the flesh flakes; do not serve translucent or undercooked fish.