[Sca-cooks] Thumiyya - Andalusi Garlic Chicken

[david friedman]

>I'm planning to make Thumiyya from the Anonymous Andalusian Cookbook.
>I have a couple questions - and i wondered if anyone else has cooked
>this dish.

Yes. Haven't been bothered by any vampires since. It's in the Miscellany.

>Here is the translation of the original recipe
>
>Thumiyya
>
>Take a plump hen and take out what is inside it, clean that and leave
>aside. Then take 4 uqiyas of peeled garlic and pound them until they
>are like brains and mix with what comes out of the interior of the
>chicken. Fry it in enough oil to cover, until the smell of garlic
>comes out. Mix this with the chicken in a clean pot with salt,
>pepper, cinnamon, lavender, ginger, cloves, saffron, peeled whole
>almonds both ground and whole, and a little murri naqi. Seal the pot
>with dough, place it in the oven and leave it until it is done. Then
>take it out and open the pot, pour its contents in a clean dish and
>an aromatic scent will come forth from it and perfume the area. This
>chicken was made for the Sayyid Abu al-Hasan and much appreciated.
>
>My two questions:
>1) What comes out of the chicken? Its innards of course, However,
>what is to pounded up with the garlic? Liver of course; heart and
>gizzard maybe, probably; intestines and/or other guts as well?

At least as I read it, you pound the garlic until it is like brains
and then mix it with the innards. We just used the standard giblets;
I don't know if there are other innards that should be included or
not.

>          My interpretation of the above recipe would be that the
>chicken is left whole, but the seasonings, including the garlic
>smashed with whatever set of internal organs and fried, are just put
>in the pan around or coating the chicken.

I think that's how we did it, and as I remember it was good.
--
David Friedman
Professor of Law
Santa Clara University
ddfr at best.com
http://www.daviddfriedman.com/