Recipe: Chicken Barida with a Sweet and Sour Sauce

Recipe Source: al-Warraq, Ibn Sayyar.  Annals of the Caliph's Kitchens.  Nawal Nasrallah, trans.  Brill Press, Leiden, 2007 p. 163.

I did mention I'm going to be referring to this book frequently, right?  Good.  Because it's my favorite cookbook, and I've got an excuse to play with it more than is probably good for me.  When I prepare my Dark Age feast, I'm really concerned about being able to have all the dishes come out on time, as they're supposed to.  Medieval Baghdadi cuisine had whole classes of dish that were intended to be served cold or at room temperature, called bawarid.  I'm expecting that bawarid will make my life much easier.  This particular one is cited by al-Warraq as being taken from a book belonging to an Abassid Caliph who died in 847 AD. 

I did make a couple of small changes to the recipe, which I would ordinarily not do for an historical recipe unless really necessary.  I omitted additional sugar, because I felt that the mustards I had on hand were sweet enough to bring the sauce to the "sweet and sour" taste mentioned in the original.  I didn't have fresh asafetida leaves, because I have yet to find a source for fresh asafetida.  I substituted ground asafetida instead.  I combined the olive oil with the sauce because if my husband had caught me pouring that much oil directly onto the chicken he would have refused to eat it.  Finally, I substituted cilantro for the chopped rue.  Cilantro was certainly used in that time and place, and my understanding is that rue can have certain undesirable side effects and should not be fed to crowds who have not made an informed consent.  Besides, I can't find any. 

We roasted the chickens on the Big Green Egg.  This yields a moister, richer chicken than oven roasting does.  (To be honest, the Egg is the best way to cook all poultry.  I haven't found anything that quite compares to the flavor.)  But if you don't have an Egg and don't' want to / can't make the investment in one, you can roast your chickens however you see fit.  You can even feel free to use supermarket roasted chickens if need be. 

Chicken Barida with a Sweet and Sour Sauce (serves 8; approx. $3.66/serving)

2 roasted chickens

2 ounces mustard

2 ounces soy sauce

1 ounce walnuts, ground

1 teaspoon ground asafetida

2 tablespoons olive oil

Seeds from 1/2 pomegranate

Approx. 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

Equipment:

• Bowl
• Whisk

1. Joint and skin your roasted chickens.  Slice as much meat off the bones as you possibly can; these can be reserved for stock or just discarded.  Arrange the meat as you please on your serving platter. 
2. Combine the soy sauce, mustard, ground walnut and asafetida in the bowl.  Whisk well to combine.
3. Add the olive oil.  Whisk very well to thoroughly combine. 
4. Pour the sauce over the chicken, drenching it. 
5. Garnish with chopped cilantro and pomegranate seeds.
6. Serve at room temperature or chilled.