![Tian](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2020/08/30/magazine/30mag-eat/30mag-eat-mediumThreeByTwo440.jpg?width=1280&quality=75&auto=webp)
Tian
Gabrielle Hamilton
1517 ratings with an average rating of 4 out of 5 stars
1,517
1 hour, plus resting
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In a small, dry pan, toast the peppercorns, coriander seeds, cumin seeds and cardamom seeds over medium heat, shaking the pan occasionally, until slightly toasted and fragrant, about 2 minutes.
Transfer the seeds to a large mortar and pestle, and pulverize into a coarse powder.
Add the garlic and chiles, and season evenly with kosher salt. Grind the mixture together until a tight paste forms, 4 to 5 minutes.
Add about ⅓ of the cilantro and parsley, and continue to pound together into a rough paste, another 4 to 5 minutes. Repeat two more times, adding the remaining cilantro and parsley in two batches, until the mixture is a slightly pulpy paste, 4 to 5 minutes.
Drizzle in the olive oil while constantly pounding and grinding together the herb mixture until you achieve a loose, homogeneous paste. Continue to mix until it has the consistency of applesauce, about 2 minutes. Let it stand 10 minutes before serving.
In the traditional zhug recipe, chilies dominate, though other ingredients are the same: in an Israeli joke, Mummy Crocodile advises her children not to eat Yemeni Jews. I agree with another reader that the salt could be reduced. Most online zhug recipes specify 2 steps (dry-grind the spices with optional pre-toasting, then combine all ingredients in a blender), but I suspect that Ms. Hamilton has yet to meet the quick, simple recipe that she couldn't complicate.
Why not use a blender or food processor?
A mortar & pestle achieve a result entirely different than a machine does even for pesto. When stressed for time, I often use a machine. Only for garlic, I turn to a mortar & salt. The gelatinous paste dissolves into sauces, even tastes differently to me than sauteed chopped or sliced garlic. Time matters in life, if not to great cooks as much as to us in the every day. I think the rougher consistency of pounded herbs, the way the pestle releases oils differs from the knife of a machine.
I tasted it at Trader Joe’s sampler counter. Omg means omg. I bought it and my daughter who was visiting promptly took it back with her. Used it on sandwiches spreads and grilled meats fish veggies and what not. It’s very similar to Indian cilantro Mint chutney (does not have a drop of oil) but that added cardamom elevated it to a different level.
Harold McGee, in "On Food and Cooking" explains why mashed garlic has more kick. Garlic's pungent principle, allicin (see Wikipedia), a defense against herbivore predation, is produced within seconds by an enzyme, alliinase, which is released by damaged garlic bulb cells. Mincing/mashing crushes more cells than slicing/chopping, and so yields more allicin. To achieve the same result with a blender, blend garlic, salt & oil first before adding the other ingredients.
It's great to have Gabrielle Hamilton making these contributions. However, these recipes are for home cooks, and few home cooks have a mortar and pestle on hand for these quantities. The food processor or blender makes obvious sense. Since the Times adapts every single recipe in the Wednesday paper, including those by the devisor and including the one the by the U. S. baking champion, it's odd this recipe can't be adapted for the way most people will make it.
Parsley (Italian or regular) can substitute. I've made zhug in bulk (it freezes well) with parsley only when it happened to be on sale. I suspect that other readers' suggestions of Basil/Mint would be fine too, though off-season fresh basil is priced obscenely where I live. Also consider adding to the recipe 2 tbsp lemon juice and/or half a homemade preserved lemon, if you've made a batch: dehydrated limes (Limu Omani or omani limes) are used widely in the Gulf region and Iranian cuisine.
Way too salty would only do a tsp of salt
You might probably use a blender with a similar result, but you would cheat yourself out of the unforgettable experience of inhaling the wonderful scents slowly unfolding in the mortar. 30 minutes of such quality aroma-sensory therapy would cost you a hundred bucks at a wellness centre 😀
From the Saveur web-site: "A mortar and pestle crushes plants while a blade cuts them. And if you want to expel all the essential oils, full-bodied flavors, and unique body of a hunk of garlic or leaf of basil, crushing is the way to go. Plants are made of rigid, boxy structures that trap vital flavor inside. You need to rupture them to release that flavor, and crushing does so far more effectively than the thin blade of a knife."
The food in Yemen was fabulous. I've been trying to reproduce it ever since. I believe this ZHUG is the key to it. Therefore, after reading this recipe, I suspect that only going back to Yemen--where they obviously have mortars and pestles--would allow me to taste it again. Yemen's in a terrible humanitarian crisis. Our country's not helping. I'm too old to wait till the crisis is over. Thank you, Yemen, for the memories. I've tried to help you through the United Nations.
In the article GH does make mention to the use of the food processor. If you do have the time, do read the articles written by GH, or any of the other authors for that matter, she is a gifted writer. (I am curious does one really need directions to transition from a mortar and pestle to using a food processor? ;) )
Answering the blender question; the mortar & pestle produces a different texture. In the case of garlic, it creates a different flavor. Furthermore, I doubt that you can powder the spice seeds in a blender or food processor. My toy is coarse granite. Heavier is better (unless you are prone to dropping it on your foot). It is a modest and very worthwhile investment that lasts forever. Although coarse it is nonporous making it easy to clean.
Anything in the “soft, fragrant” family of herbs would work. I’d start with fresh mint or basil.
Have been making zichug my whole adult life. My recipe is quite different but the results are the same. Amazing.
Outstanding. Used garden jalapenos, threw in a little fresh dill and basil also from the garden. It definitely needed a little water to blend up well, and some lemon juice really made it bright.
I made this today and followed the recipe as closely as possible (except for 1 tsp of salt) until the volume exceeded the capacity of my mortar and pestle. I was quite disappointed with the flatness of the flavor followed by a bitter aftertaste. I think the first flavor wave might improve with some type of citrus like lemon or lime, but the bitter aftertaste has me puzzled. I usually like both parsley and cilantro although I don't have much experience with serrano peppers.
You know the cartoon scene in which the character’s head becomes a thermometer, the temperature of which gets so high, it explodes? I had that real life experience after not heeding a warning regarding the heat in my friend’s zhug. It was entertaining to witnesses.
I made this and messed it up completely. It was inedible as a sauce. Not sure what I did but maybe i added many times more of something without realizing it. Anyway, i didn't want to waste the ingredients, so i froze it in aliquots and now use it as a base to make super delicious stock!! Now i can adjust the flavors to make them work.
I make a similar condiment, but using a food processor after grinding the spices in a pepper mill. Several cilantro hating friends LOVED it, even after I pointed out that all of the greenery was cilantro, stems and all. Some swore it couldn't possibly have cilantro, but the finely ground paste is a totally different texture and taste that I prefer to a sprig or two as garnish. Mine also has the juice and zest of a lime and a tablespoon of light miso instead of salt.
Made twice. First time put in two peppers but it was like a circus every time I served it, so second time added just one. Great with sunnyside up eggs or over steamed basmati rice. Freezes well!
Alas, I don't love the flavor of chilis. If I leave them out, this will basically be cilantro pesto, right? And that's not a bad thing.
If you want crushed garlic, why not use a garlic press rather than a mortat & pestle?
Well, I used the ingredients and tried the mortar and pestle route but dumped the idea and used a blender. It still tasted marvelous to me. I love it on so many things. I have neither the endurance nor the patience to use the hand-grinding route. I’m more likely to make it again, rather that opt for Trader Joe’s (which is a good-enough sub but freshly made is so much better).
I feel like a bit of an idiot needing to ask, but I don’t want to screw up the recipe and ruin a bunch of fresh herbs. The cardamom should be black cardamom, not green since it’s a savory dish?
Green cardamom is used. Not black cardamom. Green cardamom is used in savory as well as sweet applications. It's a key ingredient in garam masala, for example.
What an amazing sauce. Recipe is fantastic. Thank you Gabrielle! I haven't found anything I don't like it on. Big blobs on soft boiled eggs (any egg will do!), roasted chicken, croisitni with melted English cheddar. My newest favorite go to and makes the best homemade gift for a food lover!
Does anyone know from a food safety perspective, how long is something like this supposed to be safe to eat? "Like this" = uncooked condiment/sauce made from oil, fresh herbs/chilis, citrus juice, stored in fridge. Also, if I reach whatever point where I shouldn't be eating it anymore, can I still pour the rest on some protein and cook it?
Make half the recipe and have a plan to use it up, it's better when it's fresher.
There is pretty much always a jar of this in my fridge, and it gets used on so many things it never gets past it's sell by date. I do use more garlic though, roughly an ounce of raw peeled garlic per batch, not as much olive oil and I vary the spices for variety.
I can't live without this in the fridge!
I could have put in another chile or maybe even two, but I guess that depends on one's preference. Taking the time to grind up the spices in the mortar and pestle is totally worth it. I did the rest with the food processor
A snow day in Maine so a perfect opportunity to try this recipe. I compromised on the old world and the new world by using a mortar/pestle for steps two and three and a food processor for steps four and five. I read the reviews about too much salt but wanted to try the recipe as it is written before commenting....but I agree; it is too salty. So I followed another reviewers suggestion and added some lemon juice (salt, fat, acid, heat:)), and that made it better. Trying it with chicken tonight:)
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