Pan-Fried Fish with Caramelized Onion Rice — Fish Sayadieh Gaza
Gaza coastal sayadieh of pan-fried fish over deeply caramelised onion-spiced rice with cumin, sumac, and a green chilli kick, finished with toasted pine nuts.
Categories
Nutrition per Serving
Ingredients
For 2 servings
Instructions
Prep
Pat fish dry. Mix 2 tsp cumin, 1 tsp sumac, 0.5 tsp turmeric, 0.5 tsp Aleppo pepper, 3 minced garlic cloves, 10ml lemon juice, 3 tbsp olive oil, and 1 tsp salt into a paste; rub both sides of each fillet and rest 10 minutes. Thinly slice onion. Rinse rice until water runs clear. Finely chop green chillies, mince remaining 3 garlic cloves and parsley, dice red onion. Toast pine nuts in a dry pan until golden, set aside.
Sweat
Heat 2.5 tbsp olive oil in a wide skillet over medium-high for 1 minute. Add sliced onion with 0.5 tsp salt and cook 12–14 minutes, stirring every 2 minutes until soft and deeply amber. Transfer two-thirds to a plate and reserve.
Toast
Lower heat to medium, add 1 tbsp olive oil to remaining onion. Add minced garlic, green chilli, 2 tsp cumin, 1 tsp sumac, 0.5 tsp turmeric, and 0.5 tsp Aleppo pepper; toast 30 seconds until fragrant. Add rinsed rice and toast 1 minute until edges turn translucent.
Simmer
Pour 360ml hot water and 0.5 tsp salt into rice, bring to gentle simmer, cover tightly, reduce to lowest heat, and cook 14–15 minutes until liquid absorbs completely and rice is tender.
Sear
While rice cooks, heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a separate skillet over medium-high for 1 minute. Place fish skin-side down, sear 4–5 minutes until skin crisps and lifts cleanly. Flip and cook 2–3 minutes more until flesh flakes when pressed. Toss parsley, red onion, 10ml lemon juice, and 1 tsp sumac in a bowl until onion turns pink.
Finish and plate
Off the heat, fluff rice with a fork and fold in half the reserved caramelised onion. Divide rice between two plates, lay one fish fillet skin-side up on each mound, scatter remaining caramelised onion and toasted pine nuts across, spoon herb-onion finish over, and serve with a lemon wedge alongside each plate.
Recipes use AI and Edamam. Always check for allergens before cooking. Spotted something wrong—email us at hello@grubplanit.com.