BAGHDADI FISH

One of the truly pissy people on "sounds like angry buzzing Levantines somewhere, but okay ... " (my affectionate nickname for a Sfardi facebook group) excels at viciously insulting everyone he deems too white, or too Eastern European, or too culturally Wasp. By his standards I am probably all three of those in excess, and I am overjoyed that he lives in Israel.

[someone there several months ago called me stupid, and a typical ignorant Ashkie control freak.  Another person accused me of being a notorious troll (which, of course, I am).]

He hates, with a passion that burns ever more fiercely, everything Yiddish, Yekkish, Eurotrashish, and gefilte fish ish. Especially that last thing.
Gefilte fish was invented to torment him.
Nebbech.


For his benefit I suggested grilling gefilte fish and then covering it with chopped banadura and basalat when it starts charring, for that echte emmesdikke heimische baghdadische ta'am. 'Siz eppes gewaldik!
In the style of the Jewish community of Iraq. Scythians.
Further suggestions would be adding filfil.
As well as za'atar and sawaheeq.
Plus olive oil.

No, I don't want to get everyone there angry at me. And all those additions would steam them up. There are a few people there I like.
More than gefilte fish.


But seriously, why not shove gefilte fish onto skewers and hold them over a charcoal grill? High heat, so they char on the outside without overcooking the inside, and then dollop them with a nice chunky salsa. To be served with rice, of course. Keftit samak bi roz al tarikat al Sakatayeen.

Nothing is more Sfardi than rice.



Except if you are Portuguese from Amsterdam, in which case you associate rice with Indonesian food on Christmas.



The gefilte fish hating person mentioned above also sneers venomously at all pronunciations of Hebrew and Arabic that do not match his own hyper-correct way of speaking. Especially by Euro-Americans.
I have heard Baghdadi Jews speak English.
So I can only imagine.
I shudder.




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