AI-generated image
Kajaik
Dried fish stew
Sudanese dried fish stew with onion, tomato and peanut butter
Kajaik is a stew from the Nile towns of northern Sudan, where fish from the river is salted and sun-dried to keep through the year; it is cooked with plenty of onion, tomato and a spoonful of peanut butter and eaten with aseeda (thick porridge) or kisra. The flavour is deep and savoury, a little like a rich fish curry without the heat. The mistake is not soaking the dried fish long enough, which makes the stew far too salty and the fish tough; soak it overnight and change the water twice. Chef's tip: if you can't find dried Nile fish, salted dried cod (bacalao) works well.
- Total time
- 65 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
- 14 oz dried salted fishe.g. salt cod, soaked overnight
- 4 tbsp vegetable oil
- 3 onionsfinely chopped
- 4 garlic clovescrushed
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 3 tomatoesgrated
- 2 tbsp smooth peanut butter
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 1 green chillichopped
- 2 cups water
- 1 limejuiced
Shop this recipe on Amazon
Fresh ingredients (5)
Links open Amazon in a new tab. As an Amazon Associate, WhatToEat.Today earns from qualifying purchases.
Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Soak 14 oz dried salted fish in plenty of cold water in the fridge for 24 hours, changing the water 2 or 3 times. Drain, taste a flake: it should be pleasantly salty, not harsh.
1440 minStep 2: Put the fish in a pan of fresh water, bring to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes. Drain, remove skin and bones and break into large flakes.
10 minStep 3: Heat 4 tbsp vegetable oil in a heavy pot and cook 3 onions over a medium heat for 15 minutes, stirring, until soft and golden brown.
15 minStep 4: Add 4 garlic cloves, 1 tsp ground cumin, 1 tsp ground coriander and 1 green chilli and cook for 1 minute, then 2 tbsp tomato paste and 3 tomatoes and cook for 8 minutes until thick.
9 minStep 5: Whisk 2 tbsp smooth peanut butter with 2 cups water and stir it in. Add the fish and simmer gently for 15 minutes, until the sauce is thick and the fish has soaked up the flavour. The fish should be piping hot right through.
15 minStep 6: Taste before adding any salt. Finish with 1 lime and serve with aseeda, kisra or bread.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 380 kcal
- Protein
- 34 g
- Carbs
- 14 g
- Fat
- 21 g
- Fibre
- 4 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does kajaik take?
- About 65 minutes in total: 15 minutes to prepare and 50 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of onions?
- 2 shallots per onion.
- What can I use instead of garlic cloves?
- ½ tsp garlic paste or ⅛ tsp garlic powder per clove.
Reviews
No reviews yet. Be the first to cook it.
Rate this recipe
Sign in to rate and review this recipe.
You might also like
Moreton Bay bugsSlipper lobster with garlic butter
Moreton Bay bugs are the flat, shovel-nosed slipper lobsters caught off the Queensland coast around Brisbane and the Sunshine Coast, and for Queenslanders they are a summer treat, split and grilled at the beach house. The tail meat is sweet and rich, somewhere between lobster and prawn. Buy them raw, frozen or fresh, from a fishmonger and ask them to halve them if you like. A common mistake is overcooking, which makes the meat rubbery; it is ready the moment it turns white. Chef's tip: grill flesh side down first to mark it, then turn and baste in the shell.
Australian
Midia saganakiMussels with tomato and feta
Thessaloniki is Greece's mussel capital, with farms in the Thermaic Gulf a few kilometres from the seafront ouzeries where this two-handled pan arrives, still bubbling, at the table. Mussels steam open in a quick sauce of peppers, tomato and chilli, and crumbled feta melts into the juices at the end. Bread is essential. The classic version adds a splash of ouzo; this one is alcohol-free, using a pinch of fennel seed for that aniseed note (add 2 tbsp ouzo with the tomatoes if you like). Common mistake: overcooking — take the pan off the heat as soon as the shells open. Chef's tip: buy mussels on the day and keep them in the fridge in a bowl covered with a damp cloth, never in water.
Greek
All i pebreEel and potato paprika stew
In El Palmar and the other villages around the Albufera lagoon south of Valencia, the restaurants that are famous for paella serve something older first: all i pebre, "garlic and pepper", a brick-red stew of lagoon eel and potatoes thickened with a pounded almond and fried-bread picada. It is rich, garlicky and gently hot, eaten with bread to mop up the sauce. Ask your fishmonger to skin and cut the eel, and handle it with gloves: raw eel blood is irritating, though harmless once cooked. If you can't find eel, monkfish or hake works well. A common mistake is letting the paprika burn; it turns bitter in seconds, so add it off the heat. Chef's tip: break the potatoes with a knife instead of cutting cleanly; the rough edges release starch and thicken the sauce.
Spanish