Recipe Manuscript

العنبرية

Name: العنبرية
Prep time: PTPT30M
Cook time: PTPT1H45M
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Middle Eastern
Ingredients: 500g beef or lamb, sliced thin (modern: use beef round or lamb leg); 1,000g beef or lamb shank (bone-in); 1.5 liters water; 25g white bread crumb (from semolina or wheat bread); Pinch salt; 2g ground coriander seed; 1g ground cumin; 1g ground black pepper; 0.5g ground mastic (sub: a small pinch mastic resin, finely ground); 0.5g ground cinnamon; 1g dried mint; 100g beef/lamb tail fat (sub: ghee or clarified butter); 3 eggs; 15ml rose water

"Al-Anbariyyah"

1200

From the treasured pages of Kitāb al-ṭabīkh

Written by Ibn al-Karīm, Muḥammad ibn al-Ḥasan

Medieval (500 - 1400)Middle Eastern Advanced Dinner Lunch

Original Recipe • 1200

Original Manuscript(circa Medieval, 500 - 1400)

As inscribed by the original author's hand, transcribed with care by Lost Kitchen Scrolls

العنبرية

"وصنعتها ان يعمل اللحم شرائح ، ويدق بساطور . ثم يدق ثانياً في هاون نعماً . ثم يسلق الساق بماء وملح يسير وكسرة من لباب خبز سميذ ، ثم يمرس باليد و يعتصر ماؤه و يصفى ، ويسلق به اللحم المدقوق . و يؤخذ منه جزء فيعمل كبباً بالأبازير . فاذا نضج وشرب المائية نشف في طبق . وتذر عليه الأبازير، الكسفرة والكمون والفلفل والمصطكى والدارصيني المسحوق جميعه ناعماً ، و يسير من نعنع يابس ، و يخلط الجميع . ثم تسلى الألية الطرية في مقلى برام ، ويرمى حمها . ويؤخذ ذلك اللحم فيلقى في المقلى يتقلى بالدهن . ولا يزال يحرك حتى ينضج بحيث لا يكون جافاً ولا قحلا . ثم يزين بعيون البيض . ويترك حتى يهدأ على نار لينة . ويرش عليه يسير ماء ورد . ويمسح جوانب المقلى بخرقة نظيفة ثم يرفع ."

English Translation

"To prepare it, slice the meat and pound it with a cleaver. Then pound it again finely in a mortar. Boil the shank with water, a little salt, and a piece of fine semolina bread crumb. Mash it by hand, squeeze out its water, and strain it. Then use this broth to boil the pounded meat. Take a portion of this and make kebabs with spices. When it is cooked and has absorbed the broth, dry it on a plate. Sprinkle over it the spices: coriander, cumin, pepper, mastic, and ground cinnamon, all finely ground, with a little dried mint, and mix everything together. Then fry fresh tail fat in a pottery pan and discard its fat. Take the meat and put it in the pan to fry in the fat, stirring continuously until it is cooked but not dry or hard. Then decorate it with egg yolks and let it rest over a gentle fire. Sprinkle a little rosewater over it, wipe the sides of the pan with a clean cloth, then lift it off the heat."

Note on the Original Text

The recipe employs a narrative, process-based style typical of medieval Arabic cookbooks: actions are described step-by-step, often listing processes before quantities. Ingredients are sometimes named generically, requiring the cook’s knowledge to fill in specifics. Spelling reflects pre-modern Arabic orthography, but ingredient names remain recognizable. Directions assume familiarity with basic kitchen procedures and invite creativity and skill from the cook, as measurements are light and based on feel ('a pinch', 'a little'). The richness of the description is both practical and poetic, intended as a guide for knowledgeable household chefs.

Modern Kitchen Interpretation

Recipe's Origin

Kitāb al-ṭabīkh - Click to view recipe in book

Title

Kitāb al-ṭabīkh (1200)

You can also click the book image above to peruse the original tome

Writer

Ibn al-Karīm, Muḥammad ibn al-Ḥasan

Era

1200

Publisher

Maṭbaʻat Umm al-Rabīʻayn

Background

Step back into the sumptuous kitchens of the medieval Islamic world with this early collection of culinary wisdom. Savor recipes, tips, and gastronomic secrets that once delighted the palates of princes and poets alike.

Kindly made available by

NYU/ American University of Beirut

Historical Background of the Recipe

Learn about old traditions

This recipe comes from a 13th-century Arabic cookbook written by Ibn al-Karīma in Mosul (modern-day Iraq). Medieval Arabic cuisine was sophisticated, with influences from Persia and Byzantium, and this recipe—al-‘Anbariya—showcases intricate meat preparation and the delicate use of spices and scented waters. This dish likely graced the tables of the wealthy and reflects the abundance and refinement of medieval Islamic courts. The recipe's publication in a 20th-century print was part of an effort to preserve classical culinary culture during a period when manuscripts were being systematically collected and studied by scholars. The dish is a wonderful illustration of how food was both a daily necessity and a pleasurable art form in the medieval Islamic world.

Culinary Tools when the Recipe was Crafted

Tools and techniques from kitchens of old

Historically, the cook would use a heavy cleaver or meat pounder for breaking down the meat, and a large stone or bronze mortar and pestle for impressively fine pounding. Sifting and straining were done with cloths or sieves made of fine hair or silk. Broth would be simmered in large clay or copper pots, and frying was often done in heavy brass or clay pans. Rose water and other aromatics would be kept in glass or ceramic vessels and applied delicately.

Modern Kitchen Adaptation

Ingredients and techniques for today's cooks

ounces, cups, Fahrenheit

Prep Time

30 mins

Cook Time

1 hr 45 mins

Servings

Ingredients

1 lb beef or lamb, sliced thin (modern: use beef round or lamb leg)
2.2 lb beef or lamb shank (bone-in)
6 1/3 cups water
1 oz white bread crumb (from semolina or wheat bread)
Pinch salt
2/3 tsp ground coriander seed
1/3 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
1/8 tsp ground mastic (sub: a small pinch mastic resin, finely ground)
1/8 tsp ground cinnamon
1/3 tsp dried mint
3.5 oz beef/lamb tail fat (sub: ghee or clarified butter)
3 eggs
1/2 tbsp rose water

Instructions

Start by slicing about 1 lb of beef or lamb into thin strips.
Pound the meat with a mallet or tenderizer until flattened, then continue pounding or process in a food processor until very fine.
In a saucepan, simmer a beef or lamb shank (about 2.2 lb bone-in) in 6 1/3 cups of water with a pinch of salt and a small piece (about 1 oz) of white bread crumb until tender.
Mash the bread into the broth by hand, then strain to remove solids, reserving the clear, rich broth.
Poach the finely pounded meat in the strained broth until cooked through.
Scoop out a portion (about 3.5 oz) and mix it with a blend of ground spices (see ingredients).
Form small meatballs (kibbeh) from this mixture.
When the meat and meatballs are cooked and the broth has reduced so it is almost dry, transfer the meat to a shallow dish.
Sprinkle generously with ground coriander seed, cumin, black pepper, mastic gum (finely ground), cinnamon, and a little dried mint; toss to coat evenly.
Render 3.5 oz beef or lamb tail fat (or use ghee) in a large frying pan and discard solids.
Add the spiced meat and meatballs; fry gently, stirring, until just cooked through but still moist—do not let the mixture dry out.
Make small wells in the mixture and crack in 3 eggs.
Let them set gently over low heat, covered if needed.
Drizzle lightly with 1/2 tablespoon rose water, tidy up the pan sides, and serve hot.

Estimated Calories

650 per serving

Cooking Estimates

Preparing and cooking this dish involves simmering the shank for broth, processing the meat, forming meatballs, frying, and finishing with eggs. It takes about 30 minutes to get everything ready and around 1 hour and 45 minutes to cook. This recipe makes 4 servings, each with roughly 650 calories.