سكباج تنوري

This savory recipe hails from the kitchens of medieval Mosul, brought to us by Ibn al-Karim in the late 12th to early 13th century. During this period, food was a showcase of both bounty and skilled spicing; cooks often worked overnight to coax deep flavors and tenderize meats. Sukhbach Tanuri typifies the elegant meat-and-sweet-sour balance beloved in the Abbasid-influenced Levant and Mesopotamia. The author’s manuscripts were preserved and later published in the early 20th century, but the core technique and flavor profile reflect life at the turning point between classical and medieval Arab cuisine.

Historically, this dish would have been prepared in heavy clay or metal pots. The primary cooking implement was the tannur, a type of enclosed clay oven heated by woodfire—a fixture in both private homes and communal bakeries. This allowed for slow, steady overnight heat. A pestle and mortar for grinding spices and a ladle or spoon for mixing were also essential to the process.