Original Story Published by: Rachel Narins, www.myjewishlearning.com
Photo Source: Rachel Narins
Africassée Tunisian is an amped-up tuna sandwich served on a fried roll that you can get your hands on pretty much anywhere there are Tunisians cooking. The overstuffed street food is made with oil-cured tuna, salty preserved lemon, bright red harissa, hard-boiled eggs, boiled potato and briny olives. It’s a filling, fiery, salty, umami-rich casse-croûte (snack) that you can make at home.
Today, a fricassée is synonymous with secular Tunisia, but the two-bite delight has its roots firmly in Jewish cuisine.
There have been Jews in North Africa — and in particular Tunisia — since ancient times, with the Diaspora moving people in and out, up to Europe and over to the Middle East. With every move, they took their food with them, which explains how this sandwich is available everywhere from Tunis to Tel Aviv, Paris to Toronto.
Where did it originate and who created it? The story goes that sometime in the 19th century, a young Jewish Tunisian woman found herself with more fried buns than she needed. She’d intended to sprinkle the buns with sugar, but she didn’t have any. Not wanting to waste, she made them savory by adding what she had around. Voila, a new dish was born and was called fricassée. (Note: It’s not related to the French stew, chicken fricassée, which is named after the cooking method.)
The crunchy fried bun essentially is an unsweetened donut (which makes it a particularly excellent sandwich at Hanukkah). Made in less than an hour, the dough is shaped into an oval and deep fried until it’s a mouthwatering golden brown, before being split and topped. You can also just use a good, crusty roll.
What makes this sandwich stand apart from run-of-the-mill tuna salad is the unique combination of ingredients. Tunisians make and eat far more of the chile paste harissa than any other country, so it’s a foregone conclusion it would be the condiment used. But as long as you have the harissa, tuna, eggs and potato, the rest is up to you. Other ingredients can include tomatoes, cucumbers, capers, Israeli-style pickles, pepperoncini and parsley.
To read the full article, visit www.myjewishlearning.com.
Related
