Sayyadieh Middle Eastern Fish Pilaf

The word Sayyadieh comes from the word Sayd and it means to hunt or to fish in Arabic. This dish is mostly prepared using fish but you can rarely find it made with chicken. It is a Middle Eastern dish, some say from Lebanon, others say it’s from Palestine but for today, this dish is from my kitchen!

Making Sayydieh with Different Types of Fish.

I prefer cooking with Basa fish since it has a mild flavor and when you cook Basa, even if you fry it, the smell of fried fish won’t fill your house, this is a great advantage, if you are having guests over. You don’t have to fight the smell of fish out of your house and having said that, you can use any type of fish you like.

Sayyadieh is available in different versions, I choose the version with more spices and flavor because you know how particular I am about good tasting food, besides I won’t share it with you if it didn’t meet the expectations.

This recipe is easy to make and light, perfect if you are working since it doesn’t take much time, and is easy on your wallet too.

When making Syyadieh be careful when seasoning it with salt, most of the time the stock has plenty of salt. I have used long grain rice, feel free to use any type of rice you prefer but keep in mind that according to the type you choose you may add more or less water to cook the rice.

More Fish Recipes?

FREEKEH WITH FISH

BAKED SALMON WITH SEASONED WEDGES

BAKED TILAPIA WITH TOMATO RICE

BAKED CRUSTED SALMON

Let’s make dinner!

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Sayyadieh Middle Eastern Fish Pilaf

Ingredients

• FOR COOKING THE RICE:
• 1 cup long grain rice washed and soaked for 15 minutes
• 1 large onion chopped
• 1 teaspoon cumin powder
• ½ teaspoon cinnamon powder
• Salt to taste
• ½ teaspoon ginger powder
• ½ teaspoon black pepper powder
• ¼ teaspoon clove powder
• 2 cup fish stock or chicken stock
• 4 tablespoon oil
• ¼ cup roasted pine nuts for garnishing optional
• FOR FRYING THE FISH
• 500 gm Basa fillet or two fillets cut into 3-inch cubes
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• Salt to taste
• Black pepper
• Enough oil to shallow fry the fish

Instructions

1. In a pan, add the oil and when hot add the onion and fry until brown in color. Add the spices and mix for one minute on medium heat.
2. Add the stock and let it come to a boil. Add the soaked and rinsed rice and let the mixture come to a boil again. Cover and reduce the heat to the lowest.
3. After 15 minutes, uncover the pan and stir the rice gently, cover and let it cook for another 17 to 18 minutes. Turn off heat and let sit for at least 10 minutes.
4. FRYING THE FISH
5. Season the fish, both side with salt and black pepper. Dredge in flour and keep aside.
6. Heat the oil and fry the fish on both sides until golden brown.
7. TO SERVE SYYADIEH
8. Transfer the rice to a serving plate, place the fish over the rice and sprinkle the pine nuts.

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