Ingredients
Fish
- 1 kgsmall shark or firm white fish
- fresh or salted
- water, for soaking if salted
- juice of 3 limes
- 2 teaspoonssalt
The pot
- 4onions, finely sliced
- 8garlic cloves, crushed
- 4cm ginger, grated
- 2 tablespoonsground turmeric
- 2green chillies, chopped
- 4 tablespoonsoil
- 15curry leaves, optional
- juice of 2 limes
- salt and black pepper
To serve
- plain rice
- lime wedges
- flatbread
- salad
Directions
- Cover it with cold water in a bowl. Give it at least eight hours in total. Taste a small piece to check the salt. It should be pleasantly seasoned, not harsh.
- Rinse the fish thoroughly in cold water. Rub it with lime juice and salt. Let it sit for twenty minutes. Rinse it off well before cooking. That gives an unpleasant smell if not handled.
- Put the fish in a pan of water. Add a little salt to the pan too. Bring it up to a gentle simmer. Give it about fifteen minutes. Drain it and let it cool a little. Pick the cooked fish over carefully. Remove every bit of skin and cartilage. Shred the flesh finely with your fingers.
- Keep going until it is completely fine. The fish must be shredded very fine indeed. Heat the oil in a wide heavy pan. Add the sliced onions to the pan. Cook them slowly over a medium heat. Give them a good fifteen minutes. Add the crushed garlic and the ginger.
- Cook them for a good two minutes. Add the turmeric and the chillies. Add the curry leaves if using them. Fry them for one full minute more. Add the shredded fish to the pan. Stir it through the onions thoroughly.
- Season it with salt and black pepper. Cooking it down takes patience. Cook it over a steady medium heat. Stir it regularly as it cooks. Give it a good twenty minutes.
- Add a splash of oil if it seems dry. Finishing it is done off the heat. Squeeze in the lime juice generously. Taste it and adjust the salt now. It should be sour, savoury and warm. Spoon it into a warm serving dish. Serve plain rice alongside it. It keeps four days refrigerated.
Technique
- Shark populations have declined severely from overfishing, many species are threatened, and sharks grow slowly and produce few young so recover very slowly; taking small sharks means taking juveniles that have never bred, which is particularly damaging.
- Sharks are long-lived top predators and accumulate methylmercury at among the highest levels of any fish, so health advisories recommend limiting it and advise pregnant people and young children to avoid it entirely; any firm white fish makes the same dish.
- Shark flesh contains urea compounds that break down into ammonia as it sits, so it needs to be very fresh and given an acid soak; any strong ammonia smell means it should be discarded.
Substitutions
- Any firm white fish makes the same dish and is the better choice.
- Salted fish works, soaked in several changes of water for at least eight hours.
Variations
- Some cooks add curry leaves and others leave them out.
- A version with more chilli is made for those who want heat.
- It is eaten hot with rice or cool with bread.
History
Coastal Omani dish using small sharks, fresh or salted, eaten with rice along the Batinah coast.
Frequently asked questions
What is Jasheed?
Jasheed is a main from Oman: shredded baby shark cooked down with onion, turmeric and lime. Coastal Omani dish using small sharks, fresh or salted, eaten with rice along the Batinah coast.
How long does Jasheed take to make?
Jasheed takes 30 minutes plus soaking of preparation and 50 minutes of cooking. The recipe makes serves 6. It is rated medium to make.
What can I substitute in Jasheed?
Yes, within limits. Any firm white fish makes the same dish and is the better choice. Salted fish works, soaked in several changes of water for at least eight hours.
What is the most important thing to get right in Jasheed?
Keep going until it is completely fine. The fish must be shredded very fine indeed. Heat the oil in a wide heavy pan. Add the sliced onions to the pan. Cook them slowly over a medium heat. Give them a good fifteen minutes. Add the crushed garlic and the ginger.
