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recipe may/june 2003
 "Buran": Arabian meatballs in eggplant sauce.
extra: "Marignani": Italian eggplants in eggplant sauce. 
Dutch version of this recipe

During the caliphate of the Abbasides (749-1258 AD) the Arabian cuisine was at its prime. In its hey-days the Caliphate reached from modern Tunesia to India.
The culinary arts were highly regarded. Poets composed works on their favorite dishes, cookbooks were dedicated to the caliphs. There were also scientific works on the properties of all kinds of foodstuff and the effect they had on human health. Many Greek and Latin works were translated into Arabic. This Arabic knowledge spread throughout Europe through translations in Latin made on the Iberic paeninsula.
One example is the Tacuinum Sanitatis, written in the eleventh century by the physician Ibn Botlar. In the thirteenth century this book was translated into Latin. Not only foodstuff were described, also the workings of the seasons and even the directions of the wind, with their effect on our physical health and possible remedies. The manuscripts are often illustrated with minatures of the described subjects. 

The influence of the Arabian kitchen on the European one is undeniable, but the extend of this influence is hard to define. A number of exotic ingrediënts became known in Europe through the Arabs: rice, spinach, eggplants, apricots and lemons, to name a few. Arabs were also middlemen in the trade of spices between Europe and the Far East. Direct influence from Arabic culinary texts however seems very small. There are dishes which are called "Sarracen" in medieval European cookbooks, but these cannot be traced to Arabic recipes. These dishes are often prepared with dried dates, figs, raisins, or are coloured heavily.
The Arabian cuisine itself has been influenced primarily by the Persian culinary arts, but also by the Bedouin and Turkish kitchens.

I had already chosen the recipe for Buran before reading the paper of C.Perry on the history of this dish ("Buran: Eleven hundred years in the history of a dish", see bibliography). The reason I chose it was because it was so delicious! Below you find a very short summary of his paper. To grasp the finer points you must absolutely read the paper itself.
The dish Buran is named after the bride of caliph  al-Ma'mun. The wedding was in 825 AD (222 AH, the islamic era). The nuptials must have been splendid, in luxurious festivities as well as in luscious banquets. Dishes called Buran appear in the middle of the tenth century. Eggplant was an exotic fruit in ninth century (AD) Baghdad. Originating from India, it was at first mistrusted. It was supposed to be bad for your health, and the inherent bitterness of the eggplant did not help its popularity. Perry presumes that Buran was the first recipe in which the eggplant was first parboiled in salted water to remove the bitterness, and thus helped making the eggplant acceptable. 
The eldest dishes named Buran contain no meat. Perry traces the history of the dish through the centuries and regions, with variations with meat, with vegetables and grains, and even variations without eggplant.

The text for this recipe is given only in English. The recipe is from Kitab al-Tabikh, published by A.J. Arberry in 1939 as A Baghdad Cookery Book. This edition is reprinted in the splendid volume Medieval Arab Cookery, which contains essays on and translation from medieval Arab culinary texts, edited by M. Rodinson and C. Perry (Prospect Books, 2001).
The cookbook Kitab al-Tabikh is written by Muhammad ibn al-Hasan ibn Muhammad ibn al-Karim al-Katib al-Baghdadi in the year 1226 AD (623 AH). Nothing is known of the author. The manuscript, an autograph, was discovered and edited in 1934 by the Iraqi scientist Daoud Chelebi. Later other, extended versions were discovered, such as the Kitab Wasf al-At'ima al-Mu'tada (also edited in Medieval Arab Cookery). 
Like the recipes in European medieval cookbooks, the Arabian recipes are meant for the upper class. All known vegetables, fruits and herbs are used. Chicken is highly regarded. Sheep and lamb are prepared. Spices are also highly regarded, including some that have not or only very rarely found their way into European kitchens, such as musc and betel.

The English translation of the original text, as found in the edition of A.J.Arberry: Buran

Buran. Take eggplant, and boil lightly in water and salt, then take out and dry for an hour. Fry this in fresh sesame-oil until cooked: peel, put into a dish or a large cup, and beat well with a ladle, untill it becomes like khabis. Add a little salt and dry coriander. Take some Persian milk, mix in garlic, pour over the eggplant, and mix together well. Take red meat, mince fine, make into small cabobs, and melting fresh tail, throw the meat into it, stirring untill browned. Then cover with water, and stew untill the water has evaporated and only the oils remain. Pour on top of this the eggplant, sprinkle with fine-ground cumin and cinnamon, and serve.

Meatballs in eggplant sauce.

1 eggplant
3 Tbsp. sesame oil or 1 Tbsp. sesame oil + 2 Tbsp. neutral oil
salt
1 tsp. ground coriander
1 decilitre (3 fl.oz) yoghurt
2 garlic cloves, crushed
500 gram (1 pound) ground meat of lamb
40 gram (1/4 cup) sheep fat (optional)
1/2 tsp. in all of ground cumin and cinnamon

Preparation in advance: 
Boil the eggplant for five minutes in water with salt. Let it drain, cool and dry. Heat oil in a casserole and stew de eggplant on a very slow fire with the lid on until it is very soft (30 to 45 minutes). Turn the eggplant a couple of times. Pull the skin off the eggplant, and mince the flesh with a fork or in a blender. Temper with yoghurt, garlic, salt and ground coriander.

Preparation:
Form small balls of the minced lamb meat. Choose a casserole in which the balls fit snugly. Heat sheep fat or oil, fry the meatballs until they are brown. Pour enough water in to cover the balls. Let it simmer until the water has evaporated. Add the eggplant sauce to the meatballs, heat through. The modern cook would add some salt and pepper to the meatballs.

To serve:
Serve the meatballs in the casserole, or on a dish. Sprinkle with ground cumin and cinnamon just before serving. If you want to add some colour, garnish with fresh coriander leaves.
In Arab medieval cookbooks dishes are often served in the pan in which they were prepared. The rim is wiped clean, and sometimes the food is sprinkled with rosewater. 

Khabis: A kind of pudding.
Persian milk: Yoghurt.
Tail fat: In Europe and large parts of the world  there are sheep with small, thin tails. However, in the Middle East and North Africa you find since prehistoric times the so called "fat-tail sheep". Every one in four sheep in the world is a fat-tail sheep. These sheep store the fat in the tail, instead of throughout their body. The tail is enlarged because of the fat. This storage of fat in the tail results in lean meat. The tail fat, which melts at lower temperature, was much appreciated in the Middle Ages in the Arab cuisine, not only to prepare meat, but also in sweet dishes. (source: Alan Davison, The Oxford Companion of Food)

Bibliography: 
L.C. Arano, Tacuinum Sanitatis. Middeleeuwse gezondheidsleer. Utrecht [etc.], 1976.
A.J. Arberry, A Baghdad Cookery Book (Kitab ab-al-Tabikh) (Islamic Culture XIII 1939), reprinted with commentary by C. Perry in Medieval Arab Cookery (M. Rodinson en C. Perry), Prospect Books, 2001, pp.19/89.
A. Davison, The Oxford Companion of Food, Oxford University Press, 1999.
C. Perry, "Buran: Eleven hundred years in the history of a dish" in: Medieval Arab Cookery ( M. Rodinson en C. Perry), Prospect Books, 2001, pp.239/250. 
M. Rodinson, "Studies in Arabic manuscripts relating to cookery" in Medieval Arab Cookery (M. Rodinson en C. Perry), Prospect Books, 2001, pp.91/163.
T. Scully, The Neapolitan recipe collection. "Cuoco Napoletano". Ann Arbor, 2000.

Extra recipe: Marignani, eggplants in eggplant sauce.

I have included this recipe of eggplants in eggplant sauce because it seems to me a descendant of the Arabic recipe given above. It is taken from an Italian cookbook at the end of the fifteenth century, edited by T. Scully. The anonymous author is called "cuoco napoletano". 

Eggplants in eggplant sauce.

This recipe is taken from The Neapolitan recipe collection. "Cuoco Napoletano", T. Scully, Ann Arbor, 2000, p.50/180.

Verjuice: The juice of sour, unripe grapes. You can still buy it, but you may have to look for it. In the Netherlands verjuice as also made from unripe apples and sorrel. You can use applecider vinegar as a substitute. More about verjuice and a recipe to make your own verjuice

All text and pictures of dishes are the intellectual property of Coquinaria and may not be reproduced without permission and acknowledgement.