Yet Another Way to Eat Your Spinach

Tunisian Jews make a condiment called pkaila or bkeila, which is extraordinary. It is prepared by cooking down plenty of spinach for hours in a generous quantity of oil. The spinach — Swiss chard is often used as well — loses all its water, and very slowly fries in the oil, resulting in a small amount of greasy paste as black as crude oil, which is used to flavor all kinds of soups and stews.

I have known about this method of cooking spinach for years, but I could never quite bring myself to try it. It seemed strange to cook a leaf for so long, and until it goes entirely black. What flavor could possibly be left? It was counterintuitive, particularly to someone like me, who has been pleading with people for years to please not overcook their vegetables.

Still, I tried, and after putting a tiny spoonful in my mouth, I thought: Wow, I don’t think I’ve actually tasted spinach before. The long process distilled the flavor to its essence. It was pure spinach, and absolutely wonderful. I couldn’t have much of it — it was superrich — but I then cooked my own version of tfina pkaila, a beef, bean and pkaila stew, served on Saturdays and special occasions in Tunisian homes. Mine had oxtail and butterbeans, with the pkaila imparting a spinachy magic all over. As I was devouring it, all I wanted to do was add more and more pkaila.

These days, many Tunisian cooks use a shortcut: In France, where large numbers of Tunisians have settled over the years, you can get a jarred version that saves hours of cooking and stirring.

For this column, I am cooking halibut in a mild version of pkaila, which won’t overwhelm the fish but still maintains the brilliant effect of the fried spinach. I altered the method to make the process shorter and added some aromatics. Persian lime is there because tfina pkaila really reminds me of the Iranian stew ghormeh sabzi, but you can easily leave it out.

My second recipe is a fresher play, with a similar set of ingredients. The fish is quickly seared and served with cooling yogurt. Even though the spinach isn’t cooked at all (sending me back to my old comfort zone), its flavor is amplified by chile, spring onion and some of my favorite herbs and spices.

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Yield: 4 servings

Total time: 1 1/4 hours

1/3 cup (60 milliliters) olive oil

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon ground coriander

1/4 teaspoon dried Persian lime powder (optional, see note)

2 garlic cloves, crushed

2 teaspoons lemon zest

3/4 teaspoon kosher salt

4 skinless, boneless halibut fillets, patted dry (about 1 pound/410 grams total)

1 can chickpeas (15.5 ounces/400 grams), drained and patted dry

2 tablespoons vegetable oil, for frying

For the spinach stew:

Olive oil

3/4 cup (80 grams) finely chopped yellow onion

3 garlic cloves, crushed

2 mild green chile peppers, such as Anaheim, finely chopped

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon dried Persian lime powder (optional)

1/2 teaspoon ground coriander

1 fresh cinnamon stick, roughly crushed

1 1/4 packed cups (50 grams) cilantro (coriander)

1/2 packed cup (25 grams) flat-leaf parsley

1 pound (400 grams) baby spinach

1 1/4 teaspoons flaky sea salt

2 cups (500 milliliters) chicken or vegetable stock

1 1/2 teaspoons granulated sugar or caster sugar

3 tablespoons lemon juice

For the salsa:

1 lemon (peel the skin to get 3 strips and juice to get 2 tablespoons)

1 mild green chile pepper, such as Anaheim, halved lengthwise and finely sliced

2 spring onions, finely sliced on an angle

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 packed tablespoons (5 grams) cilantro (coriander), roughly sliced

Flaky sea salt and black pepper

1. Marinate the fish and chickpeas: In a small bowl, mix the first 7 ingredients together. Add 2 1/2 tablespoons of marinade to a bowl with the halibut and mix well. Add 2 tablespoons of the marinade to a separate bowl with the chickpeas and stir to combine. Set both aside at room temperature.

2. Prepare the spinach stew: Add 1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon (75 milliliters) of the olive oil to a large pot over medium heat with the onion and gently fry for 8 minutes, or until soft. Add the garlic, chile pepper, spices and cinnamon stick and continue to cook for 5 minutes, stirring often.

3. Meanwhile, add the herbs and some of the spinach to a food processor and blitz until finely chopped. Repeat in batches until all the greens are finely chopped. Add the chopped spinach and herbs to the pot with the onions, along with 3 tablespoons of oil and the flaky salt. Cook for 15 minutes, stirring often, until the spinach turns a deep green color, almost gray.

4. Add the chicken stock, sugar, lemon juice and 1/3 cup (100 milliliters) water to the pot. Bring to a rapid simmer and then lower the heat. Cook for 20 minutes until thickened slightly.

5. Make the salsa: Finely slice the lemon skin into very thin strips, then mix with the lemon juice and remaining salsa ingredients and set aside.

6. When you’re ready to serve, heat a large nonstick frying pan on a high heat, then add 1/2 tablespoon of vegetable oil. Add the chickpeas and fry for 6 minutes, stirring every now and then until crisp and golden-brown. Transfer to a plate and wipe the pan clean.

7. Return the pan to a medium-high heat with the remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons of vegetable oil. Add the halibut fillets, spaced apart, and fry for 3 minutes on one side, then flip and fry for another 2 minutes on the other side until both sides are crisp and golden brown.

8. Add about two-thirds of the chickpeas to the stew and stir together, then transfer the stew to a large platter with a lip. Place the halibut fillets on top of the stew, then scatter over the remaining fried chickpeas. Finish with the salsa and serve at once, sprinkled with more flaky sea salt if you like.

Yield: 4 servings

Total time: 50 minutes

1/3 cup (60 milliliters) olive oil

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon ground coriander

1/4 teaspoon ground Persian lime powder (optional)

2 garlic cloves, crushed

3/4 teaspoon kosher salt

2 lemons (finely grate the zest to get 2 teaspoons, juice to get 2 tablespoons and cut the remaining into wedges)

4 skinless boneless halibut fillets, patted dry (about 1 pound/410 grams total)

1 can chickpeas (15.5 ounces/400 grams), drained and patted dry

1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon (80 grams) plain yogurt

1/4 packed cup (10 grams) cilantro (coriander) leaves

2 packed tablespoons parsley leaves

4 spring onions, finely sliced

1 small bunch large-leaf spinach, firm stems removed, leaves finely sliced

1 or 2 mild green chiles, such as Anaheim, to taste, finely sliced and seeds removed if you like

Salt

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1. Marinate the fish and chickpeas: In a small bowl, mix the first 6 ingredients together with the lemon zest. Add 2 1/2 tablespoons of marinade to a bowl with the halibut and mix well. Add 2 tablespoons of the marinade to a separate bowl with the chickpeas and stir to combine. Set both aside at room temperature for 20 minutes. Mix the remaining marinade together with the yogurt and set aside.

2. Meanwhile, in a mixing bowl, blend the herbs together with the spring onions, spinach, chiles, lemon juice and a good pinch of salt.

3. Heat a large nonstick frying pan over medium-high heat, then add 1/2 tablespoon of vegetable oil. Add the chickpeas (and bits of garlic) and fry for 6 minutes, stirring every now and then until crisp and golden-brown. Transfer to a plate and wipe the pan clean.

4. Return the pan to a medium-high heat with the remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons of vegetable oil. Add the halibut fillets, spaced apart, and fry for 3 minutes on one side, then flip and fry for another 2 minutes on the other side until both sides are crisp and golden brown.

5. Very carefully transfer the fillets to a large platter. Toss the chickpeas gently with the salad, then transfer the salad to the platter next to the halibut fillets. Drizzle half of the yogurt over the salad and serve with the lemon wedges and the remaining yogurt sauce alongside.