Medieval Andalusian Goat Stew

This is a recreation of a wonderful recipe created by one of the most important physicians of the Middle Ages, the Cordoba-born Abū al-Qāsim al-Zahrāwī, who was court physician to the Andalusian caliph ʿAbd al-Raḥmān III al-Nāṣir, and has been considered the father of modern surgery. It’s made with kid (or a pullet, if you can’t get goat),

Take one pound of tender meat, or meat from a young goat or chicken, whichever is available. After cutting it up, it is cooked with some onion, salt, and almond oil (which is tob preferred over olive oil). After crushing raisins into a paste with some vinegar, the strained off liquid is added to the meat, along with galangal, cassia, saffron, and thirty (yes exactly!) peeled pistachios. Once everything is cooked, it’s ready to serve. It is apparently a dish that strengthens the liver and stomach. Just what the doctor ordered!

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