🐟 Samke harra (spicy fish)

Name: Samke harra (spicy fish)
Total time: 50 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Lebanon · Tripoli
Ingredients: 1 kg white fish fillets (sea bass or similar); 100 g tahini; Juice of 2 lemons; 4 garlic cloves, crushed; 1–2 red chillies, chopped; A bunch of fresh coriander, chopped; 40 g walnuts, chopped; 2 tbsp olive oil, salt

Origin: Lebanon · Tripoli

534kcal

per serving · 300 g

178kcal

per 100 g

51 gProtein17 g / 100 g

30 gFat10 g / 100 g

15 gCarbs5 g / 100 g

Samke harra is a whole baked fish or fillets covered in a tangy tahini sauce spiked with chilli, garlic, lemon and coriander, often finished with chopped walnuts. The fish stays moist under the creamy, nutty and spicy topping. A speciality of northern Lebanon, it is served warm or at room temperature as a main course or part of a seafood mezze.

Diets

✓

No pork

✓

Gluten-freeno wheat, barley or rye in a typical recipe

✓

Dairy-freeno milk, cheese, butter or yogurt in a typical recipe

✓

Keto-friendly5 g carbs per 100 g

✓

High protein17 g protein per 100 g — 38% of the calories

Not vegetarianbecause of: fish

Not veganbecause of: fish

Allergens

Contains (in a typical recipe):

⚠ Fish ⚠ Tree nuts ⚠ Sesame

What it is made of

fishtahinichili peppergarliccilantrowalnutslemon

Recipe

4 servings50 min

Ingredients

1 kg white fish fillets (sea bass or similar)
100 g tahini
Juice of 2 lemons
4 garlic cloves, crushed
1–2 red chillies, chopped
A bunch of fresh coriander, chopped
40 g walnuts, chopped
2 tbsp olive oil, salt

Method

Season the fish with salt and lemon, brush with 1 tbsp oil and bake at 200 °C for 12–15 minutes.
Fry the garlic, chilli and most of the coriander in the remaining oil for 1 minute.
Whisk the tahini with lemon juice and water until creamy, stir in the garlic mixture and warm gently.
Pour the sauce over the fish, bake for 5 more minutes and finish with walnuts and fresh coriander.

How to make it lighter

Thin the tahini sauce with more lemon juice and water so a smaller amount covers the fish.
Use walnuts only as a garnish — 40 g of walnuts is about 260 kcal.
Serve with a large salad rather than rice.

History

Samke harra, “hot fish”, is especially associated with Tripoli and the Lebanese coast, where it is a classic of fish restaurants and family tables. Versions differ from town to town, some with a tomato base and others, like this one, built on tahini.

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Values are estimates per 100 g for a typical recipe; home and restaurant versions vary. Diets and allergens are worked out from the ingredients of a typical recipe — always check with whoever cooked the dish. Not medical advice. Nutrition data: Me Nutrition dish database v13. How we count →