Zalabiyeh

Zalabiyeh () is a fritter or doughnut found in several cuisines across the Arab world, West Asia and some parts of Europe influenced by the former. The fritter version is made from a semi-thin batter of wheat flour which is poured into hot oil and deep-fried. The earliest known recipe for the dish comes from a 10th-century Arabic cookbook and was originally made by pouring the batter through a coconut shell.

History

The earliest known recipes for ''zalabiya'' comes from the 10th century Arabic cookbook '' Kitab al-Tabikh''. In the old Al-Baghdadi book of recipes of the Arabs; the dough was poured through a coconut shell. This style of fritter is similar to the Indian jelabi and a 16th-century recipe from German cuisine for ''strauben'' made using a funnel.

Different methods have developed in the preparation of the pastry dessert. According to Muqadassi (10th-century CE), the people in Greater Syria during winter "ouldprepare the unlatticed type of ''Zalabiya''. This would be the deep-fried bread fritter ''Zalabiya''. Some are elongated in shape, similar to crullers, while the smaller ones, sometimes made into balls, are similar to the shape of dumplings.", ch
Zalabiya Fritters (Sweet Crullers)
/ref> In North Africa, they would give the name ''Zalabiya'' to a different type of pastry, namely to the ''Mushabbak'', being a deep-fried lattice-shaped pastry made by looping batter, and drenched in ''ʻasal'' (honey) syrup or ''qatr''."

In 1280, the Jewish–Sicilian doctor Faraj ben Salim translated into Latin a pharmaceutical book, (English: ''The Table of Countries''; Latin: ''Tacvini Aegritvdinvm et Morborum ferme omnium Corporis humani''), which was authored by Ibn Jazla an Arab physician and consists of a number of Persian recipes, including one for "Zelebia".

Among Yemenite Jews, the ''zalabiyeh'' was a treat eaten especially during the winter months. In Yemen, the ''zalabiyeh'' was fried in a soapstone pot lined with oil about 1 cm. deep, in which oil and sometimes honey was mixed. There, ''zalabiyeh'' was "made from a soft yeast bread ndwhich is fried on both sides in deep oil. There are those who add to the dough black cumin for improved taste. They are eaten while they are still hot, while some have it as a practice to eat them with honey or with sugar."

Early known origins

According to King David's daughter prepared fritters () for her step-brother Amnon. By the 2nd-century CE, the name of the fritter had taken on the name ''sūfğenīn'' () in Mishnaic Hebrew, a word derived from its sponge-like texture with alveolar holes.

Customs

''Zalabiyeh'' are commonly eaten by Muslims during the month of Ramadan, and Indian Christian communities during Advent and Easter, and by Sephardic Jews for Hanukkah. In Lebanon they are eaten on the night of January 5 to celebrate the baptism of Jesus Christ. The dough is mixed with aniseed and, in the South of the country, three holes are made in the dough to symbolize the Holy Trinity. They are eaten in both their elongated form and their round form on that day.

''Zalabiyeh'' (or ''zelebi'') are a traditional ''sufgan'' ("spongy dough") for Persian Jews.

Modern variations

The fritter is very common in the Indian subcontinent, in countries such as India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh, although made differently to that of the Middle Eastern and North African variety. In many Middle Eastern and North African countries, such as Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, Tunisia, Algeria, Sudan, and also in Egypt, they resemble spongy-cakes fried in oil.

In Iran, where it is known as ''zolbiya'', the sweet was traditionally given to the poor during Ramadan. There are several 13th century recipes of the sweet, the most accepted being mentioned in a cookbook by Muhammad bin Hasan al-Baghdadi.

In North Macedonia they are called Pitulitsi while in the Italian region of Puglia they are referred to as Pittule and are usually consumed in December.

In Iraq in the 20th-century, starch () was a basic ingredient in their ''zalabiyeh'', topped with sugar. In North Africa, ''zalabiyeh'' was often made with yoghurt added to the dry ingredients.

They are known as ''zlebia'' in Tunisian cuisine, ''jalebie'' in the Philippines, ''zülbiya'' in Azerbaijan, '' gwaramari'' in Nepal and ''jilapi'' in India.

See also

* Jalebi
*Sfenj
*Murukku
* Tulumba
* Lokma

References

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Arab cuisine
Egyptian cuisine
Yemeni cuisine
Iraqi cuisine
Iranian cuisine
Middle Eastern cuisine
Tunisian cuisine
Azerbaijani cuisine
Indian cuisine
Fritters
Hanukkah foods
Doughnuts
Mizrahi Jewish cuisine