Tuh’u: Babylonian Lamb and Beetroot Stew
Tuh’u comes from one of the oldest known recipe collections in the world: a clay tablet in the Yale Babylonian Collection (YBC 4644), written in Akkadian in…
- CuisineBabylonian
- Prep20 min
- Cook2 h 5 min
- Total2 h 25 min
- Makes4 servings
Tuh’u: Babylonian Lamb and Beetroot Stew
1. Brown the lamb: Heat the ghee or lamb fat in a heavy pot. Brown the lamb in two batches over high heat, about 5 minutes per batch, and season with the salt.
2. Soften the onions: Return all the lamb to the pot, add the sliced onions and cook for 5 minutes, stirring, until soft.
3. Add beer and water: Pour in the beer and the water, add the cumin and ground coriander and bring to the boil. Skim, cover and simmer gently for 1 hour.
4. Add the beets: Add the beetroot, the leek and the 4 crushed garlic cloves, just as the tablet adds crushed leek and garlic. Simmer for 40–50 minutes more, until the lamb is tender and the beets are soft. Uncover for the last 10 minutes so the broth thickens slightly.
5. Make the green dressing: Finely chop the rocket, coriander leaves and spring onion, and crush the remaining 2 garlic cloves into the mix.
6. Serve: Take the pot off the heat, stir in half of the green dressing and scatter the rest on top, as the tablet says. Serve hot, with flatbread or crusty bread.
Tuh’u, a 3,750-year-old stew
History & OriginsTuh’u comes from one of the oldest known recipe collections in the world: a clay tablet in the Yale Babylonian Collection (YBC 4644), written in Akkadian in Mesopotamia around 1750 BCE. The tablet holds 25 short recipes for stews and broths.
The instructions are only a few lines long: there must be meat from a leg of lamb; prepare water and add fat, then salt, beer, onion, a green herb, coriander, cumin and beetroot; crush leek and garlic and add them; and when the stew is ready, sprinkle fresh coriander and another green on top.
Some of the ingredients have never been identified for certain, so modern cooks fill the gaps. This version uses rocket, fresh coriander and spring onion for the green finish. When a team led by Assyriologist Gojko Barjamovic cooked the Yale recipes, a red beet stew with sour beer turned out to be the favourite. The result is rich, deep red and slightly tangy from the beer.
Tuh’u, a 3,750-year-old stew
The story behind the dishTuh’u comes from one of the oldest known recipe collections in the world: a clay tablet in the Yale Babylonian Collection (YBC 4644), written in Akkadian in Mesopotamia around 1750 BCE. The tablet holds 25 short recipes for stews and broths.
The instructions are only a few lines long: there must be meat from a leg of lamb; prepare water and add fat, then salt, beer, onion, a green herb, coriander, cumin and beetroot; crush leek and garlic and add them; and when the stew is ready, sprinkle fresh coriander and another green on top.
Some of the ingredients have never been identified for certain, so modern cooks fill the gaps. This version uses rocket, fresh coriander and spring onion for the green finish. When a team led by Assyriologist Gojko Barjamovic cooked the Yale recipes, a red beet stew with sour beer turned out to be the favourite. The result is rich, deep red and slightly tangy from the beer.
