Photo credit: www.gardenista.com

Exploring the Flavorful World of Shatta

Shatta is a vibrant and spicy condiment, known as a fermented hot sauce, with roots deep in the Eastern Mediterranean regions of Palestine, Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, and Egypt. This sauce can appear in red or green varieties, characterized by a simple yet potent list of ingredients: spicy peppers, salt, a splash of vinegar, and a drizzle of olive oil, along with a key component—time for fermentation. While some variations may include garlic and herbs, the essence of shatta lies in its purest form, where the fermentation mellows the heat of the peppers. Although making hot sauce during the cooler months may seem unconventional since peppers are typically harvested in late summer and autumn, the unique colors and flavors of fresh cayenne and Scotch bonnet peppers can be irresistible even in a chilly season.

Recently, I experimented with two different versions of red shatta, whose robust heat has been softened by the fermentation process, and the results were too exceptional not to share. Shatta has a remarkable ability to enhance the flavor of a wide array of dishes.

Photo credits go to Marie Viljoen.

One notable source of inspiration for my shatta-making journey is Sami Tamimi’s exquisite cookbook Falastin, which presents a traditional shatta recipe. However, this recipe opts for a conservative approach, placing the jar immediately in the refrigerator, which restricts the beneficial bacteria essential for lacto-fermentation, as colder temperatures can slow or halt their activity. Additionally, shatta is celebrated in the life of Abeer Najjar, another Palestinian now residing in California, who has shared her aunt’s recipe on her blog and offers her shatta at pop-up events.

Abeer Najjar’s journey to create her take on shatta drew me in, not only because of her poignant narrative about returning to her homeland and the warm, healing embrace of her aunt’s cooking but also due to her innovative technique. Although traditional methods often involve stages of sun-drying the pounded chiles, Abeer effectively adapted this process for her kitchen. By utilizing her oven, she was able to mimic the drying effects of sunlight, concentrating the flavors while maintaining the integrity of the paste. This technique has proven instrumental in crafting multiple shatta variations in my own kitchen.

As I prepared the chiles, I blended them in a food processor with salt; an alternative method could involve chopping them by hand or using a pestle and mortar, allowing for a more traditional approach to this beloved condiment.

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www.gardenista.com