Djerba (Tunisia)

[Jonathan Day]

We'll be in Djerba for a few days, and would be grateful for any suggestions on restaurants (of all sorts) and markets in the area of Homt Souk.

[Wolfert]

Chef Haouari Abdelrrazak has a small restauant called Chez Haouari. When I was in Djerba he was executive chef at the leading hotel, but was planning to open his own place. I'll send you his phone number as soon as I find it. If I don't find it in time, just ask the hotel to call for the address and to book you a table. Everyone knows him.

Haouari is a wonderful chef who prepares some of the finest local cooking with sensitivity and insight. He claims he just cooks like his Berber grandmother..

Having grown up in Djerba, he brings a fersh perspective to the local fish, grains, and vegetables.

Actually, he was trained in Brussels and worked at a 2-star restaurant in the south of France for a number of years before returning home. He opened a cooking school for chefs and knows many of the young bright chefs in the country. He had a national radio show on cooking for Tunisian housewives, and ran the best dining room as executive chef at the same time.

You'll like him: He is a popular visiting chef to the CIA in Napa whenever we have Mediterranean festivals. Matter of fact, he is coming this fall.

He is a big fan of Alice Waters and believes in the sort of things Alice is known for... sustainable agriculture, schoolyard food programs, etc. He has all her books, I think he taught himself enough English to read them. When he was here two years ago, I took him to chez Panisse, and he playfully said he had arrived at a culinary mecca!!

The main market is on Monday and Thursday, but everyday there is something going on. Be sure to check out the local fish market : The fish are tied up like beads on a necklace and sold by auction.

Large thick slabs of olive wood are carved into fabulous large salad bowls and sold in front of the market on certain days. Ask Haouari.

There is some fantastic Jewish and Berber jewelry: intricate lacy silver bracelets to buy as well as some nice woolen covers and the usual tourist stuff

A good guide book will fill you in.

The Djerbian beaches and the hotels are not as vulgar as many beach communties on the Mediterranean. Will you be staying on the Sidi Mahrez beach side?

[Jonathan Day]

We didn't travel to Tunisia for the food, but it was good and interesting nonetheless.

As Paula noted, there was a great market in Homt Souk on Monday. The vendors turn up Sunday afternoon to secure the best places; the fish auction starts early on Monday morning.

The fish auction -- attended mostly by men, but one auctioneer seemed be selling primarily to women.

We saw lots of interesting vegetables in the markets, but the same variety didn't turn up in hotels or restaurants. No complaints about the fish, though, which was universally fresh.

Distances and directions seemed more vague and relative than I had expected. We had been directed to a newly opened restaurant called "Safran", in Homt Souk, but nobody seemed to know where it was. But that didn't stop them from offering directions. "Not far from here," said a policeman. "Straight ahead, then to the left." (Tout droit, puis à gauche). We tried this, only to end up in another part of the market. "Yes, I've heard of Safran," said a trader; "tout droit, puis à gauche". Another wander. "Safran," mused a shop owner. "It isn't here. Go tout droit" ... you guessed it.

Hence I started asking about Chef Haouri from the moment of our arrival. Yes, people said, he's very well known. You will like his cooking. Where was his restaurant, we asked. "It isn't in town," said a taxi driver. But where was it? "Ask at the hotel, they will know."

Yes, "Chef Haouri," said the hotel manager. "It's across from the Casino. Leave the hotel, go straight ahead, then turn left."

Eventually I set out on foot. Straight ahead, across from the Casino, and to the left was a smoky café that could not possibly have fit Paula's description; but I went in nonetheless. "Ah," said an old man, "it's right over there." He took me outside and we walked for a ways...and there it was, not across from the Casino, but from a resort called the Sun Club.

The restaurant itself was not prepossessing. Signs indicated that it was a pizzeria, though there was a faded review from the Guide Routard pinned to a post. Inside, though, the place was simple. At the back of the room was a sandwich making stand and pizza oven, in which quite a few of the dishes were prepared.

We had made contact with the chef by phone, so a dinner had been chosen and prepared for us. There was a chachouka, made with onions, peppers, tomatoes and eggs...

...and a light, crisp brik, stuffed with eggs and herbs, by the far the tastiest of many we tasted while in Tunisia.

Then the chef's son removed two blackened pots from the oven; they had been sealed with bread dough.

He carefully sliced off the tops

and poured out a wonderfully fragant stew, the gargouillete, made with lamb and root vegetables.

Yes, it smelled that good.

While we ate this, the chef's son made pizzas and enormous sandwiches for other customers. The bread we encountered in Tunisia was, for the most part, more like traditional French bread than the flat breads I had been served in other parts of Northern Africa. Chef Haouari's was freshly made -- in that same oven, of course -- and delicious. The restaurant was sparkling clean, and the chef and his son constantly moved around, cleaning, straightening chairs, wiping down tables.

Chef Haouari explained that the lamb in our gargouillete was a year old; this dish, he said, didn't work with either very young lamb or mutton. It was tender and the flavours were almost perfectly balanced.

We ended with dessert

and a quick lesson in how to fold a napkin into a flower.

The chef sent us home with a selection of his pastries, among them cornes de gazelle, crescent-shaped and filled with honey and nuts. We tasted a number of these on our trip, but none were as crisp and light or well-flavoured as Chef Haouari's.

We talked about bread, and cooking, and Chef Haouari's own experiences. He has cooked all over the world -- at the CIA, with Tetsuya, and all over France. As Paula indicated, he admires Alice Waters. On his return from Chez Panisse, he opened a more haute cuisine restaurant, with a fireplace over which foods were cooked. But he didn't serve alcohol, and customers simply weren't prepared to spend money unless they could have wine with their meals. Hence the return to a simple sandwich shop and pizzeria. "He loves the Djerbian ways," one of the locals told us; "and he wants to keep his life simple and balanced."

On the morning after dinner at Chef Haouari's restaurant we departed for the desert. This was not the most gastronomically interesting part of the trip, but there were some unusual moments. We stopped at a ksar, still used by families to store oil, grains (mostly barley, orge rather than semolina or wheat) and, in large jars, confit de chameau, camel confit. Each family has a chamber in the ksar; each door is locked with a different complicated, coded latch mechanism, and the secret passed along within families.

Camel confit is made by melting the fat in the camel's hump, cooking the meat, just like duck confit, and storing the result in large jars, where it keeps for over a year.

I believe the jars above were used for olive oil.

We stopped at the troglodyte dwellings; in one, the owner brought us bread that was closer to the Arab breads I had expected. This was round and flat, but about 2 cm thick; it was flavoured with saffron.

George Lucas fans may note some similarity to Luke Skywalker's house in the Star Wars film made in the 1970s. That's because one of these dwellings -- now a hotel, the Sidi Driss -- was used as the set. Scribbled markings from the production are still on the backs of doors.

We spent a few days at Ksar al Ghilane, a desert oasis watered by a natural hot spring.

Very basic eating here; some local women had painted a sign, "BOULANGERIE DU DESERT" (The Desert Bakery). They prepared bread over a fire, on a round metal pan.

We returned via Djerba, and one more trip to Chef Haouari's restaurant. This time, his son made several pizzas for us; they were light and delicious. My daughter desperately wanted pasta, and soon a dish of spaghetti bolognaise arrived; the sauce was deep, rich, and well flavoured. The adults wanted salads, after the desert, and Chef Haouari made mechouia with tomatoes, onions and tuna. Finally, we had grilled chicken and a grilled sea bass. All of this food was, literally, beautiful: not in the same way that Pacaud produced exquisite, pure dishes at L'Ambroisie, but prepared with very fresh ingredients and perfectly balanced in seasoning.

Chef Haouari drove me back to our hotel. He explained that the restaurant was filled, day and night, during the high season; it never closed, 7 days of the week, 24 hours a day. That must be exhausting for you, I remarked. It is the service I owe my customers, he said.

We hadn't travelled to Tunisia to eat, but the trip helped me resolve an issue that we have discussed at great length on these pages. Could cookery be art? Chef Haouari is, unquestionably, an artist; he has found his vocation, creating a tiny gem of a restaurant in which he can serve the foods he loves. Yes, these dishes feed the body and eventually pass out of it, but their making is done with care that goes far beyond craft or technique.

[touaregsand]

Fantastic report. Your descriptions are so vivid I feel like I was there with you, even the details about getting directions. The last photograph in particular, the sun, sand and shadows of the landscape were a perfect ending to the story. It's a snapshot of memories and dreams.

Chef Haouri's cooking looks honest, with the sort of care that only someone who truly loves his heritage and food can produce. What an experience to have such a talented chef cook for you!

[Wolfert]

Great report. The only thing missing is a picture of Haouari.

[

Chef Haouari with his second youngest son, Anis, in the garden on the island of Djerba..

I'll start posting some of Haouari's recipes in the next few days.

Edited April 16, 2005 by Wolfert (log)

[chefzadi]

Beautiful photographs Jonathon. I showed them to my children, telling them that this is part of who they are.

I hope to meet Chef Haouari one day, maybe soon when he is at the CIA this fall. So his son is named Anis! A good name, one of my co-instructors at LCB is Tunisian named Anis.

[Wolfert]

All his children have Berber names: Khalil; Ibtissen; Adel; Atidel; and Anis.

I think I remember Haouari telling me his clan is from the Kabyle Mountains.

[Jonathan Day]

Here are a few more market photographs, from Homt Souk and Guelalla, on Djerba, and Tataouine, on the mainland.

As I noted above, despite a profusion of vegetables in the markets, the restaurants (both independent and in hotels) seemed to have a limited selection. Some of the smaller restaurants didn't offer anyone a menu -- you sat down at shared tables, and they brought everyone the same meal: bread, with olive oil and harissa; a brik, couscous, usually with lamb, and some sort of pastry, often cornes de gazelle. This was followed by mint tea. It was often good, but I wondered where the fava beans and peas I saw in the markets were going.

I'm sure that this is the same phenomenon as the tourist in France who doesn't speak the language and wonders how the French survive on nothing but bread and steack frites. That said, the brik-and-couscous restaurants I described above were catering more to locals than to tourists.

[Jonathan Day]

One more note. We were surprised at the Tunisian wines, which were drinkable and not too expensive. It was more than pleasant to sit in the sun, eating perfectly grilled fish and drinking Gris de Tunisie, a rosé.

[robert brown]

After listening to "A Night in Tunisia" for nearly half a century, it was great to see what the place looks like. You make it seem really wonderful.

[chefzadi]

Thank you Jonathon for posting more photos. I especially enjoy the shots of vegetables on tarp on the streets.

It was more than pleasant to sit in the sun, eating perfectly grilled fish and drinking Gris de Tunisie, a rosé.

When I read something like this I want to share a meal.

[chefzadi]

You'll like him: He is a popular visiting chef to the CIA in Napa whenever we have Mediterranean festivals. Matter of fact, he is coming this fall.

Is he coming for this event?

Looks exciting. I'd love to participate as well.

[Wolfert]

I am sure he is coming. They should have a list of the participants up on their website pretty soon.

[chefzadi]

and poured out a wonderfully fragant stew, the gargouillete, made with lamb and root vegetables.

I've been thinking about this dish and I see it as a variation of a Tangia, a very uncommon dish.

[chefzadi]

and a light, crisp brik, stuffed with eggs and herbs, by the far the tastiest of many we tasted while in Tunisia.

Jonathon-

I wonder what else was in that brik?

I spent part of yesterday with my Tunisian friend Anis and he cooked for me. He made the best brik I have had in my life. In Eastern Algeria they are usually made with just eggs and herbs. But they can be stuffed with just about anything.

Anis made for me what I consider a more Tunisian variation. It had onions, parsley, canned tuna and capers. He used pastry leaves from Tunisia, but of course this is not an option for most. I suggest phyllo leaves or spring roll wrappers.

The best part is the runny egg in the filling. Totally, wonderfully delicious.

[Wolfert]

I suspect that Jonathan had the mashed potato and egg filling that is popular on the island of lDjerba. It is a great alternative to the delicious and classic canned tuna, caper and egg filling

Eating a brik for the first time? Take the crispy triangle in either hand, and bite into the centre, at the same time try to keep the runny egg yolk from dribbling down your chin.

Edited May 15, 2005 by Wolfert (log)

[chefzadi]

This is my friend Anis's recipe. He is a Kabylie and Arab mix like me. But our personal cooking styles are a bit different. I grew up on very mild, delicate flavored food. It was not untill that I was a young man that I tried more highly spiced dishes and began to appreciate them. I swore at first I was eating some sort of Indian curry. I would say that Anis's cooking is a bit more robust than mine very delicious by the way.

I did not ask for the recipe from him, but my version of it here will yield the same results.

1/2 a medium onion finely chopped and sauteed

1 tablespoon or so of capers, rinsed and drained, left whole.

1 can of tuna packed in olive oil, drained and flaked

1 tablespoon or so of finely chopped flat leaf parsley

6 sheets of spring roll wrappers or 2 sheets of phyllo folded twice to form a square (he used Tunisian pastry as I have already mentioned.

Salt and pepper to taste

I didn't watch him make it. But my wife made it today and she has a little truc for breaking the egg into the wrapper without it running allover the place. She placed the folded phyllo in a soup bowl with sloping sides creating a, added the onion, tuna, caper, parsley mixture and broke the egg into the nest and seasone the egg very lightly with some salt. Voila egg mixture contained. She brushed the sides of the phyllo with a little egg, folded to form a triangle and fried the packets in hot olive oil.

The same method can be used for spring rolls (do not fold them like the phyllo leaves at the beginning).

The phyllo leaves absorb quite a bit of oil, this may not be suitbable for most tastes. Such a palate might prefer the spring roll wrappers. Also frying in olive oil might be too heavy for some, I suggest canola oil. Fry for about 2 minutes on each side in about 1/2' of hot oil (do not get the oil smoking hot, think shallow fry temperature not pan searing a steak temperature). The egg inside should be runny. Some prefer them a little firmer, like a loose custard.

I can eat three as part of meal with 2-3 other courses. Most people probably have one as a snack or starter.

Brik is available to the restaurant trade in the States but the version that I have seen is too heavy and nothing like the warka that I know. It is quite time consuming to make warka at home. But brik made with real warka has a phenomal texture and crispiness that is just not the same as phyllo or spring rolls.

[Wolfert]

Three? wow....

It's also delicious with some grated parmesan cheese in the mixture. I like it with a lemon wedge.

[chefzadi]

Yes, three. I am a bit of a curiosity to some (well alot ) regarding the amount of food I consume, especially since I am thin. I've never tried this dish with parmessan, but I'm sure it is a tasty addition. A squeeze of fresh lemon would be refreshing and certainly cut through the richness.

[Wolfert]

Now that the weather is nice, a great way to serve briks is out-of-doors on a terrace or in the garden. I set an electric frying pan on a long table for cooking and serving.

Though most people associate bricks with Tunisia, where they are extremely popular and sold on the streets and at the beach, they are also prepared in Morocco, especially in the Rif Mountains. This is why I included a recipe in my Moroccan cookbook.

The following formula is a popular in the city of Tunis:

The recipe makes four briks.

l tablespoon butter or olive oil

l small onion, finely chopped

4 oz tin oil packed tuna, drained and mashed

1 to 2 tablespoons chopped parsley

A few capers, drained and mashed

1-2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

4 Chinese spring roll skins or small warka or malsouqua leaves

4 medium or small eggs

l egg white, lightly beaten or flour and water paste

Oil for frying

Lemon wedges

[chefzadi]

Though most people associate bricks with Tunisia, where they are extremely popular and sold on the streets and at the beach, they are also prepared in Morocco, especially in the Rif Mountains. This is why I included a recipe in my Moroccan cookbook.

Thank you for posting the recipe.

I think that it's safe for me to say that when we speak of Algerian, Tunisian and Moroccan cuisine we are speaking of the larger Magrheb and dishes overlap considerably. The jump from Morocco and Tunisia can seem very contrasting. But if you take it regionally more than in terms of National boundaries the cooking of Tlemcen, Algeria will be more Moroccan than it will be like Setifienne and Annaba will be more Tunisian than it is like the cooking of Constantine. Than culturally if take a few Kabylies like myself, Anis and Chef Haouri well our cooking will be different but we share other things...

I have a package of Malsouka leaves from Anis and I will posting photos tomorrow.