Sayadieh (Lebanese Fish & Rice) is a traditional Middle Eastern Dish made up of spiced rice, caramelised onions, seasoned white fish and toasted almond flakes. It’s a simple yet hearty main that is absolutely loaded with rich and aromatic flavors!

How to Make It

This recipe best breaks down into three main steps:

1. Caramelize the onions (about 50-60 minutes).
2. Make the sayadieh rice (about 20 minutes).
3. Fry the fish (10-15 minutes).

Caramelized Onions Tips

• Choose a wide pan or skillet – something with a lot of surface area. The more space the onions have the faster the water will evaporate and the quicker they’ll brown.
• Use yellow, white or red onion – whatever you have will work.
• Cook low and slow (mostly) – Start off on a medium heat to get things moving, the reduce and cook on low for the majority of the cook time. Too hot and the onions will burn. Towards the end of the cook time you can crank up the heat for a final chance to add some char.

The Rice

• Rinse the rice: Make sure to wash the rice before cooking to remove the excess starch. Too much residual starch will result in sticky rice.
• Rest rice with the lid after cooking: Remove from the burner and rest the rice while you fry the fish. This will ensure the rice is fully cooked through and the final steam absorbs into the rice.

The Fish

• Prep fish while rice cooks: Coat the fish in the flour and spice mixture while the rice cooks so it’s ready to fry as the rice rests.
• Use a non-stick pan for frying: Cod can be quite delicate and flaky so I recommend you use a non-stick pan or a well seasoned skillet to fry the fish to prevent the batter from sticking to the pan.
• Heat the oil: Make sure to fully heat the oil before adding the fish to ensure the outside forms a nice, golden crust. If it’s not hot enough, the coating won’t crisp up properly.

Toppings & Serving Suggestions

• Toasted Pine Nuts or Almonds: If you don’t have pre-toasted nuts on hand, you can toast them in a dry pan over a medium-low heat for a few minutes. Shake/stir the pan every so often and don’t walk away until they’re done.
• Herbs: Stir in a handful of fresh parsley and cilantro over the top of the rice to bright and freshen things up.
• Lemon Juice: Lemon and fish go hand in hand! Serve with a few lemon slices on the side to squeeze over individual servings.

Enjoy!

Let me know if you try this Sayadieh recipe! Leave a comment and review with your thoughts. I always appreciate the feedback and serving suggestions that you come up with!

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Recipe

Sayadieh (Lebanese Fish with Spiced Rice)

Yield: 6 servings Prep Time: 15 minutes Cook Time: 1 hour 30 minutes Total Time: 1 hour 45 minutes

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Seasoned rice and caramelized onions, topped with flaky, pan-fried cod and toasted almond flakes 

Ingredients

• 4 tbsp olive oil, divided
• 3 onions, thinly sliced (yellow, brown, white)
• 2 cups dry white basmati rice, rinse excess starch (400g)
• 1 tsp 7-spice/ baharat seasoning
• 2 tsp cumin, divided
• 1 tsp turmeric powder, dived
• 2 salt, divided
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 3 cups of water (720ml)
• 1/2 cup gluten free all purpose flour (70g)
• 1.5 lb boneless, skinless cod fish filets (or about 6-8 filets)
• 1/4 cup toasted almonds or pine nuts (25g)
• 1/4 cup fresh parsley or cilantro, optional
• Lemon slices, optional

Need help converting to weights? Check out my cups to grams Conversion Guide.

Instructions

Onions & Rice

1. Heat 2 tbsp oil in a large skillet over a medium heat. Add the sliced onions and sauté about 5 minutes to soften. Reduce to a medium-low heat and stir in 1/2 tsp salt. Continue to cook another 50-60 minutes, stirring often, until onions are a deep, golden brown color.
2. While the onions are cooking, add the rice spices to a small bowl and set aside: 1 tsp 7-spice, 1 tsp cumin, 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp pepper and ½ tsp turmeric.
3. When the onions are fully caramelized, add the rice and spice mixture to the pan. Stir together and cook 1-2 minutes over a medium-high heat. Add the water and bring to a rolling boil. Once boiling cover with a fitted lid and reduce down to a low heat. Let cook about 15-20 minutes until the rice has absorbed all the water. Leave the lid on, but move the pot off the burner and let rest about 10-15 minutes.

Fish & Assembly

1. In a shallow bowl or plate, combine the flour and remaining spices: 1/2 cup flour, 1 tsp cumin, 1/2 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp turmeric.
2. Dip each cod piece in the flour mixture, coating all sides.
3. Add the remaining 2 tbsp oil to a frying pan. When the oil is hot and simmering, add a few pieces of fish to the pan and cook each side about 2-3 minutes or until cooked through (internal temp at least 145°F/63°C) and the coating a golden color. Remove from the pan and set aside on a plate. Repeat with the remaining fish until everything has been fried.
4. Assemble: Spread the rice across a large serving platter (or leave in the pot). Add the fried fish to the bed of rice and top with toasted almonds and fresh herbs. Serve with lemon slices on the side and enjoy.

Notes

• Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge 2-3 days.
• You will need 2 pans: 1 to caramelize onions and rice and 1 pan to fry the fish.

Onion Notes

• After about 50 minutes, if the onions aren't dark enough, turn the heat up and stay near by to keep stirring. Time may vary depending on how big your onions are and how hot your stove runs.
• Start cooking the onions before your prep the remaining ingredients - they need about an hour to cook so it will give you plenty of time to prepare everything while they cook.

Nutrition Information

Yield: 6 Calories: 475Total Fat: 13gSaturated Fat: 2gCarbohydrates: 61gFiber: 1gSugar: 3gProtein: 22g

This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.

© A Saucy Kitchen, Sarah Nevins

Course: Mains Cuisine: Middle Eastern