Yakhnit Samak bel Zafaran

• 2 onions, cut in half and sliced
• 4 tablespoons vegetable or olive oil
• 24 cloves garlic, crushed
• Juice of 23 lemons
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed saffron threads or powdered saffron
• Salt and white pepper
• 2 pounds skinned fish fillets or steaks

1. Fry the onions in 2 tablespoons of the oil till golden.
2. Add the garlic, and just as it begins to color, add the lemon juice, the saffron, a little salt, and about 1 cup water.
3. Simmer for 1015 minutes.
4. Fry the fish pieces very briefly in a skillet filmed with oil over high heat, turning them over once, until lightly colored but still uncooked inside.
5. Lift them out, drain on paper towels, and put them in the pan with the onion sauce.
6. Simmer, covered, over very low heat, so that the liquid barely trembles, until the fish is doneabout 3 to 5 minutes for fillets, up to 10 minutes for steaks.
7. For samak bi loomi, a version from the Gulf States, use 3 tablespoons ground dried limes (see page 44) instead of lemon, turmeric instead of saffron, plus 1 teaspoon crushed cardamom seeds.

onions, vegetable, garlic, lemons, saffron threads, salt, fish

Taken from www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/yakhnit-samak-bel-zafaran-373342 (may not work)