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Mû Elamūtum (Elamite Broth)
Mû Elamūtum (Elamite Broth) is a reconstructed traditional Ancient Mesopotamian recipe for a stew from Elam (known originally as zukanda) that contains vegetables and dill in a sheeps blood and garlic base blended with sour milk. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic Ancient Mesopotamian version of: Elamite Broth (Mû Elamūtum).
prep time
20 minutes
cook time
40 minutes
Total Time:
60 minutes
Serves:
4
Rating: 
Tags : Vegetarian RecipesBread RecipesMilk RecipesMesopotamia Recipes
This is actually a foreign dish to the Babylonian scribes, originating in Elam in modern-day Iran with their use of dill, an ingredient that is not recorded elsewhere on the Yale tablet.
This is one of the oldest written recipe that I've ever seen or attempted. It's recorded on one of the Yale Mesopotamian Tablets. These represent records of humanity's oldest recipes and almost all the ingredients are fairly readily available today. Three of the four tablets in the collection date to the Old Babylonian period, no later than about 1730 BCE. The tablets all list recipes that include instructions on how to prepare them.
The first recipe I'm presenting is for Muu Elamutum (which is translated as 'Elamite Broth'; a dish originating in Elam, which lies in modern-day Iran. In this recipe both fat and blood are called for, which almost certainly came from with fat-failed sheep, a breed that is still common in Arabia and North Africa. The fat from these animals' tails is prized even today, as it tends to be less greasy than most other animal fat. I was really lucky when I prepared this to be living in South Africa, where fat-tailed sheep are raised for the local and the Arabic markets.
Note that the
kurrat referred to in the recipe is Egyptian leek or salad leek (
Allium porrum var. aegyptiacum) this variety has small bulbs, and primarily the leaves are eaten. Substitute baby or salad leeks.
The original name of this dish appears to have been 'zukanda' but as a 'foreign dish' it was known from its place of origin.
Original Recipe
Here is the text transliterated to the Roman alphabet:
mu-u
2 e-la-mu-tum ši-rum u
2-ul iz-za-az me-e tu-ka-an li-pi-a ta-na-ad-di ši-bi
3-tum ZA.HA.TIN
sar ŠE.LU
2sar kar
3-šum ha-za-nu-um da-mu i-ma-al-la me-eh-rum ki-si
2-im-mu u
3ha-za-nu-um zu-ka-an-da šu-um-šu mû elamūtum šīrum ul izzaz mê tukân lipia tanaddi šibittum šuhutinnū kiṣibirrum karšum hazannum damu imalla mehrum kisimmu u hazannum zukanda šumšu.
In translation:
Elamite broth. Meat is not used Meat is not used. You prepare water. You add fat. Dill, kurrat, coriander, leek, and garlic bound with blood, a corresponding amount of sour milk, and (more) garlic. The (original) name (of this dish) is Zukanda.
Modern Redaction
Ingredients:
4 tbsp rendered lamb fat
250g kurrat (baby leeks), minced
4 Persian shallots, minced
1/2 head garlic, peeled and chopped
120ml sheep's blood
120ml water
120ml sour milk (or yoghurt) [sheep would be best]
15g dill, finely minced
1 bunch coriander, finely chopped (stems and leaves)
4 baby leeks, finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
Method:
Pound the 1/2 head garlic cloves in a mortar to a paste. Add the blood and pound again until thoroughly combined. Set aside until needed.
Melt the lamb fat in a stew pan over medium heat. Add the baby leeks and Persian shallots and fry for about 5 minutes until softened.
Add in the water then blend in the garlic and blood mixture along with the dill and coriander. Stir to combine, bring to a simmer then add the leeks and sour milk. Stir well to combine, bring to a simmer and cook gently for 30 minutes, or until all the ingredients are soft and the stew has thickened to your liking.
Stir in the 4 chopped garlic cloves and serve.
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