Azerbaijan: Baliq Shashlik - Baku Fish Kebabs

Although a landlocked country, Azerbaijan has a coastline of 713km with the Caspian Sea, the world's largest inland body of water. Some consider the Caspian Sea to be the world's largest lake, while others figure it's a sea in its entirety, although it does not meet the ocean.

Sturgeon is fished from the Caspian Sea and is regarded as the classic, or most typical fish for Azerbaijani dishes. I'm not sure where to source sturgeon and I have no desire to return to Billingsgate Market for a while yet, so while sturgeon may be traditional, I used salmon in this dish instead. Salmon is also found in the Caspian Sea so I don't feel like I was going too off-book with this one. 

I followed the recipe incorrectly and cut my salmon into chunks rather than leaving it as a longer fillet, but I think it still turned out nicely, so I would probably repeat this next time.  The fish is briefly marinated in lemon juice and dill, before being threaded onto skewers and grilled. One thing I definitely need to get better at is my timings. I thought I would be clever and get my salmon under the grill before even starting the prep on my other Azerbaijani dishes, and obviously this meant that my salmon dried up a little bit before being served. Nevertheless, I still think it tasted pretty bloody brilliant and I will certainly be attempting this recipe again! 

This recipe is adapted from Taste of Persia: A Cook's Travels Through Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Iran, and Kurdistan by Naomi Duguid. 

Baliq Shaslik - Fish Kebabs

Serves 2

Ingredients

• 250g fish fillets - sturgeon is typical but any other rich fish such as salmon or cod work too
• The juice of 1 lemon
• 1 tablespoon fresh dill, finely chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons sunflower or olive oil
• 1 medium red onion, finely sliced
• 1 medium tomato, sliced (optional - I excluded it)
• 2 spring onions, finely chopped (optional)
• 2 teaspoons ground sumac, or to taste (optional)

Instructions

1. Cut the fillets into cubes about 1 inch by 1 inch and place into a bowl. Add the lemon juice, dill and half the salt and mix gently to coat the fish. Add the oil and mix again. Set aside to marinate for 30 minutes - 1 hour. 
2. Preheat a charcoal or gas grill to medium hot and place a rack above 5 inches above the coals or flame (or 5 inches below the grill in your oven).
3. Thread the fish onto skewers, ensuring the skin side of all the pieces is facing the same way. Place the skews skin-side down on the rack and grill for 10 minutes. Turn the fish over and grill until just cooked, another 4 minutes or so. 
4. Cover a platter with the sliced onions and tomatoes, if using. Slide the fish off the skewers and onto the platter. Sprinkle with the remaining salt, spring onions, and sumac if using.