Sumac
Sumac is a tart, deep red spice ground from dried sumac berries, a signature sour note in Middle Eastern and Mediterranean cooking used in place of lemon when a dry tang is wanted.
How to buy
Look for a deep brick-red to burgundy color; a dull, brownish tone suggests an old or lower-quality batch. Buy from a source with regular turnover since it's a ground dried fruit, and always buy culinary sumac from food retailers, not ornamental sumac species grown as landscaping plants.
How to store
Keep it airtight, away from light and heat, in the pantry. It holds decent potency for about a year, though its tartness fades gradually over time as it sits.
Culinary profile
- Flavor
- Bright, lemony, and tart without any of citrus's wetness, adding acidity to a dish without liquid. It carries a faint fruitiness and a slight astringency alongside its sourness.
- Texture
- A coarse, slightly oily reddish-purple powder or flake that doesn't fully dissolve, leaving a pleasant light grit in whatever it's sprinkled on.
- Aroma
- A tangy, faintly fruity aroma reminiscent of dried berries and citrus zest.
How to prepare
- Sprinkled as a finisher — Dusted over hummus, salads, and grilled meats just before serving for a pop of tartness.
- Mixed into za'atar — Combined with thyme, toasted sesame, and salt as a core component of that blend.
- Rubbed onto meat or fish — Used dry before grilling for both tartness and a reddish color on the surface.
- Steeped into a sour marinade — Soaked briefly in water to extract its tang for use in marinades and dressings.
Classic dishes
Mediterranean
- Mediterranean grain salad with sumac dressing — A grain salad dressed with olive oil, lemon, and sumac for a tangy, herbal finish.
Greek
- Grilled fish with sumac — Grilled fish finished with a squeeze of lemon and a dusting of sumac for extra brightness.
Middle Eastern
- Fattoush — A bread salad dressed with sumac and lemon for a bright, tangy finish.
- Musakhan — Roasted chicken served over sumac-cooked onions and flatbread.
- Hummus with sumac garnish — Pureed chickpeas finished with a dusting of sumac and a drizzle of olive oil.
- Shawarma — Spit-roasted meat sometimes seasoned or garnished with sumac for extra tang.
- Za'atar spice blend — A thyme, sesame, and sumac blend where sumac supplies the signature sourness.
- Sumac onions — Thinly sliced onions tossed with sumac, served alongside grilled kebabs.
- Baba ganoush with sumac garnish — Smoky roasted eggplant dip finished with a sprinkle of sumac.
- Lahmacun — A thin, minced-meat flatbread often finished with sumac and fresh herbs.
- Manakish — A flatbread sometimes topped with a sumac and herb mixture before baking.
- Tabbouleh — A parsley and bulgur salad occasionally finished with a touch of sumac for extra tartness.
- Kofta with sumac onion salad — Grilled spiced meat skewers served with a sharp sumac-dressed onion salad.
- Sumac roasted chicken — A whole chicken rubbed with sumac and spices before roasting for a tangy crust.
- Sumac roasted vegetables — Root vegetables tossed with olive oil and sumac before roasting.
- Labneh with sumac — Strained yogurt drizzled with olive oil and dusted with sumac as a breakfast spread.
- Muhammara — A roasted red pepper and walnut dip often finished with a touch of sumac.
Substitutions
- Lemon — Lemon zest approximates some of sumac's tartness and color, though it lacks sumac's dried-fruit depth and won't hold up as well sprinkled dry.