Madfuna: Port Said's Burried Rice

Port Saidis enjoy many fish and seafood dishes. The variety ranges from denise (seabeam), bouri (grey mullet) and barbouni (goatfish), to gamberi (shrimps), kabouria (crabs) and calamari.

A popular way of cooking fresh fish is mashwy- baked whole fish in a clay oven. These ovens, called forn ballas, are unique to Port Said and its closest neighbor Damietta. They are large wood fired ovens located adjacent to the fish market area.

People buy fresh fish from the market and take it to the oven for seasoning and cooking. The whole fish, removing the insides, are rolled in wheat bran, and grilled in the oven. Depending on their size and type the fishmonger will place them next to the fire. 

Then they are spiced up with salt, cumin, and lemon, traditionally in a cardboard shoebox to take home and eaten alongside home cooked salads and rice. 

Fishermen prepared this delicious meal from the catch of the day of shrimps. Mostly done with shrimps, madfuna rice can also be relished with seafood, small fish or large fish sliced in pieces. For lack of elaborate kitchen equipment they put all the ingredients in one pot, starting with some onions and vegetables that they fry in oil, then they add the shrimps. 

Having only one pot to cook with, the fish catch would be ‘ buried’ fully covered by the rice. Hence the name of the dish. 

Once the shrimp acquires color and absorbs the sauce of the onions, then they add the rice, and some water and let it mix together on a slow fire.  

The star ingredient in this dish is what Port Saidis call sayadeyya - a deeply fried onions that are browned till it’s almost burnt. This burnt onion adds a rich flavor to many seafood dishes, and is often prepared and preserved in jars, whereby a couple of spoons are used for each dish.

Port Said is definitely a city for enjoying seafood, uncovering tasty recipes like the buried Madfuna rice!