Murri Naqi Substitute

A substitute for murri naqi, the medieval Arabic fermented barley paste. Recipe courtesy of Duke Cariadoc of the Mists, mka David Friedman.

• Ready In: 4 hrs 20 mins
• Yields: 2 cups

Ingredients

• 3  tablespoons honey
• 1 1⁄2 ounces  bread or 1⁄3 cup  breadcrumbs
• 1  tablespoon flour
• 2⁄3 teaspoon anise seed
• 2⁄3 teaspoon fennel seed
• 2⁄3 teaspoon nigella seeds
• 1⁄4 teaspoon saffron
• 1⁄3 teaspoon celery seed
• 1⁄4 ounce carob powder (1 tbsp)
• 1⁄4 ounce walnuts, chopped fine
• 1 1⁄2 ounces quinces
• 1⁄2 cup salt
• 1  pint water
• 1⁄4  lemon, juice of

Directions

1. Cook the honey in a small frying pan on medium heat, bringing it to a boil then turning off the heat and repeating several times; it will taste scorched.
2. The bread is sliced white bread, toasted in a toaster to be somewhat blackened, then mashed in a mortar. Or, toast breadcrumbs in a dry skillet until very very dark brown.
3. Toast the anise, fennel and nigella in a frying pan or roast under a broiler, then grind in a mortar with celery seed and walnuts.
4. Peel and core quince.
5. Boil all ingredients except the lemon together for about 2 hours, then put it in a potato ricer, squeeze out the liquid and add lemon juice to it; this is the murri. The recipe generates about 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 cups of liquid. You can then add another 1/2 cup of water to the residue, simmer 1/2 hr -1 hr, and squeeze out that liquid for the second infusion, which yields about 1/3 cup. A third infusion using 1/3 cup of water yields another 1/4 cup or so.