 | |
| Alternative names | Amba sauce |
|---|---|
| Type | |
| Place of origin | |
| Region or state |
|
| Created by | Sassoon family |
| Main ingredients | Mango pickle |
| Variations | South Asian pickle |
| Similar dishes | Chutney |
Amba oranba (Arabic:عنبة[a],Hebrew:עמבה[b]) is a tangycondiment made withmango pickle. Popularised byIraqi Jewish[3] merchants inBombay who brought it back toBaghdad upon their return, Amba bears a resemblance tochutneys fromSouth Asia. The spicy, sweet and sour sauce is typically made ofpickled greenmangoes,vinegar,salt,turmeric,chilies, andfenugreek.[4] It is enjoyed in variousMiddle Eastern countries, as well as in Europe and the United States.[2]
Mangoes being native toSouth Asia, the name "amba" seems to have been borrowed, via Arabic, from theMarathi wordāmbā (आंबा),[5] which is in turn derived from theSanskrit wordāmra (आम्र, "mango").[6]
The origins of amba, which resembles the variety ofSouth Asian pickle known asaam ka achar, can possibly be traced to savoury mangochutneys. During the 19th-century,Jewish merchants from Baghdad, Iraq, began to relocate to the southern port city ofBasra, from where they began conducting trade withSouth Asia. These merchants exported such local commodities asdates andArabian horses, while at the same time importing various spices and fabrics fromIndia. Eventually, some of these traders began to settle in the Indian cities ofBombay,Pune, andCalcutta.[2] According to the legend, amba was developed by members of one such family—the Sassoons of Bombay, who shipped the mangoes to Basra in barrels ofvinegar.[2][3] In the days before refrigeration,pickling was widely employed as a proven method for preservation of perishables such as vegetables and fruits.[2]
From Basra, the mangoes made their way to Baghdad's Jewish market—known as Souk Hennouni—and the neighbouringShorja marketplace.[2] Souk Hennouni's Abu El Saad Street vendors would transfer the product from these barrels into smaller ones, where it would then be diluted with a spice mix.[7] In its simplest form, amba as asandwich was the ideal Iraqistreet food.[2] A serving of amba in a hotsamoon was a satisfying portion.[7] In an article titled "Talking about the food of amba and samoon",Khalid Kishtainy, a columnist atAsharq Al-Awsat, reminisced that in the Baghdad of his youth, school children would rush out of school to get samoon with amba from the street vendor, who, if generous, would add a little more amba. The condiment is now frequently used inIraqi cuisine, especially as a spicy sauce to be added to fish dishes,falafel,kubbah,kebabs, and eggs.[2]
There are different configurations of amba, depending upon the region. The standard list of ingredients consists ofpickled green mangoes, vinegar,salt,turmeric,chilies, andfenugreek. The Indian variety uses some of these, along withmustard seed. The Iraqi version typically adds a combination of boiledturnips, carrots, and potatoes to the mix, along with peaches,zucchini,okra, other-than-green peppers,coriander seed andcurry powder. This gives the sauce a chunkier texture, instead of the smoother consistency of other combinations. Commercially-produced amba of the chunky variety is usually packed in wide-mouthed glass bottles, which allows the product to be dispensed easily, while thinner versions can be pouched. The Ship brand is preferred by many connoisseurs of 19th and 20th-century Iraqi-style amba.[2]
In addition to its places of origin in India and Iraq, amba is popular in the western part of theArabian Peninsula, where it is sold in sealed jars or by the kilo. It is eaten with bread as part ofnawashef (a mixed platter of small plates containing different types ofcheese,egg dishes,pickles,ful mudammas,falafel,mutabbag,offal) and rice[1] type meals at breakfast or dinner in theHejaz.
Amba was brought toIsrael byIraqi Jewish immigrants in the 1950s, who used it as an accompaniment to theirShabbat morning meal.[8] It has since become very popular in Israel[1] andPalestine.[8][9] The condiment is found inSephardi cuisine andMizrahi cuisine. Now one of the most common condiments in Israel, it is used in sandwiches and as a topping forhummus and other mezzes. It is often served as a dressing onshawarma sandwiches,falafels,[10] and usually onsabikh[11] and as an optional topping onmeorav yerushalmi,[12]kebab and salads. Other Iraqi emigrants—such asAssyrians and Chaldeans—brought the condiment with them to their newcommunities in the United States andother places, so that amba is now known to a much wider audience than its original one.[2]
In his memoirBaghdad YesterdaySasson Somekh dedicates an entire chapter to amba and the impression it left on him as a youth.[2] He uses amba to tell the story of the Iraqi Jewish community that had satellite communities in India andSoutheast Asia. In the same chapter, Somekh references another Iraqi, who wrote a short story about amba (Abd al-Malik Noori, "It happened on a Friday").[13]
[On this street there were also three pickled mango stores, what is now known as 'amba'. The mango would arrive in large barrels from India. The proprietors transferred the mango into smaller barrels, and dilute and mix it with various spices ... In a hot pita or samoon—a roll overflowing with amba—it was enough to satiate.]
