I call this esmatiyya after Esmat the cook in Chai and Charmcraft, since I can’t document this exact combination in a single historical source. But all of the individual pieces did exist, and if anyone would put different things together in a stunt-spectacular display it would be a royal cook! (Photo credit to Kadluba on Openverse for a bowl of soba with seaweed and tempura shrimp.)

The historic inspirations

The flying fried fish on skewers: In the introduction to The Exile’s Cookbook, which is a translation of ibn Razin al-Tujibi’s 13th century Andalusian cookbook, Daniel Newman describes “battered fried fish, aptly called ‘the protected’ (No. 290), which may well be the direct ancestor of the British classic fish dish – it is even eaten with vinegar!”

The hypothesis goes that when the Spanish Inquisition got underway, anyone of a different faith got out if they could, and many of the multicultural foods of the commingled Muslim, Jewish, and Christian communities from places like Cordoba were taken with those refugees to Spain’s rivals in England and other countries.

I’ve also seen it translated as “the armored” elsewhere, and the crisp battered coating does seem like a suit of armor. Eggplant also gets a similar battered treatment in the Andalusian cookbook, and the notion of tempura may have landed in Japan with the Portuguese a couple hundred years later. And skewers cut from coconut shells would make easier arches than straighter-grained woods.

Here’s that thirteenth-century recipe for the protected/armored fish: 

“Another dish, known as mughaffar: Take any good-quality fish you have available, scale it, and then wash with water and salt. Cut it open lengthwise and remove the bones. Next, beat the meat with eggs in a bowl, and add powdered darmak flour or grated breadcrumbs, as well as pepper, cinnamon, ginger, saffron, coriander seeds and macerated murrī. Coat the fish with this batter and fry in a pan with olive oil until golden brown. Then make a sauce for it by cooking vinegar, murrī and olive oil; pour it over the fish and serve. If you want to make a fish Burāniyya or muthallath, proceed in the same way as you would when using meat, and cook it in a casserole in the oven, as described above [, Allah the Exalted willing].” (Newman, The Exile’s Cookbook, recipe 290)

The swimming uncooked fish in the vinegared and greens-floating broth: Given the connections between sikbaj and modern ceviche, I couldn’t resist. When you add in zirbaj and mukhallal (“the vinegared”) variants on meat, poultry, fish, and vegetables, and the connections between the Persian and Levantine recipes Ziryab brought from Baghdad to Cordoba because of one of the most epic rap battles of actual history, everything about this except for the raw fish itself is pretty historically grounded. 

(Back in the days before refrigeration they had very good sanitation reasons for wanting their fish actually cooked, salted, or otherwise preserved!)

The modern (and low spoons) rendition

Basically, you’re looking for a bowl of sour broth with not-battered fish underneath arranged skewers of battered fish. The easiest ways I can think of for not-royal cooks to achieve that leans on grocery and restaurant provisions.

• Per person: In a 24-ounce bowl (donburi are convenient), combine 2 cups of hot fish or vegetable stock with your choice of 1-2 tsp seasoned rice vinegar or a good squeeze of lemon or lime juice. 
• Add some wilted spinach or wakame for “seaweed” in your fish’s ocean. If you like mint, tarragon, and/or fennel, mince and toss 1-2 Tbsp mixed herbs in too.
• Swimming fish: Your choice of sashimi-grade fish, smoked salmon lox, or canned sardines. (Swimming not-fish could be falafel, veggie kebabs, fried tofu, or vegetarian fish-substitutes.)
• Flying fried fish: On long skewers, arrange your choice of shrimp, fish, or vegetable tempura, battered cod, or (for vegetarians) falafel, hara bara kebab, or fried tofu pouches (which could be cut into fish shapes). Lay the long skewers across the top of each bowl or arrange a tripod of them.

If I were preparing all of this from scratch, I would do the broth first, then have the swimming fish marinading in the broth while frying up the battered fish or shrimp. Doing everything from scratch is outside my personal abilities now, but if anyone tries it, let me know!

Alterations for food sensitivities

Vegetarian/vegan: Fried tofu pouches, seitan, or some of the historic imitation fish paste recipes may work for you. (You could put veggie tempura on long skewers over swimming tofu pouches in a tasty veggie broth with a splash of rice vinegar! Or ochazuke, or miso soup…)

If vinegar is out, abghooreh/verjuice is unfermented sour grape juice – it won’t denature fish protein the way stronger acids do in ceviche, but if you start with lox or sardines in brine you don’t need the acid reaction.