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After a brief stop in the legendary city of Karbala, my trip through Iraq continued in Nasiriyah, a city in the southern part of the country.

There, we’d be having a traditional Mesopotamian fish dish called mahrotha at a restaurant run by Chef Ali Sido. It’s almost impossible to find in restaurants and is only usually made in people’s homes.

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Jafar (my guide from Bil Weekend), my friend Tasos, and I headed into the kitchen to watch him work. Fish is popular in southern Iraq because of the prevalence of water there.

Mahrotha is made from dried fish, tomato paste, fresh tomatoes, and spices. Its roots come from ancient Mesopotamia, and the fish can be found in the rivers and the marshes. He boils the dried fish, tears it into smaller pieces, and remove the bones. Then, he adds the tomatoes, tomato paste, and onions.

Chef Ali was a whiz with the knife. He chopped everything super fast! Then, he added oil and butter to a pot, chopped some fresh garlic, and added them and the onions to the pot. The aroma was incredible! Then, he added the fresh tomatoes and tomato paste. The ingredients are simple, but it will be full of flavor!

Next, he added turmeric, pepper, and salt before adding the final ingredient: the dried fish. It looked and smelled amazing! Finally, you add water to the pot and cover it for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, he had some rice cooking in a separate pot. He gave me some of the hakaka, or crispy rice from the bottom!

Then, Chef Ali jumped on the appetizer, which is small fish that are breaded and fried. I watched him gut and clean the fish before salting it, dredging it in a mix of water and spices, and breading them with flour. Then, they go into the frying pan!

They came out golden brown. He added rice, two zuri (fried fish), and fresh tomatoes, onion, and lemon to our plates. He fed me some of the zuri, which was really tasty! Then, he tore up some bread, and added the mahrotha and its broth on top!

Then, you eat it tashreeb-style. It was salty and tomato-rich, and I loved the texture of the soaked bread. I usually don’t love dried fish, but this dish was exceptional! It was my favorite dish of the trip so far!

It contained some bones, so be careful. I also liked eating the zuri with a bit of lemon and bread. It was so buttery and paired well with the rice and the pickles with dates and pomegranate! The masgouf was also excellent, but the mahrotha was on another level!

Then, we headed to the back to see the dried fish before it’s boiled. It dries for two weeks! Chef Ali was so kind and friendly. Then, we drove 40 minutes to the ancient city of Ur!

Ur was a Sumerian city-state in ancient Mesopotamia. It’s known for its ruins, especially the massive Zigurrat of Ur, which stands 66 feet tall and dates back to the 21st century BC, though it was rebuilt in the 6th century BC. It’s also a UNESCO World Heritage Site!

The Sumerians invented iconographic written language and Sumerian, the two oldest forms of writing in the world. The ziggurat was discovered in 1922. Parts have been renovated while others are the original bricks.

The patron deity of Ur was the Sumerian moon god, Nanna. I climbed to the top of the stairs leading to the top of the ziggurat. On a brick, I got to see some of the original first writings there! The ziggurat is so well preserved because it was covered in sand for thousands of years!

Next, we walked to a small temple with two rooms that once served as the entrance to a passage leading to the Temple of Nanna. We also saw a royal palace and there are royal tombs nearby!

Finally, we drove to the house of the prophet Abraham. There were lots of arched passageways and a room with shelves. From the roof, we could see the number of rooms!


Where have you been?

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About Me:

My name is David Hoffmann. Since starting David’s Been Here in 2008, I have traveled to over 1,300 destinations in 94 countries to experience and document unique cultures on my YouTube channel, travel blog, and social media.
 
I highlight culture and historical sites, but my passion is food! I love to experience and showcase the different flavors each destination has to offer, from casual street food to gourmet restaurant dining.

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