Contrasts of flavor, color and texture are an integral part of Sephardic gastronomic tradition – of others, too, of course, though by no means all (where I live, the food is mostly mushy, bland and tending toward weirdness), and to varying degrees among them. One of our signatures is a sour sauce, agrestada, or agristada (from the Spanish root word agrio: sour).

Agrestada is an egg and lemon mixture that’s either blended right into a hot dish as a finishing touch, exactly as the Greeks do avgolemono (which means egg-lemon), or cooked separately to yield a luscious lemon mayonnaise. The light note – and that’s all it is supposed to be – of sourness, of piquancy, wakes up the taste buds with a pleasant, lemony tingle, not a shock.  It’s intended for specific dishes, to bring out the flavors it accompanies, not to compete with them, to create a ‘whole’ experience; a gastronomic yin and yang. Which means the lemon flavor should be easy to discern, but it shouldn’t twist up the mouth like a fistful of Sweet Tarts, or whack you – or the food it’s eaten with – senseless. For that we’ve got an annual bitter herb ritual at Passover, although in truth, the Sephardic version of ‘bitter’ herbs is no more dramatic than a piece of romaine lettuce. We say hold the horseradish. This is not to imply our food is bland. Hardly! It just tastes best when approached with a lighter hand. And yes, that is my very biased opinion. And that of my entire, rather large, Sephardic family.

Understanding this sensibility before you begin will make your work a lot easier and help you get the balance ‘just right’.  For one food you’ll want a more intense lemon presence but for another you can lighten up.  There’s no hard and fast rule, just that sensibility.

Try this agrestada and adjust it to suit your taste – within reason ;)   The low oil content makes it much lighter than raw mayonnaise, though with a similar enough texture. Try agrestada with strong-flavored vegetables – braised artichokes, fried cauliflower, broccoli (if you must) – grilled or fried fish, or keftes (ground meat patties or meatballs).

Ingredients

1 ½ Tbs. flour
2 Tbs. olive oil
2 eggs + 1 egg yolk (optional, makes a richer sauce)
fresh squeezed lemon juice, from ½ to one whole lemon
pinch of salt
1 c. warm water

Directions

Beat the eggs and yolk very well in a small bowl and blend with the lemon juice and a generous pinch of salt.   Set aside.

Heat the oil over medium heat in a small, heavy saucepan. Stir in the flour and blend well. Cook the flour briefly, but don’t let it brown; when the mixture begins to bubble, immediately remove it from the heat source.  Using brisk strokes, blend in the egg and lemon mixture. Add the water in a slow stream, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon or a wire whisk to keep lumps from forming.

Cook the sauce over medium-low heat, stirring constantly until it thickens enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon.  Remove from the heat and pour into a bowl to serve.  The sauce will continue to thicken off heat.  NOTE:  If your sauce curdles: beat an egg yolk in a separate bowl; pour the curdled sauce gradually into the egg yolk, stirring constantly until thoroughly blended.

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