Cooking Like a Copycat (Dukkah)

DEBORAH CROMBIE: A few weeks ago, my daughter and I went to a very special event at a local restaurant, Lucia, in Dallas. The chef, David Uygur, was a finalist for the 2024 James Beard Award for Outstanding Chef, and the multi-course dinner was hosted by the James Beard Foundation. The food was every bit as fabulous as we'd read, the evening was memorable, but that is a whole other post. The point of today's musing is the gifts that Chef David sent home with the attendees.

Among them was a small bottle of Chef David's Pecan Dukkah. What on earth is dukkah, you are probably wondering! Dukkah is a Middle Eastern spice blend made with fragrant spices and toasted nuts. I discovered it a few years ago when Trader Joe's carried it temporarily, and I loved it, but then it disappeared and I hadn't come across it again until our dinner that night. Dukkah can be sprinkled on anything as a topping or seasoning, but it's most commonly used, along with olive oil, as a dip for bread.

And, oh my gosh, this dukkah was to die for!! (Sounds like a book title--Dukkah to Die For!) By the time I'd used up two-thirds of the little jar, it occurred to me that (since Chef David did NOT include his secret recipe) I ought to try to duplicate it while I still had some to use for comparison.

I started with a basic pecan dukkah recipe I found online, roughly:

3/4 cup pecans

1/2 cup almonds

2 tbs sesame seeds

1 tbs coriander seed, roughly ground in a mortar and pestle

1 tsp cumin seed, as above

1 tsp fennel seed, as above (actual recipe called for ground spices but I much prefer to grind the whole seeds myself)

1/2 tsp pepper

1/2 tsp salt

And nuts and seeds to a food processor and pulse until they form a coarse meal. Nothing bigger than the size of a pea, but not too much or mixture will turn into nut butter.

Turn nut mixture into dry skillet on medium-low heat for three or four minutes, stirring every few seconds. Turn heat to low and add spices. Stir for another three or four minutes until mixture is fragrant.

Well, hmm. That was perfectly acceptable, but it didn't have the color or the flavor of Chef David's. So I added:

Aleppo pepper (lovely stuff!)

Zatar

Smoked Maldon sea salt

Paprika, and a smidgen of smoked paprika

I can't give any amounts because it was a lot of adding and stirring and tasting. Finally, I added a tiny, tiny pinch of turmeric, mostly for the color, but you have to be careful as turmeric is bitter and very strong. I don't think I'd add next time.

Here's my finished batch in the skillet (after MUCH tasting.)

Here's Chef David's jar on the left and mine on the right.

And here is some of my dukkah on a plate with extra virgin olive oil and a piece of pan-loaf sourdough from my local bakery.

You just take the bread and mop, adding more dukkah or more olive oil as needed. I could quite literally make myself sick on this stuff--it is so addictive!

The final verdict on my copy cat attempt? 

Well, sigh, my dukkah is delicious, but not as good as Chef David's. 

Maybe this is because he's an award winning chef? But it was a game attempt, and I have some ideas for next time. (Use all pecans, no almonds, and toast them before adding to the food processor, for starters. And pre-toast the sesame seeds. Chef David's dukkah had a much toastier flavor and aroma.) 

So, dear Reds and readers, have you ever tried to copy a dish that you liked, just from taste? And how did it turn out?