Named for the ash that remains when the fire does its deepest work. Ceniza is the first culinary composition built specifically for vegetables, roots, and alliums cooked at the edge of or buried in the coals. Not a garnish to protein. Not a secondary application. A primary composition for whole vegetables that take fire seriously. Nothing in this category has addressed this cook with the same commitment.
The umami architecture in Ceniza comes from nutritional yeast rather than meat-derived glutamates. This is deliberate. Ceniza needs to function without protein as the context. Nutritional yeast delivers depth and savoriness that reads as richness without any animal reference. Toasted coriander seed, ground after toasting, carries citrus and floral notes that only emerge with dry heat. Most coriander in commercial rubs is pre-ground and stale. Ceniza uses the freshly cracked version because the volatile oils that make coriander interesting do not survive extended shelf exposure in ground form. The Urfa biber is the most distinctive ingredient in the line — a Turkish dried chile with a deep, dark, chocolate-adjacent quality, low slow-burning heat, and an almost winey finish. At the temperatures of coal-roasted vegetables it produces complexity no other pepper in the category can replicate. Black lemon, dried and ground, adds a fermented citrus note that is completely natural to open-fire vegetable cooking in the Middle Eastern tradition.
Ceniza is applied before the cook and designed to function at two extremes: direct flame for char, and buried coal cooking for roasting from the outside in. For whole onions, beets, and celeriac, coat in a thin layer of olive oil, apply Ceniza generously, and place directly in hot ash and coals. Turn every 15 minutes. The exterior will blacken — that is correct. The edible interior will be sweet, smoky, and deeply seasoned. For eggplant and peppers at direct flame, apply Ceniza after an initial char and allow the composition to bloom in the residual heat. For grilled mushrooms and asparagus, apply before cooking over moderate direct heat. Ceniza is not a finishing composition. It is applied before the heat and designed to develop throughout the cook.
- Whole onions buried in ash and coals
- Coal-roasted beets with yogurt
- Whole celeriac in the fire
- Charred eggplant for baba ghanoush
- King oyster mushrooms over direct flame
- Whole leeks collapsed and charred
Ceniza Coal-Roasted Whole Onions
Whole onions roasted in ash and coal are one of the oldest live fire preparations on record. The technique is simple. The result is not. Done correctly, the interior transforms into a concentrated, sweet, savory mass that has no equivalent in oven cooking.
Ingredients- 4 whole yellow onions, unpeeled, similar size
- 3 tablespoons Ceniza
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Labneh or thick Greek yogurt for serving
- Fresh herbs for finishing
- Let your fire burn down to a deep coal bed. You want glowing coals, not active flame. This takes approximately 45 minutes from ignition on a standard fire.
- Coat the exterior of each onion in olive oil and apply Ceniza generously to all surfaces of the skin.
- Place the onions directly into the coals. Bury them partially if possible. You want contact with the heat source on all sides.
- Roast for 45 minutes to 1 hour, turning every 15 minutes with tongs. The exterior skin will char completely. This is correct and expected.
- Remove when the onion yields completely to pressure at the equator. The interior should feel soft throughout.
- Rest 10 minutes. The skin will pull away cleanly. Discard the charred exterior layer.
- Serve the interior whole or halved over labneh. The liquid inside the onion is concentrated flavor. Do not discard it.
- Finish with fresh herbs and a drizzle of olive oil.
The char on the exterior skin is not a mistake. It is insulation. It creates a self-sealing environment that steams and roasts the interior simultaneously. Do not remove the skin during cooking.
