chermoula

noun

cher·​mou·​la chər-ˈmü-lə 

plural chermoulas

: a savory North African sauce or marinade typically made with finely chopped parsley and cilantro, minced garlic, olive oil, lemon juice, spices (such as cumin and paprika) and hot peppers

Chermoula is often used with fish, either as a marinade or as a flavor enhancer in fish soups.

—Elisabeth Lambert Ortiz

… a whole oxtail … smeared with coarse chermoula and served with pickled shallots …

—Bill Addison

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from French, borrowed from North African Arabic šarmūla, borrowed from an Ibero-Romance word akin to Spanish salmuera "brine for pickling," Portuguese salmoura, going back to Late Latin salimuria, salimoria, from Latin sal-, sāl "salt" + -i- -i- + muria "brine for pickling" — more at salt entry 1

Note: Late Latin salimuria may have been formed on the model of Greek halmyrís "salty substance," if it was taken as a compound of háls "salt" and an element -myris. However, halmyrís is more likely formed from the adjective halmyrós "salty, briny, brackish," apparently a derivative of hálmē "seawater, brine," a suffixal derivative of háls "salt"—hence there is no etymological connection between this word and Latin muria.

First Known Use

1974, in the meaning defined above