Baked fish stuffed with walnuts and onion (Balıq lavangi)

1. Clean the carp (or another large white-fleshed fish) thoroughly, slit open the belly and gut it, rinse under cold water, pat dry with kitchen paper, then season inside and out with salt and pepper and drizzle with the juice of half a lemon.

2. Grate the onions or blitz them to a pulp in a food processor, then squeeze out most of the juice through a sieve – that way the filling won't be watery.

3. Grind the walnuts very finely and mix with the onion pulp and two-thirds of the pomegranate molasses (narsharab), then season with salt and pepper; you'll get a thick, tangy, fragrant paste.

4. Fill the belly cavity with most of the walnut filling and spread the rest over the skin; close the belly with toothpicks or kitchen string and score the sides of the fish 2-3 times.

5. Place the fish in an oiled roasting tin, drizzle the top with oil and bake in a 190 °C oven for 35-45 minutes (depending on size) until the skin is golden and the flesh comes away easily from the bones; baste with the pan juices halfway through.

6. Lift onto a platter, drizzle with the remaining pomegranate molasses, garnish with lemon wedges and serve with roast potatoes or a fresh salad.

Tip: Azerbaijani lavangi is a festive dish from the Lankaran region, originally made with Caspian kutum; it is traditionally also flavoured with sour plum paste (lavashana) – if you have some tkemali, stir a few spoonfuls into the filling.