The naptanu is the palace meal of Nineveh: not a fixed order of starter-main-dessert, but a large table where barley breads, meat broths simmered in great cauldrons, dates and figs are set out together, all washed down with beer and wine. The king, his dignitaries and scribes eat together; the broths (tu'u, me-e) are the heart, accompanied by flatbreads for dipping, while the sweetness of dates closes the banquet and also serves as an offering to the gods.

Siqqu is the Mesopotamian fermented sauce — a salty, powerful condiment made from fish or locusts macerated in brine, the distant ancestor of garum, which gave Assyrian broths their umami depth. On the opposite end, date syrup (dišpu) provided sweetness in a cuisine without cane or beet. Fermented salt on one side, sweetness of the palm groves on the other: these are the two poles of taste at Ashurbanipal's table.