Moroccan Harira is a perfect soup to warm you up during cold days. To us, it brings back memories of our travels in this beautiful country. Prepared by every mum and grandma in Morocco with their own recipe, it’s one of the most popular dishes served during fasting month of Ramadan. Perfectly composed spices and fresh herbs make Harira to one of the best comfort soups in the world. Enjoy!
INGREDIENS:
- 500 g lamb chops or beef, diced
- 1 big onion, finely chopped
- 400 g diced tomatoes (1 tin)
- 400 g canned chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 400 g green lentils
- 3 celery stalks, finely chopped
- 2 big carrots, cut into cubes
- 0.5 l vegetable stock
- 3 tbsp tomato paste
- few dates
SEASONINGS AND HERBS:
- bunch of fresh cilantro, finely chopped
- bunch of fresh parsley, finely chopped
- salt
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp ground turmeric
- 1 tsp coriander seeds, crushed
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- pinch of saffron
- pinch of black pepper
- pinch of ground ginger
- 1/2 tsp of harissa paste or a pinch of chilli flakes
- juice of 1 lemon
- olive oil
PREPARATION:
- Heat up olive oil in a deep, thick-bottomed pot and fry the meat on each side.
- Add diced onion and celery and fry together for a while.
- Add the spices: crushed coriander seeds, turmeric, cumin, cinnamon and ginger. Stir in harisa or chilli flakes together with saffron. Keep on a medium flame for a few minutes.
- Pour in vegetable stock, add chickpeas and leave to simmer gently for 20 minutes.
- Add green lentils, carrots and tomatoes together with tomato paste. Take a half of chopped cilantro and a half of parsley, add to the pot.
- Cook for 20 minutes stiring from time to time.
- Season with salt and fresh pepper, add the lemon juice.
- Serve with fresh cilantro, parsley and chopped dates.
