10 authentic Moroccan dishes you need to try

bocconifood

Nov 4

Couscous

The Couscous grains are steamed tiny granules of wheat semolina.

The most common recipe is Couscous with vegetable stew and chicken or lamb. But there is also a sweet couscous made with "tfaya" (a sauce made of caramelized onions, raisins, honey, and cinnamon) and chicken.

It is usually accompanied by Leben (a sort of buttermilk) and shared with your loved ones every Friday.

Tajine

The Tajine gets its name from the clay dish in which it is cooked.

It's an everyday dish cooked slowly and eaten with traditional Moroccan bread "khubz". You must dip small pieces of the bread in the sauce "merqa" and eat it with your hands. No forks!

From the many sorts of tajines, you can find:

Tajine with lamb and prunes

Tajine with chicken, lemon, and olives

Tajine with vegetables

Tajine with tomatoes, eggs, and meatballs

Tajine with fish

Pastilla

Also called Bastilla, this typical Moroccan specialty is always served on special occasions such as weddings and receptions.

This sort of pie is made with a meat preparation and a thin and crispy "warqa" (the pastry dough).

There are 2 sorts of Pastilla: the chicken and almond Pastilla which is sweet, and savory, and the seafood Pastilla made with vermicelli and a variety of spices.

Rfissa

This delicious meal is made of pieces of "rghifa" (also called messmen) which is a flaky sort of crepe, covered by a chicken and lentil stew with ginger, coriander, onions, "ras-al-hanout" (a mix of Moroccan spices which translates to "the grocer's head"/"the grocery's head" because it's supposed to be the best spices that there are), and the secret to this dish's success is fenugreek.

Tanjia

Tanjia is a specialty of Marrakech.

It's made of veal meat marinated with cumin, turmeric, ginger, and ras-al-hanout, to which we add garlic, preserved lemons, and "smen"( slaty fermented butter).

The authentic way of preparing it would be to cook the mixture in the ashes of a wood fire from a local hammam in a Tanjia jar.

Khlii

It's a sun-dried marinated meat put in jars with fat.

Khlii was created in times of absence of refrigeration mode to preserve food.

Once you try adding it to your eggs with some cumin I can promise that you will never go back to regular ones.

Seffa Medfouna

"Seffa" means vermicelli and "medfouna" means buried in Arabic.

This incredible dish is made with sweet vermicelli and chicken buried under a dome of seffa.

The chicken is cooked in many spices such as turmeric, saffron, and cinnamon, while the seffa/vermicelli is steamed and mixed with a bit of butter when it is done. The Seffa Medfouna is then decorated with cinnamon, powdered sugar, and crunched almonds.

Zaalouk

Zaalouk is a smokey and savory tomato and eggplant salad/dip. It is amazing with homemade bread, and it tastes even better the day after it was made!

Harira

To keep you warm this winter you should absolutely try Harira.

It is typically eaten during Ramadan to break the fast. This traditional Moroccan soup is made with lamb, tomatoes, chickpeas, coriander, and a bunch of different spices, and vermicelli is optional depending on the recipe. Moroccan households all have their unique secrets to make the Harira that get passed on from generation to generation.