Moroccan Food

Most Moroccan tomato sauces are zesty, but in Chicken Tagine with Tomatoes and Honey the sauce is sweetly flavored with saffron, cinnamon and honey. It may sound like an unusual combination, but it's surprisingly savory and satisfying.

Although the majority of tagines are eaten with Moroccan bread for scooping everything up, this particular dish could work well as an entree served with a fork, either alone or on a bed of rice.

Photo © Christine Benlafquih

If you're used to frying your calamari, you'll be pleasantly surprised how quick, easy and delicious it is to grill it instead. In this Moroccan Grilled Calamari Recipe, the squid is cut into thin strips and marinated in lemon juice, oil, garlic, salt and pepper. A quick few minutes over hot coals is all that's needed to cook the calamari to an appealing tender state. Serve it alongside other grilled seafood and fish, or make it your main course and offer a salad and dip-like Split Pea Bessara on the side.

Photo © Christine Benlafquih

Next time you plan to fire up your backyard grill, consider adding Grilled Salted Shrimp to your menu. Incredibly easy to make, the shrimp are simply crusted with coarse salt before they're placed over the coals. Once cooked, which only takes a few minutes, serve them in the shell to be peeled and eaten as a finger food. Feel free to add a dipping sauce if you like, but when we enjoyed them recently in the Mediterranean town of M'diq, the salt on the shell was truly the only condiment needed.

Photo © Christine Benlafquih

Both fruits in the photos are known as mzah in Morocco. The top image shows loquats, a spring fruit which is available in Morocco now. Although I can find nicer images, I used this photo because it realistically shows blemishes due to the fruit's tendency to bruise easily. I'm not sure if loquats purchased in American or European supermarkets are sold with such imperfections, but here in Morocco it appears that loquats are not handled with more care than other fruit.

The other image shows medlar fruit, which is a bit unusual on several counts. First, it reaches peak season in winter months. Second, it's interesting to note that medlars are considered to be "ripe" only after bletting, or spoiling a bit. This changes their appearance to being drier with a somewhat wrinkled skin. Not only is the bletted fruit edible, but the leaves and bark of the stems are used in traditional medicine.

You can read more on the fruits in my Glossary Listing for Mzah.

_{Top Photo © Christine Benlafquih}

_{Bottom Photo © Solopist, Wikimedia Commons}

In this Moroccan Carrot and Orange Salad, the classic pairing of carrots and oranges gets a flavor boost with a little bit of orange flower water. It's one of my family's favorite sides, and I always double or even triple the recipe since we like generous helpings.

Serve it as a refreshing follow-up to spicier main courses, or use it as a starter for almost any meal, such as Lamb Tagine with Dates or Chicken with Preserved Lemon and Olives.

Photo © Christine Benlafquih

While plain harcha is usually served with butter, honey, jam or cheese, the stuffed version of the semolina pan-fried flat bread shown here needs no topping, as gets its flavor from a savory filling. Don't be fooled into thinking it's time-consuming to make, however, as the Harcha with Onions, Herbs, Olives and Cheese Recipe is actually fairly quick and easy to throw together, and could even be considered for unexpected company. You can, of course, make some in advance to have in the freezer. In that case, simply reheat the harcha in a preheated oven until hot.

Photo © Christine Benlafquih

In Casablanca, we call these little ring-shaped beignets khringos, but in some parts of Morocco they're known as churros, a direct reference to the origin of the dough used to make them. Churros, as many readers may know, are Spanish fritters made by piping lengths of choux-like dough directly into hot oil; the dough is fried like doughnuts and then dusted with sugar to sweeten it. It appears that Moroccans have personalized their own version of churros by shaping the dough into tiny rings. Although it is far more common in Morocco to buy khringos as a street food rather than make them at home, you might want to try doing so. My Khringos Recipe explains how.

It's worth noting that in some areas of Morocco, the word khringo may also refer to a yeast-leavened semolina pancake which is more widely known as beghrir. According to this web site, it's possible that the use of the word khringo in this way may be a deviation from the Arabic word mkhrrague, which means "drilled full of holes," in reference to the unique appearance of the pancakes. Although beghrir are traditionally cooked on only one side, the khringo version calls for briefly cooking on the second side as well.

Photo © Christine Benlafquih

If split pea soup is a favorite of yours, this version of Moroccan Split Pea Bessara won't disappoint. It gets its flavor from broth of your choice - beef, chicken or vegetable - as well as hearty additions of paprika, cumin, onion, garlic and herbs. Serve it as a soup, or allow the liquids to reduce to yield a puree with thick-enough consistency that it can be offered as a dip. The latter is how my family it enjoyed it last week as a side to fried seafood and fish.

Photo © Christine Benlafquih

Almost everything tastes good in a zesty Moroccan tomato sauce, and fava beans prepared this way are an ideal dish to present at a vegetarian meal. Although normally served as a side, you may be tempted to double the Fava Beans in Tomato Sauce Recipe and make it your entree.

You'll need lots of fresh, ripe tomatoes if doubling the recipe, but there's no need to go to the trouble of peeling the fava beans. In many Moroccan fava bean dishes, the skins are left on and those who don't like them simply remove the skins at the table.

Serve with Moroccan bread for soaking up the delicious sauce.

Photo © Christine Benlafquih

Try this classic Moroccan Baked Fish Tagine Recipe when looking for an appealing one-dish supper for family or guests. Whole fish is marinated in spicy chermoula, and then layered with carrots, potatoes and tomatoes. Green pepper rings, lemon slices and a chili pepper or two top the dish.

The photo here shows the fish ready to go into the oven. A reader once asked if using so many lemon slices turns the dish bitter. I don't find that to be the case at all, but you can always adjust the amount of lemon or omit the lemon garnish altogether.

Plan to serve Baked Fish Tagine as the Moroccans do - directly from the baking dish with Moroccan bread for scooping everything up.

Photo © Christine Benlafquih