The Moroccan dish known as tkalia or douara makes use of variety meat such as the stomach, spleen, lungs and intestines. It is commonly prepared after a home slaughter of a sheep or goat, particularly at the time of Eid Al-Adha, or Eid Al-Kabir.
The dish isn't difficult to make, but the stomach and intestines are time-consuming to clean and need long stewing to become tender. The cooking time below is for a pressure cooker, which is a popular method of preparation. Longer time will be needed if stewing the tripe and other innards conventionally.
The prep time assumes that the offal have already been cleaned and are ready to cook. You may want to keep your kitchen well-ventilated, as the cooking odors from this dish can be quite pungent.
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour, 30 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour, 45 minutes
Yield: Serves 6 as a main dish
Ingredients:
- 1 stomach, cut into 2-inch pieces
- intestines, cut into 1-inch pieces
- 1 spleen, cut into 1-inch pieces (optional)
- 1 lung, cut into 1-inch pieces (optional)
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 3 or 4 cloves of garlic, chopped very fine
- 1 tablespoon paprika
- 1 tablespoon cumin
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ginger
- 2 teaspoons salt, or to taste
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
- 3 tablespoons chopped fresh coriander
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil
- 1 preserved lemon, quartered and seeds removed
- large handful of red olives
Preparation:
Mix all ingredients in a pressure cooker or stock pot. Add about 2 quarts (2 liters) of water, and bring to a simmer over high heat.
If using a pressure cooker, cover tightly and continue cooking on high heat until pressure is achieved. Reduce the heat to medium, and cook for about 1 hour 20 minutes. Release the pressure, and add the preserved lemon and olives. Continue simmering over medium heat, uncovered, to reduce the sauce until it is thick. Taste and adjust seasoning.
If using a stockpot, cover the pot and reduce the heat to medium. Simmer for about 2 hours 30 minutes, or until the tripe and intestines are tender. Add water during cooking if necessary so that the tripe remains submerged in liquid. When the tripe is cooked, add the preserved lemon and olives. Continue simmering over medium heat, uncovered, to reduce the sauce until it is quite thick. Taste and adjust seasoning.
Serve with crusty bread for scooping up the tripe and sauce.
The tkalia may be refrigerated for several days or frozen for up to two months for later serving.
