Harira

A thick soup finished with a flour and water slurry poured in slowly at the very end, which is what gives it its body.

Lamb. Not vegetarian — contains lamb.

Ingredients

• 300 g lamb, in small dice
• 200 g brown lentils
• 150 g chickpeas, soaked overnight
• 800 g ripe tomatoes, grated
• 2 onions, finely chopped
• 3 celery sticks with leaves, chopped
• 1 large bunch coriander, chopped
• 1 bunch flat parsley, chopped
• 2 teaspoons ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon turmeric
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• a pinch of saffron
• 4 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 litres water
• 100 g plain flour
• 300 ml cold water, for the slurry
• 2 tablespoons tomato purée
• lemon wedges and dates, to serve
• salt and pepper

Method

1. THE FLOUR SLURRY GOES IN LAST AND IS POURED IN A THIN STREAM WHILE STIRRING. This is what makes harira harira rather than a lentil soup: a hundred grams of flour whisked into cold water, left to stand, and then trickled in while the soup is stirred in one direction. Tipped in, it sets into lumps that no amount of beating removes.
2. AND IT MUST SIMMER TEN MINUTES AFTERWARDS, stirring, or it tastes of raw flour -- a flat, pasty note that is instantly recognisable and cannot be seasoned away.
3. THE SLURRY IS MADE FIRST AND LEFT TO STAND. Whisked and rested half an hour, the flour hydrates properly and goes in smooth.
4. Flour whisked into the 300 ml of cold water until completely smooth. Covered and left while everything else cooks.
5. Saffron steeped in a little warm water.
6. Oil in a large pot, lamb browned, then onions and celery softened 10 minutes.
7. Ginger, turmeric, cinnamon, saffron and purée in, stirred 1 minute.
8. Grated tomatoes in, cooked 10 minutes until they darken.
9. Drained chickpeas, lentils and the 2 litres of water in. Brought to a simmer and cooked 1 hour, until both are tender. NOT SALTED YET -- salt early firms the skins and they stay chalky.
10. Now salted, generously, with pepper.
11. Half the herbs in.
12. THE SLURRY WHISKED AGAIN -- it will have settled hard -- and poured in a thin stream while the soup is stirred steadily in one direction.
13. Simmered 10 minutes more, stirring often and scraping the base, until it thickens to the consistency of double cream and loses any raw-flour taste.
14. The rest of the herbs through. Served with lemon wedges and dates. It thickens considerably overnight and is loosened with water.

Our own recipe. This one was written for this site rather than taken from anywhere, so there is no source to point you at. The quantities and the order of the steps are choices, not the only way to do it.

Filed under Morocco · All recipes