Chorba Frik

Green roasted freekeh is the body of it, and it is added late because it swells to three times its volume.

Lamb. Not vegetarian — contains lamb.

Ingredients

• 500 g lamb shoulder, in small cubes
• 150 g green freekeh, rinsed
• 2 onions, finely chopped
• 3 tablespoons tomato purée
• 400 g chopped tomatoes
• 1 courgette, diced
• 1 carrot, diced
• 100 g chickpeas, cooked
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 teaspoons ground coriander
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon harissa
• 1.8 litres water
• a large handful of coriander, chopped
• a handful of mint, chopped
• juice of 1 lemon
• salt and black pepper

Method

1. GREEN ROASTED FREEKEH IS THE BODY OF IT, AND IT IS ADDED LATE BECAUSE IT SWELLS TO THREE TIMES ITS VOLUME. A hundred and fifty grams looks like nothing going into a pot this size and finishes as the substance of the soup. It goes in for the last twenty-five minutes only -- added at the start it absorbs everything, the pot sets solid, and what should be a soup becomes a thick porridge that has to be let down with water that tastes of nothing. The freekeh is also what makes the soup smoky: it is durum wheat harvested green and roasted, and that roasting is the dominant flavour of the bowl.
2. IT IS RINSED WELL AND THE WATER RUNS BLACK. Three or four changes. Freekeh carries fine ash and chaff from the roasting, and unrinsed it makes the soup gritty and muddy-tasting.
3. THE LAMB IS BROWNED HARD AND GIVEN AN HOUR FIRST. Cubed small, browned in batches, then simmered an hour before any grain or vegetable appears. Shoulder wants that hour; the freekeh wants twenty-five minutes.
4. THE HARISSA IS FRIED WITH THE TOMATO PURÉE. A tablespoon, in the oil with the purée for two minutes until the colour darkens. Stirred into the liquid later it tastes raw and sits on top.
5. THE VEGETABLES GO IN WITH THE FREEKEH, NOT BEFORE. Courgette and carrot diced small, in for the same twenty-five minutes. Added with the lamb they are gone to nothing after an hour and a half.
6. IT IS STIRRED ONCE THE FREEKEH IS IN. Freekeh sinks and catches on the base, so the pot needs stirring every few minutes for that last stretch -- which is the opposite of most of the soups here.
7. THE HERBS AND LEMON GO IN OFF THE HEAT, AND GENEROUSLY. A large handful of coriander, a handful of mint, a whole lemon. A smoky grain soup is heavy without something sharp and green at the end.
8. The freekeh RINSED 3 or 4 times, until the water runs clear.
9. The olive oil heated and the lamb browned HARD in batches. Lifted out.
10. The onions softened 8 MINUTES, then the tomato purée and HARISSA fried 2 MINUTES until darkened.
11. The chopped tomatoes, ground coriander and cinnamon added with the lamb and the water. Seasoned.
12. Simmered, lid on, 1 HOUR.
13. The rinsed FREEKEH, diced courgette, carrot and the chickpeas added.
14. Simmered a further 25 MINUTES, STIRRING every few minutes so the freekeh does not catch.
15. Taken off the heat; the fresh coriander, mint and lemon juice stirred in.
16. TESTED: it should be a thick soup that still pours from the ladle, and taste smoky. Solid means the freekeh went in too early.
17. Served hot with bread.

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 Tunisia · All recipes