Moroccan HARIRA (lentil, chickpea tomato) soup recipe
Im hungry so my first post on here is going to be about food. I love to eat and cook, so of you are as passionate about food as I am, then you came to the right place.
Harira is one of the national soups of Morocco. Theres many variations--most contain meat such as lamb or beef, but you can omit the meat for a vegetarian version.
This soup is super tasty and its especially eaten during Ramadan. This version of harira is the closest that I could bring it to the harira that my adopted Moroccan mama served to me each week when I lived in Meknes (a city in central Morocco).
Harira
What you need:
2 tbsp olive oil
1 big lamb shank or about 7 oz lamb with bone
1 onion, finely chopped.
1 cup cooked chickpeas or 1 can chickpeas
1 can 28 oz whole unpeeled tomatoes( 365 brand is good)
ground Turmeric
ground Cinnamon
ground Ginger
Salt and pepper
Some flour
Tomato paste
1/2 cup green lentils (not french kind)
1-2 chopped celery stalk
Handful of dried vermicelli noodles--brands from middle eastern store are best
1 egg
handful cilantro chopped
handful parsley chopped
1 tsp smen (Moroccan preserved butter) or ghee
1 lemon for serving
Directions
In medium size pot
Put oil in pan
Put onion in the pan and sauté for a bit.
Add the lamb and turn it in the oil for a few seconds.
Then add lentils and chickpeas (if dried) and celery
Add 1 tablespoon salt, 1 tsp pepper, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1 tsp ginger, 1 tsp turmeric
Add some of the parsley and cilantro, reserve some of the herbs for later and just enough water to cover the meat.
Stir and simmer 45 min
Meanwhile....
In a blender puree tomatoes with their juice and add to the pot.
Stir
Add 1-2 tablespoon tomato paste
In a separate bowl, take 2-3 tablespoon flour and mix with some water to smooth.
Slowly pour the flour water into pot while stirring
And add 1 handful vermicelli noodles to the pot and simmer for 10 min.
Add the rest of the cilantro and parsley
Crack an egg into a separate bowl, beat lightly with fork and slowly add to soup.
Stir
Cook 3 more minutes and serve with lemon wedges. Add more salt and pepper if needed.
Enjoy!
Have you ever tried harira?
If you tried or liked this recipe let me know in the comments below!