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Harira (Moroccan "minestrone")




Source of Recipe


Bruce Lindner


Recipe Introduction


Harira is to Moroccan cuisine what minestrone is to Italian or vichyssoise is to French. In fact, it's more than that. It's the traditional soup eaten to break the fast of Ramadan at sunset. There is no one recipe for making Harira, but it always has beans, some sort of meat (usually lamb or chicken), lots of onion and herbs, and most importantly, the spices commonly used in North Africa. Also, Harira usually has some sort of noodles added just before serving, either orzo or vermicelli.

This is my own version of Harira, as I like to throw caution to the wind and really raid my spice cabinet on this dish. Some Moroccan cooks use goat meat in place of the lamb or chicken, but if you're a veggie, there's no reason why you couldn't make this meat-free. It's the spices that make it different from most other soups.



List of Ingredients




1 pound cubed lamb (shoulder, in this case) or chicken

2 large onions, chopped

3 stalks celery, chopped

3 Tablespoons butter

5-6 cups water (or as here, stock)

2 pounds tomatoes, skinned

1 large bunch cilantro, chopped

1 large bunch Italian parsley, chopped

1/2 cup raw lentils

1 can garbanzo beans, drained and washed

1 can crowder peas or fava beans, drained and washed

2 teaspoons sweet paprika

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground turmeric

1 teaspoon black pepper

1 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon mace

1/2 teaspoon saffron dissolved in 1/4 cup hot water

Kosher salt to taste

4-5 ounces orzo or vermicelli, broken up into small pieces

2-3 lemons

Fresh mint leaves


Recipe



Begin by lightly sauteing the chopped onion in the butter for 5-10 minutes, or until soft. Then add the chopped celery, the chopped tomatoes, and all the spices EXCEPT for the saffron, which hopefully, you've set aside in hot water already. Cook this over low heat for a few minutes, then stir in the meat and cook for another 5 minutes.

Than add your lentils, the chopped herbs (this is a 50/50 mix of parsley and cilantro, but again, nothing's sacred). Mix that into the Harira, then pour in the dissolved saffron, and just barely cover with water or stock. Cook until the lentil are just done. If necessary, add another cup or so of stock, the noodles, and cook until they're al dente, maybe 5 minutes.

Adjust the seasoning with salt and lemon juice. Serve each bowl with a wedge of lemon, some chopped mint leaves and some fresh bread. Wait till Campbell's finds out about this!