Harira (حريرة)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Large heavy soup pot, 5 to 6 liters
• •Box grater for tomatoes and onion
• •Whisk and small sieve for the tedouira
• •Long wooden spoon or ladle

Instructions

1. 1

   Start the pot

   Warm the olive oil in a heavy soup pot over medium heat. Add the meat, if using, and turn it until it loses its raw color. Add the grated onion, celery, half the coriander, half the parsley, ginger, turmeric, pepper, cinnamon, salt, and bloomed saffron if you have it. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring, until the onion softens and the spices smell warm but not scorched.

2. 2

   Build the broth

   Stir in the grated tomatoes or passata and the tomato paste. Let them cook down for 8 to 10 minutes, until the tomato turns darker and the oil begins to show at the edge. Add the soaked chickpeas, lentils, and 2 liters water or light broth. Bring to a boil, then lower to a steady simmer.

3. 3

   Simmer until tender

   Cover partly and simmer for 60 to 75 minutes, until the chickpeas and lentils are tender and the meat, if used, gives easily when pressed with a spoon. If you use cooked chickpeas, add them after the lentils have simmered for 35 minutes so they don't collapse into the soup.

   Keep the liquid generous. Harira should pour from the ladle, not sit like a stew.
4. 4

   Make the tedouira

   Whisk the flour with 180ml water until completely smooth, then pass it through a small sieve if you see any lumps. This is the tedouira, the thread that binds harira. It goes in late because flour needs enough time to cook, but not so much time that the soup becomes dull and thick.

5. 5

   Bind the soup

   Add the broken vermicelli or rice to the pot and simmer until just tender, 6 to 10 minutes depending on what you use. Lower the heat and pour in the tedouira slowly with one hand while stirring with the other. Keep stirring for several minutes, then simmer gently for 10 to 15 minutes, until the broth turns glossy and lightly thickened with no raw flour taste.

6. 6

   Finish and serve

   Stir in the remaining coriander and parsley. If using the egg, drizzle it in slowly while stirring so it forms fine threads, not clumps. Taste for salt, pepper, and brightness. Serve hot in bowls with lemon wedges, dates, and khobz nearby, because harira is never lonely on the table.

Chef Tips

• •Use ripe tomatoes in their season. In winter, good passata is more honest than a pale tomato that tastes of nothing. The market always has an answer.
• •Don't make the tedouira too thick at the start. You can always simmer a little longer, but a heavy hand with flour turns harira pasty.
• •If you add saffron, use threads bloomed in warm water, not yellow powder. With spices, la balance est dans les yeux, the scale is in the eyes, but the ingredient must be honest first.
• •Harira varies by house and region. Some families use rice, others vermicelli, some add more celery leaf, some leave out meat. Don't call one bowl the only Moroccan bowl.

Advance Preparation

• •Soak the chickpeas the night before. If you peel them after soaking, the soup will feel finer, but the door doesn't close if you leave the skins on.
• •Harira can be made one day ahead before adding the vermicelli and tedouira. Reheat, then finish with the pasta and flour mixture so the broth stays alive.
• •Chop the herbs and celery earlier in the day and keep them covered in the refrigerator. Add the last handful of herbs at the end for freshness.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 475g)