Moroccan cuisine

Moroccan cuisine is the food of Morocco. It has been shaped by many cultures over many years. It mixes foods from Arab, Berber, Andalusi, Mediterranean, and African traditions, with a small European (French and Spanish) influence. Sharing meals together is important, and serving tea is a special way to welcome guests.

Eating and sharing food helps bring families and friends closer in Morocco. Like other Maghrebi cuisine, Moroccan food is more like Middle Eastern cuisine than foods from the rest of Africa.

Experts believe the oldest parts of Moroccan cooking we still use today began around the 7th century BC. This shows how long and rich the history of this food is.

History

See also: Agriculture in Morocco

Long ago, around the 7th century BC, places like Sala and Kerne grew olives and made wine. During Roman times, factories in Cotta and Lixus made a special fish sauce called garum.

Later, in the 12th century, tools for making couscous were found in old ruins in Igiliz, in the Sous valley of Morocco. A food writer named Charles Perry says that couscous began with the Berbers in Algeria and Morocco.

Ingredients

Morocco grows many fruits and vegetables, and also has foods like snails. Common meats in Moroccan food include beef, goat, mutton and lamb, chicken, and seafood. These meats are often flavored with preserved lemon, argan oil, preserved butter (smen), olive oil, and dried fruits.

The main grains used in Moroccan cooking are rice and wheat, which are made into bread and couscous. In the past, barley was also a common grain, especially in the south. Grapes are usually eaten fresh as a dessert. Today, olive oil is used more often for cooking than butter or animal fat. Butter can be used fresh, called zebda, or preserved, called smen.

Flavorings

Moroccan food uses many spices and a special mix called ras el hanout. Some spices came from far away through the Arabs, bringing in Persian and Arabic styles. Many ingredients, like saffron from Talaouine, mint and olives from Meknes, and oranges and lemons from Fes, grow in Morocco. After the Idrissids started Fes in 789, more spices arrived from the east. Popular spices include cinnamon, cumin, turmeric, ginger, paprika, coriander, mace, cloves, fennel, anise, nutmeg, cayenne pepper, fenugreek, caraway, black pepper and sesame seeds.

Common herbs in Moroccan cooking include mint, parsley, coriander, oregano, peppermint, marjoram, verbena, sage and bay laurel.

Structure of meals

A typical Moroccan lunch starts with salads that are hot and cold. After that, you might have a special dish called a tagine or something called dwaz. For fancy meals, people often serve lamb, chicken, or couscous with meat and vegetables on top. In Morocco, people usually eat with their hands and use bread to help. They don’t eat pork or drink alcohol because of their religious traditions.

tagine religious restrictions

Main dishes

See also: List of Moroccan dishes

One of the most famous Moroccan dishes is couscous. Lamb is the meat most often eaten in Morocco, cooked in a special pot called a tagine with vegetables. Chicken is also used in tagines or roasted. The tagine has a special taste from spices such as saffron, cumin, cinnamon, ginger, and cilantro.

Moroccan food also includes many seafood dishes. European pilchard is caught, and other fish you might find include mackerel, anchovy, sardinella, and horse mackerel.

Other well-known Moroccan dishes are pastilla, tanjia, and rfissa.

Bread is an important part of meals in Morocco. The bread is made from durum wheat semolina and is called khobz. Bakeries are found everywhere, and fresh bread is eaten every day. The most common types are whole-grain bread, white-flour bread, or baguettes. There are also flat breads and pulled, unleavened pan-fried breads.

Soups

Harira, a hearty soup, is enjoyed in winter to stay warm. It is often served for dinner with plain bread or with dates during the month of Ramadan. Another cold-weather favorite is Bissara, a broad bean soup.

Beboush is a special snail soup in Moroccan cooking. It is made with snails in a flavorful broth and spices.

Salads

Salads in Moroccan cuisine use raw or cooked vegetables and can be served hot or cold. A popular salad is zaalouk, made from aubergine and tomato. Another is taktouka, a mix of tomatoes, smoked green peppers, garlic, and spices. There is also a salad called bakoula or khoubiza, which uses braised mallow leaves or sometimes spinach or arugula, with parsley, cilantro, lemon, olive oil, and olives.

Desserts

Usually, fresh fruits are served at the end of a meal instead of cooked desserts. A popular dessert is kaab el ghzal, a pastry filled with almond paste and covered in sugar. Another is halwa chebakia, which is dough shaped like pretzels and soaked in honey. It is often eaten during Ramadan. Jowhara is a dessert from Fes made with fried waraq pastry and cream. Coconut fudge cakes, called 'zucre coco', are also enjoyed.

Seafood

See also: Fishing industry in Morocco

Morocco has a long coastline with lots of fish. One important fish is the sardine, as Morocco exports the most sardines in the world. Sardines were once used to make a special food called garum in the old city of Lixus.

At fish markets in Morocco, you can find many types of seafood like sole, swordfish, tuna, turbot, mackerel, shrimp, conger eel, skate, red snapper, spider crab, lobster, and many mollusks.

Seafood in Morocco is often used in dishes such as tajines, bastilla, briouat, and paella.

Drinks

Main article: Maghrebi mint tea

The most popular drink in Morocco is Moroccan mint tea, called atay. Sharing this tea with friends and family is a daily tradition. The way the tea is poured is very important. Moroccan tea pots have long, curved spouts to help pour the tea into small glasses. People enjoy their tea with bubbles, so the teapot is held high while pouring. The tea is usually served with hard sugar cubes. Fresh orange juice is also common because Morocco has many oranges and tangerines.

Snacks and fast food

Selling fast food in the street has been a tradition, especially at Djemaa el Fna square in Marrakesh. Ma'quda, a potato fritter, is popular with students and people who do not have much money, especially in Fes. Since the 1980s, new snack restaurants have opened, mainly in the north, serving bocadillos, which are sandwiches influenced by Spanish cuisine.

Dairy product shops, called mhlaba, are found all over the country. These shops sell many types of dairy products, juices, smoothies, and local foods such as bocadillos, msemmen, and harcha. Another popular street sandwich is called khanz u-bnīn, meaning "stinky and delicious." In the late 1990s, several well-known fast-food brands opened restaurants in big cities.

Chefs

Some people have helped share Moroccan food with more people around the world. TV chef Choumicha and Al-Amīn al-Hajj Mustafa an-Nakīr are examples. They cooked for the former king of Morocco Hassan II.

Fatéma Hal opened a restaurant in Paris called Mansouria. She is known for spreading the word about Moroccan food.