I have been back from South Africa for almost 2 weeks now, and it is still so present in my mind - the sights, the smells, and the colors. Yesterday I woke up longing for a Moroccan soup called Harira, a delicious and fragrant bowl of goodness that warms you like no other. When I used to go to New York every February, I would go to a restaurant called Bar 6 with my friends Harold and Barbara, and slurp huge spoonsful of the stuff until my frozen insides felt human again. It was the only thing that worked to thaw out my weak California blood.
I was feeling ambitious enough to attempt a new recipe, so I found one online that didn't involve any overnight prep and reasonably common ingredients. This soup is traditionally used to break the fast over Ramadan, so it is chock full of flavor and hearty ingredients. It's not heavy, though, which is why you can eat a huge bowl of it and not feel sick.
Below is the recipe that I used, which I had to adjust a bit (there was no salt in the original recipe - no salt??). It was easy and came out very well. For the cubed lamb, I had my butcher cut up some lamb tenderloin for me, and he left on some of the fat which helped to make a hearty stock.
The best part of all was the smell - all of those beautiful spices and aromatics filling the house with their heady aroma. It was wonderful in our sunny San Francisco kitchen - I can only imagine how much better it would be in a cold climate. You will want to use fresh spices if possible to get the full effects of this beautiful and fragrant dish.
Harira
- 1 lb cubed lamb meat
- 1 t. ground turmeric
- 1 1/2 t. ground black pepper
- 1 - 2 t. salt (to taste)
- 1 t. ground cinnamon
- 1/4 t. ground ginger
- 1/4 t. ground cayenne pepper
- 2 T. butter
- 3/4 C. chopped celery
- 1 onion, chopped
- 1 red onion, chopped
- 1/2 C. chopped fresh cilantro
- 1 (29 oz) can diced tomatoes
- 7 C. water
- 3/4 C. green lentils
- 1 (15 oz) can garbanzo beans, drained
- 4 oz. vermicelli pasta
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 1 lemon, juiced
1. Place the lamb, spices, butter, celery, onion and cilantro in a large soup pot over low heat. Stir frequently for 5 minutes.
2. Drain tomatoes, reserve juice. Pour tomatoes into the mixture and let simmer for 15 min.
3. Pour tomato juice, 7 cups of water, and the lentils into the pot. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat to simmer. Let the soup simmer, covered, for 2 hours.
4. About 10 minutes before serving, turn the heat to medium-high, place chickpeas and noodles into the soup, let cook about 10 minutes.
5. Stir in lemon juice and eggs, let eggs cook 1 minute
6. Correct seasonings and serve.
