Harira

Harira (Moroccan Chickpea, Lentil & Lamb Soup)

Harira is Morocco's iconic tomato-and-lentil soup, fragrant with ginger, cinnamon, cilantro and parsley, and finished with lemon and a swirl of herb 'checca.' It is traditionally served at sunset to break the Ramadan fast, alongside dates and honey pastries.

Prep

20 min

Cook

75 min

Total

95 min

Serves

6 to 8

Difficulty

Medium

Recipe ingredients

• •500 g (1 lb 2 oz) bone-in lamb shoulder or shank, cut into 3 cm (1¼ in) pieces; fat left on for flavor
• •200 g (7 oz) dried chickpeas, soaked 12 hours in cold water with 1 tsp baking soda, then drained and rinsed
• •150 g (5¼ oz) brown or green lentils, rinsed; do not soak
• •2 tbsp olive oil
• •1 large yellow onion, finely grated on a box grater
• •2 stalks celery, finely chopped
• •1 bunch flat-leaf parsley, stems and leaves, finely chopped (about 30 g / 1 cup packed)
• •1 small bunch fresh cilantro, stems and leaves, finely chopped (about 25 g / 1 cup packed)
• •1 tbsp tomato paste
• •800 g (28 oz (about 3 cups puréed)) canned crushed or whole peeled tomatoes
• •2 tsp ground ginger, freshly ground if possible
• •1 tsp ground cinnamon
• •1 tsp sweet paprika
• •0.5 tsp (½ tsp) ground turmeric
• •0.5 tsp (½ tsp) saffron threads, optional but traditional; crumbled
• •1.5 L (6 cups) water, plus more as needed
• •60 g (½ cup) fine egg noodles or broken vermicelli, the 'dedans' thickener often used in Morocco
• •30 g (¼ cup) all-purpose flour, mixed with 120 ml / ½ cup cold water to make a slurry
• •1 small bunch cilantro and parsley, extra, for the checca; about 30 g combined
• •1 lemon lemon juice, plus wedges to serve
• •fine sea salt and black pepper, to taste

Steps

1. 1 Rinse the soaked chickpeas, cover with fresh cold water, simmer 45–60 minutes until just tender (they will cook further in the soup). Drain and set aside.
2. 2 In a heavy soup pot, warm the olive oil over medium heat. Add the grated onion and chopped celery with a pinch of salt and sweat 8–10 minutes until soft and translucent but not browned.
3. 3 Stir in the tomato paste and cook 2 minutes, then add the ground ginger, cinnamon, paprika, turmeric and saffron. Toast the spices 1 minute until fragrant.
4. 4 Add the crushed tomatoes and the chopped parsley and cilantro. Cook 8–10 minutes, stirring, until the tomato has darkened and the oil begins to separate at the edges.
5. 5 Add the lamb pieces, the drained chickpeas, the (unsoaked) lentils and 1.5 L / 6 cups cold water. Bring to a boil, skim any foam, then reduce to a gentle simmer, cover partially and cook 50 minutes.
6. 6 Doneness cue: the lamb should pull easily from the bone and the lentils should be completely soft with no chalky bite. Fish out the bone if using shank and remove any loose fragments of meat; return the meat to the pot.
7. 7 Add the egg noodles (or broken vermicelli) and simmer 6–8 minutes more until tender.
8. 8 Whisk the flour with 120 ml / ½ cup cold water until smooth. Slowly stream into the simmering soup while stirring constantly. Cook at a low boil 8–10 minutes, stirring often, until the harira thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon (it thickens further as it cools; add extra water if it becomes too stiff).
9. 9 Season generously with salt and pepper, then stir in the lemon juice off the heat. Taste — a proper harira should be tangy, herbaceous and lightly spiced. Adjust salt or lemon.
10. 10 Make the checca: mash the extra cilantro and parsley with a squeeze of lemon and a pinch of salt into a wet paste. Serve in a small bowl alongside.
11. 11 Ladle into bowls, top each with a spoonful of the checca and serve very hot with lemon wedges and dates. Harira is often presented with sticky honey pastries (chebakia) on the side.