_Harira_ is Morocco's best-known, and best-loved, soup. Families eat this herb-rich, tomato-based soup year-round. During Ramadan, however, it's obligatory, and pots of the soup simmer away in kitchens across the country. Accompanied by dates and honeyed, flower-shaped cookies sprinkled with sesame seeds called _chebakia_, a bowl of _harira_ is the traditional way to break the fast. The velvety-smooth soup—whisking in flour, or sometimes egg, at the end gives that distinct texture—is nourishing and easy on an empty stomach. I have enjoyed _harira_ around numerous family tables and at street stalls—each version has been different. As a woman in Fes once said to me, "There are as many recipes for _harira_ in Morocco as there are cooks."
Ingredients
Instructions
In a large soup pot, put the meat, celery, onion, parsley, cilantro, butter, ginger, and cinnamon. Season with salt and plenty of pepper. Cover with 6 cups/1.5 L water, stir well, and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 1 hour.
Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, and chickpeas, and stir in 1 1/2 cups/360 ml water. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a small saucepan over low heat, warm 1 cup/240 ml water and whisk in the flour and lemon juice. Remove from the heat, let sit for 10 minutes, and then whisk again.
Add the flour mixture to the soup in a slow but steady stream while continually stirring. Cook, stirring frequently to avoid any sticking, for 10 minutes. Sprinkle in the vermicelli and cook until the pasta is tender, about 5 minutes. The texture of the soup should be velvety.
Serve in bowls with lemon wedges on the side and with the dates and figs on a small platter.
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