Food in Morocco
Displaying influences from Africa, Arabia, and the Mediterranean, the Moroccan cuisine of today is a reflection of the country’s colorful past, blended with the culinary traditions of both its Arab and Berber inhabitants.
Over time, these influences have been refined into a distinctly Moroccan flavor – thanks largely to centuries of imperial dynasties, where expectations and demands weighed heavily on the chefs of the royal courts, and thus inspired both experimentation and extravagance.
Here Are Some of the Famous Local Dishes Served in Morocco :
1- Briouats :
- Deep-fried parcels of flaky pastry containing spiced meat, fish, or cheese.
2- Harira :
- Thick, spicy, sometimes creamy soup, based on lamb and pulses. It’s often offered as a starter, but it is filling enough to be a meal in itself. During Ramadan, it is served daily to break the fast, often with milk and dates.
3- Brochettes :
- Cubes of meat on skewers, most often chicken, lamb, or beef.
4- Couscous :
- A huge bowl of steamed semolina grains with vegetables, chickpeas, and sometimes meat – usually mutton or chicken – or, less often, fish. It’s supposed to be eaten by hand, but spoons are usually provided. If you are invited to a Moroccan home you are most likely to be given this. Traditionally it is eaten on Fridays.
5- Tagine :
- A stew of meat (usually beef, lamb, or chicken) or fish with vegetables, spices, and perhaps fruits and nuts, slowly cooked on a bed of oil in an earthenware pot. It is one of Morocco’s most visible dishes (because of the conical topped dish in which it is cooked). Popular versions include beef with almonds and quinces, lamb with apricots, and chicken with lemons and olives.
6- Kefta :
- Meatballs flavored with coriander and cumin. A popular and quick standby, it is sometimes served with eggs in a tagine.
7- Mechoui :
- Whole lamb, spit, or oven-roasted. M’choui is usually found only on special occasions or in the more traditional restaurants where it often needs to be ordered in advance, though there are places that sell it year-round. Spicy beef or lamb sausages often served with harissa, a fiery pepper sauce.
8- Pastilla :
- Spiced pigeon meat encased in layers of flaky “warkha” pastry, often dusted with sugar or cinnamon – a traditional delicacy. A fish version is also found.
9- Tanjia :
- A classic Marrakech dish, large cuts of seasoned, spiced beef or lamb are stuffed into the Tanjia, which is then tied with paper and string and taken to the local hammam. The hammam’s “Farnatchi” – the man responsible for stoking the furnace – buries the Tanjia vessel in the embers and leaves it to slowly cook for a few hours, after which the meat is tender and ready to eat.
This is traditionally a dish made by men for men and is prepared for a bachelor party or all-male gathering.