Moroccan Spices | Most Popular Spices for Moroccan Dishes
The Charm of Morocco Resides In Its Food And The Charm Of Their Food Resides In The Moroccan Spices. Find Out About The 10 Moroccan Spices Exclusively in www.miskshops.com
Moroccan Spices
Moroccan spices are what give Moroccan food an identity. Usually, when you hear spice or spicy, you would think of a hot chili flavour. In fact, Moroccan spices are various, diverse and pretty different in colour, flavour, and scent. They make a great part of Moroccan culture when it comes to their famous plates and fabulous signature dishes. Spices are what define the authenticity of Moroccan meals. Although some of these spices are imported from the East; yet, they are indigenous to Morocco. The ten famous Moroccan Spices are Cayenne, Cinnamon, Turmeric, Ginger, Black pepper, Aniseed, Cumin, Paprika, Coriander and Saffron. Moroccan people are very familiar with these spices, as they use it on a regular basis on their daily plates.
The Ten Moroccan Spices
Photo by Pratiksha Mohanty on Unsplash
Here’s a quick review on each spice.
- Cayenne: ‘Felfla Hara’ or ‘Soudania’. It is hot chili pepper powder that Moroccans love to cook and flavour within main dishes. They ground it from dried peppers and they use it mostly in spicy dishes.
- Cinnamon: ‘Karfa’ or ‘Qarfa’ in Darijah, which is the local Moroccan language. It is a soar sweet spice that is native to Morocco that comes from cinnamon tree bark. Moroccans use Cinnamon in distinctive main dishes that are sweet as well as salty. It makes a great combination with other spices. Which makes it an essential spice for all Moroccans to cook with.
- Turmeric: ‘Qherkoum’ or ‘Kharqoum’. This spice is a natural colouring element. They extract it from plants that belong to the ginger family. Moroccans use Turmeric to give their dishes the golden colour, especially in chicken tagines.
- Ginger: ‘Skinjbir’ or ‘ Zanjabil’. Ginger powder, or dried ginger, is a very popular spice in Morocco, and indeed their favourite among other spices. They cook with it to make tagines, soups, the authentic Moroccan dishes such as ‘Rfissa’ and ‘Couscous’. They also use it for medical purposes, especially in cold weather. Ginger’s origins are from China, but it spread worldwide as an important ingredient, and that is the case in Morocco.
- Black pepper: Black pepper comes from dried berries of the Piper Nigrum which belongs to the family Piperaceae. This spice is already the most known spice in most of the world, in the United States and Europe. In Morocco, black pepper goes alongside with salt. Moroccans add it up to almost every single spicy and salty dish. They use it with lamb tagines, salads, soups and definitely in homemade sauces.
- Aniseed: ‘Nafaa’ or ‘Habat Hlawa’ in Moroccan language. This spice has a liquorice flavor, which Moroccans love. They use it in baking bread and cooking Moroccan cookies. They also prefer to use it in salty soups, it really makes a great combination with its liquorice scented characteristic.
- Cumin: ‘Kamoon’ or ‘Camoun’. Cumin is native to East India from the East Mediterranean. It comes from a flowering plant. It has a slightly bitter taste. Moroccan may get it ready to use from the spice store, but some prefer to get the cumin seeds, clean them out and then blend them home. They love to cook with it alongside with olive oil in lamb or chicken tagines and only vegetable tagines. They also use it as a medicine for those with an upset tummy.
- Paprika: ‘Felfla Hluwah’ or ‘Tahmira’. They extract Paprika from the dried sweet red and green bell peppers. Unlike the Cayenne, Paprika is not spicy, it is more of a colorant than a flavor spice. Moroccan use it in lamb and vegetables tagines, but mostly in dishes that has tomatoes in it. Its taste goes from sweet to mild.
- Coriander: ‘Qosbr’. Coriander is very important in Moroccan cuisine. Moroccans use in spicy curry food. It is native to Sound Western Asia to North africa. It has a sweet aromatic flavor that is to say, a bit lemony. They add it in tagines, soups, pastries and potatoes.
- Saffron: In darija spelled as ‘Zafrane’. Saffron is native to the Mediterranean, they grow it in Spain, France, Portugal, India and Italy. Hence, in Morocco, the city of Tailouine is the premium source of Saffron in Africa. In fact, its flavor is very unique and distinctive. They use it as a colorant and as a flavoring element. Moroccans use it mainly in grilling chicken. It is one of the most expensive spices in the world, therefore, it is very special to Moroccans and in the Moroccan cuisine.
Some Of The Famous Moroccan Dishes
Let’s start off with the big hit of the dishes that is Couscous. One part that makes this magical dish as great as it is, is the sauce that is basically made of a collection of spices that are, Cayenne, Turmeric, Coriander, Paprika, Black pepper, Ginger and so many others ingredients.
Tagines are everyone’s favourite dish. You can have it for lunch or dinner. It can have lamb, chicken, or only vegetables. The secret of their deliciousness is in the spices.
Rfissa in another famous Moroccan dish, that Moroccans prefer to cook in the cold weather, it contains various Moroccan spices with a great amount of them. It heats up the body and simply becomes your favourite Moroccan dish.
Wrap-Up
Moroccan culture is indeed rich in many aspects. The clothing style, the food, the wonderful geographical places. Food makes an important part of the culture. The Moroccan dishes are very wonderful that they made it to be internationally famous. The secret behind that remains in the ingredients, specifically, the spices. The Moroccan spices are more than just ten. Yet, the ten Moroccan spices mentioned above are very important in Moroccan cuisine. They are different in colour and flavour; sweet, mild to hot, they come in yellow, orange, red and green. Even though they are native to other countries and continents; yet, they made it to be a great part of Morocco. All of those tasty Moroccan dishes such as tagines, Couscous, salads and soups, they are actually made with these wonderful spices. The right combination between some of them will give you the best experience in cooking.
Images Sources:
Cover: Photo by Akhil Chandran on Unsplash
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