Morrocan style lamb and lentil soup which is a wholesome and a complete meal to be served as a Ramadan Speciality.
Talking a bit about the history of Morrocan Soup, it is considered to be a National soup and dish of Morroco. This tomato-based soup is very commonly served in the month of Ramadan. Most of the ingredients and spices resemble that of Indian cuisine but the ultimate flavor of the soup is quite Middle-eastern. It is an ideal ‘one-pot meal’ as you have everything from lentils, vermicelli, chickpeas, and meat with loads of tomatoes and herbs. This is why ‘Morrocan Hareera Soup’ qualifies for a perfect Iftar meal.
To speed up my cooking process and minimize the time, I keep some preparation ready in my refrigerator and freezer. For instance, we need cooked chickpeas to make this soup. In order to reduce the soaking and cooking time I prep and freeze the chickpeas in advance. This prep is very handy when I need to make a quick fix hummus or a chat. There are more such preps that you will find useful in my post MEAL PREP IDEAS FOR EASY COOKING.
This recipe is adapted from Spoonwithme.
Morrocan Hareera Soup
Ingredients
- 4 large pieces of mutton with bone
- ½ cup white chickpeas
- 1 cup finely chopped onion
- 1 tablespoon finely chopped garlic
- 2 teaspoon coriander powder
- 2 teaspoon cumin powder
- ¾ teaspoon turmeric powder
- 1 teaspoon paprika powder or you can add Kashmiri chili powder
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon powder
- ¼ teaspoon garam masala powder
- ½ teaspoon black pepper powder
- 2 cups fresh tomatoes pureed
- ¼ cup masoor dal red lentil
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon white vinegar
- ½ cup cooked vermicelli optional
- ½ cup finely chopped coriander leaves
- 4 tablespoon olive oil or vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup fried onion
Instructions
- Soak the chickpeas for 4 to 5 hours, boil until soft and well cooked, and set aside.
- Heat olive oil in a pressure cooker and saute chopped onion and garlic until soft. When onions turn transparent, add coriander powder, cumin powder, turmeric powder, paprika, cinnamon powder, garam masala powder, and black pepper powder. Fry for a minute and then add pureed tomatoes.
- Cook the spices on low flame for 2 minutes and then add the mutton pieces, washed red lentils (masoor), and salt.
- Add enough water according to the quantity in the cooker and cook till mutton is fully done.
- Once the mutton is cooked, transfer the content to a saucepan. Remove the mutton pieces, discard the bones, shred the mutton pieces, and add them back to the soup. Add more water as required adjusting the consistency of the soup.
- Turn on the heat and add lemon juice, cooked vermicelli, boiled chickpeas, chopped coriander leaves, and vinegar. Cook the soup on low flame for 5 more minutes.
- Serve hot with pita bread or naan.
