Harira
Moroccan tomato, lentil and chickpea soup thickened at the end with a flour slurry that turns it velvety rather than merely thick.
- Prep
- 25m
- Cook
- 1h 35m
- Waiting
- 12h
- Total
- 14h
- Serves
- 6
- Effort
- Moderate
Method
Tinned chickpeas and no overnight soak — the broth is a little less savoury without the chickpea cooking liquor, but it is soup in under an hour.
Tap a step number to mark it done. Tap an ingredient once for got it, twice for need it.
| 2 | Soften the aromatics in oil without browning, 10 minutes 12m | Simmer everything together until the pulses are soft, 60 minutes 1h Add the vermicelli for the last 6 minutes only. | Whisk in the tadouira and simmer 12 minutes until it turns glossy 15m Pour it in a thin stream while whisking. Dumped in, the flour seizes into lumps you will never break up. | |
| 3 sticks | ||||
| 4 tbsp | ||||
| 1 tsp | ||||
| 1 1/2 tsp | ||||
| 1/2 tsp | ||||
| 1 tsp | ||||
| 150 g | Soak the chickpeas overnight, then drain 12h | |||
| to cover | ||||
| 120 g | ||||
| 700 g | ||||
| 2 tbsp | ||||
| 1.5 litres | ||||
| 2 tsp | ||||
| 60 g | ||||
| 4 tbsp | Whisk to a smooth, lump-free slurry and leave to stand 5m This is the tadouira. Standing lets the flour hydrate fully so it disperses cleanly. | |||
| 250 ml | ||||
| a large handful | ||||
| a handful | ||||
| to serve | ||||
-
Soften the aromatics in oil without browning, 10 minutes
12m- onions 2
- celery 3 sticks
- olive oil 4 tbsp
- ground turmeric 1 tsp
- ground ginger 1 1/2 tsp
- ground cinnamon 1/2 tsp
- black pepper 1 tsp
-
Soak the chickpeas overnight, then drain
12h- dried chickpeas 150 g
- cold water to cover
-
Simmer everything together until the pulses are soft, 60 minutes
1h- from 1 Soften the aromatics in oil without browning, 10 minutes
- from 2 Soak the chickpeas overnight, then drain
- brown lentils 120 g
- passata 700 g
- tomato purée 2 tbsp
- water or vegetable stock 1.5 litres
- fine salt 2 tsp
- vermicelli 60 g
Add the vermicelli for the last 6 minutes only.
-
Whisk to a smooth, lump-free slurry and leave to stand
5m- plain flour 4 tbsp
- cold water 250 ml
This is the tadouira. Standing lets the flour hydrate fully so it disperses cleanly.
-
Whisk in the tadouira and simmer 12 minutes until it turns glossy
15m- from 3 Simmer everything together until the pulses are soft, 60 minutes
- from 4 Whisk to a smooth, lump-free slurry and leave to stand
- coriander a large handful
- flat-leaf parsley a handful
- lemon wedges to serve
Pour it in a thin stream while whisking. Dumped in, the flour seizes into lumps you will never break up.
| 1 | Soften the onion and celery in oil with the spices 10m | Simmer the lentils, tomato and spices 25 minutes, adding the chickpeas and vermicelli for the last 8 30m | Whisk in the flour slurry and simmer 10 minutes until glossy 12m | |
| 2 sticks | ||||
| 3 tbsp | ||||
| 1 tsp | ||||
| 1 1/2 tsp | ||||
| 1/2 tsp | ||||
| 120 g | ||||
| 400 g tin | ||||
| 700 g | ||||
| 1.2 litres | ||||
| 50 g | ||||
| 2 tsp | ||||
| 3 tbsp | Whisk smooth 3m | |||
| 200 ml | ||||
| a large handful | ||||
| to serve | ||||
-
Soften the onion and celery in oil with the spices
10m- onion 1
- celery 2 sticks
- olive oil 3 tbsp
- ground turmeric 1 tsp
- ground ginger 1 1/2 tsp
- ground cinnamon 1/2 tsp
-
Simmer the lentils, tomato and spices 25 minutes, adding the chickpeas and vermicelli for the last 8
30m- from 1 Soften the onion and celery in oil with the spices
- red lentils 120 g
- tinned chickpeas 400 g tin
- passata 700 g
- water or vegetable stock 1.2 litres
- vermicelli 50 g
- fine salt 2 tsp
-
Whisk smooth
3m- plain flour 3 tbsp
- cold water 200 ml
-
Whisk in the flour slurry and simmer 10 minutes until glossy
12m- from 2 Simmer the lentils, tomato and spices 25 minutes, adding the chickpeas and vermicelli for the last 8
- from 3 Whisk smooth
- coriander a large handful
- lemon wedges to serve
What the tadouira is for
The flour and water slurry stirred in at the end is not just thickening. As the starch granules absorb hot liquid and swell they scatter light, which is why the soup turns opaque and velvety instead of simply heavy, and they suspend the lentil and tomato solids so nothing settles to the bottom of the bowl. Twelve minutes of simmering afterwards is the minimum to cook out the raw flour taste.
Whisking into a moving liquid keeps each granule separate. Still liquid lets them clump into a skin the moment they hit the heat.
Notes
- Ground ginger, not fresh. It is drier and warmer and it belongs here.
- Better on day two, though it thickens — loosen with water when reheating.
- Lemon at the table, not in the pot. It brightens each bowl individually.