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Pot of harira with 3 bowls

Moroccan Harira – Chickpea & Lentil Soup with lamb

Safira
Moroccan Harira – Chickpea & Lentil Soup with lamb - A hearty, healthy and velvety warming Moroccan lentil and chickpea soup with herbs and tomatoes. The word Harira means Silk which refers to the silk like texture of the soup. If, like us you always have a soup on the table at Ramadan why not try Easy Turkish Lentil Soup or Chicken and sweetcorn soup.
5 from 2 votes
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour 10 minutes
Course Dinner, Lunch
Cuisine Moroccan
Servings 6
Calories 453 kcal

Ingredients
  

  • 3 tbsp Vegetable or Sunflower OIl or Ghee
  • 300 g Lamb boneless, diced, any cut
  • 1 Onion diced
  • 1 tbsp Tomato Puree
  • ½ tsp Ground Cinnamon
  • ¼ tsp Ground Turmeric
  • 1 tsp Ground Cumin Optional
  • 1 tsp Ground Ginger
  • 1 tsp Cayenne Pepper Optional
  • ¾ tsp Smoked Paprika Optional
  • 2 tsp Salt Adjust according to preference and check if your stock already has salt in it
  • ¾ tsp Ground Black Pepper
  • 1 stalk Celery stalk and leaves, chopped finely
  • 400 g Chickpeas from a tin
  • 80 g Brown Lentils washed, picked and drained
  • 200 g Tinned Plum Tomato pureed
  • 1.5 l Chicken Stock or Veg Stock
  • 3 tbsp Plain Flour mixed with 125 ml warm water
  • Small handful Coriander Leaves washed and chopped
  • Small Small Parsley Leaves Optional
  • 4 tbsp Vermicelli wheat not rice, broken
  • Lemon Wedges to serve

Instructions
 

  • In a large pot, add oil or ghee. Once hot, add lamb and sear till browned all over. If the meat is releasing a lot of liquid, allow the water to completely release so the meat can be browned properly.
  • Add the Onions and cook till golden (6 - 7 minutes), then add the tomato puree and cook for 1 minute.
  • Add spices - cinnamon, turmeric, cumin (optional), ginger, cayenne pepper (optional), smoked paprika (optional), salt, black pepper. Stir in and cook for 2 minutes.
  • Add celery, chickpeas, lentils, pureed tomatoes and stock. Bring to a boil and then turn the heat own and simmer for 45 minutes.
  • Add the flour mixture and cook till any foam from the top of the soup disappear. This will take a few minutes.
  • Add coriander, parsley and vermicelli and cook for 5 minutes.
  • Serve with lemon wedges and enjoy!

Notes

What to serve with Harira

As well as serving with lemon wedges, Harira is served to to open fast during Ramadan and is therefore often served alongside dates, figs, moroccan pitta bread, Honey cookies - chebakia.

Notes for making Harira

The soup will thicken as it cools and a skin will form on top - To reheat, add a splash of water before mixing and warming on the stove over medium low heat.
Onions - Traditionally the onions are blended for this recipe. You can do this If you prefer.
Celery - The celery can also be blended for the recipe. 
Flour Paste - Make the flour, water mix beforehand as you will find that the lumps need to be whisked out and this takes a little bit of effort. 
Alternatively use Cornflour which mixes more readily with water.

Tips for making the best Harira

Here are my top tips to make this delicious soup:

Flour paste

After adding the flour, it needs to be cooked to make sure there is no floury flavour in the soup. To do this cook for at least 3 minutes. Foam will appear at the top of the soup, once this disappears the flour has cooked enough.

Meat

Brown the meat first to seal it and bring out it’s flavour. Any excess water will need to be released first.

Make it vegetarian

Replace the meat with your favourite veg and vegetable stock. Cooking times can then be reduced to 15 - 20 minutes.

Tomato Puree

Instead of tomato puree, add a tbsp of Harissa paste (I love rose harissa) or any other paste that you like. 

Spices

I have added some extra spices such as cumin, cayenne, smoked paprika - Skip these if you prefer. I also add a tbsp of Ras el Hanout sometimes, which is available in most supermarkets.

Smen

You can add a small grating of Parmesan or Grana Padana at the end to mimic the flavour of Smen which is sometimes added to this soup.

Storage and Leftovers

Allow the soup to cool completely and store in air tight containers for 4 days.
The soup thickens as it cools. To reheat, add a splash of water, stir though and warm over medium low heat till warmed through.

How to freeze Harira Soup

This soup is best frozen before adding noodles or the thickening flour paste. If you wish to freeze it, don’t add the vermicelli or thickener and freeze in an airtight container for 3 months. 

How to reheat

Thaw the soup over low heat. Once warmed add the vermicelli and flour paste. Cook for 5 minutes.

Nutrition

Calories: 453kcalCarbohydrates: 50gProtein: 25gFat: 17gSaturated Fat: 6gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 7gCholesterol: 44mgSodium: 1199mgPotassium: 790mgFiber: 10gSugar: 9gVitamin A: 343IUVitamin C: 4mgCalcium: 73mgIron: 5mg
Keyword harira, harira soup with lamb, moroccan harira, Ramadan
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