1
Brown base
Heat oil and brown meat if using. Add onion and celery and cook until soft.
Cook base
08:00
Morocco | Soup
Harira
Moroccan harira, a Ramadan tomato soup with lamb, chickpeas, lentils, celery, herbs, vermicelli, and lemon.
Country
Morocco
Region
North Africa
Time
100 min
Serves
8
Level
easy
Recipe overview
What to know before you cook
Harira should be hearty but pourable. Let the legumes soften first, then thicken gently so the soup turns silky instead of pasty.
What the dish tastes like
Moroccan harira, a Ramadan tomato soup with lamb, chickpeas, lentils, celery, herbs, vermicelli, and lemon.
When to cook it
Best for Ramadan iftar, with a easy cooking level and about 100 minutes total.
What to serve alongside it
Dates, lemon wedges, chebakia, hard-boiled eggs, or crusty bread
Regional lane
Soups, salads, and dips. Harira, fava bean soup, cooked salads, and vegetable sides for bread-led meals.
Chef watch-outs
- Stopping the base before the pepper, onion, or spice edge has mellowed.
- Thinning the pot before the body of the soup or stew has developed.
- Rushing the base before the raw edge has cooked out.
How you know it is ready
- The sauce should coat the spoon and taste rounded, not watery or raw.
- The aroma should smell rounded rather than raw or sharp.
- Oil, sauce, broth, or steam should look settled and deliberate.
Pantry lane
preserved lemon, green olives, saffron, ras el hanout, semolina
Recipe photos
See the dish before you cook
Each recipe supports one main image and up to four extra prep, serving, or step photos when they are available.
Chef board
Build the table around Harira
Dates, lemon wedges, chebakia, hard-boiled eggs, or crusty bread
Best route from here
Soups, salads, and dips
Collections to keep cooking
How to cook it
Step-by-step method
Keep the rhythm calm, watch the texture, and adjust seasoning at the end.
5 steps
100 min total
easy
2
Spice tomatoes
Add ginger, turmeric, cinnamon, pepper, tomatoes, cilantro, and parsley. Cook until fragrant.
Cook tomatoes
06:00
3
Simmer legumes
Add chickpeas, lentils, and water or stock. Simmer until the chickpeas and lentils are tender.
Simmer soup
55:00
4
Add noodles
Stir in vermicelli and cook until tender.
Cook vermicelli
07:00
5
Thicken and brighten
Whisk in the flour slurry gradually and simmer until silky. Finish with lemon juice and adjust salt.
Thicken harira
10:00
Every household has small variations. Start here, then adjust seasoning, heat, and serving sides to your kitchen.