Harira
Harira is a hearty Moroccan soup full of flavour. It makes a great light dinner or lunch, or you can serve some warm flatbread on the side for a more filling meal. I love brothy soups like this one when it’s cold out. They’re the ultimate way to warm yourself up from the inside out!
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 400 g lamb fillet cut into 1cm dice
- 1 onion diced
- 2 carrots peeled and finely diced
- 2 teaspoons finely grated ginger
- ½ teaspoon ground turmeric
- 2 tablespoons harissa paste
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 teaspoon honey
- 400 g tin chopped tomatoes
- 400 g tin chickpeas rinsed and drained
- 1.5 l chicken or vegetable stock*
- 1 lemon juice
- 100 g spinach or baby spinach roughly chopped
- 4 tablespoons coriander roughly chopped
- 4 tablespoons parsley roughly chopped
Instructions
- Heat olive oil in a large saucepan over a high heat. Add lamb and cook for 2-3 minutes, moving it around the pan with a wooden spoon, until lightly coloured on all sides.
- Reduce heat to medium. Add onion, carrot and ginger and cook until onion is soft (about 5 minutes). Add turmeric and harissa and cook until fragrant (about 1 minute).
- Add tomato paste, honey, tinned tomatoes, drained chickpeas and stock and bring to boil on high heat. Reduce to a simmer and cook for about 30 minutes until lamb is tender and soup has thickened slightly.
- Season with lemon juice, salt and pepper. When ready to serve, add the chopped spinach, coriander and parsley and stir through. Serve with warm buttered flatbreads if desired.
- *Check label if eating gluten free
Notes
This harira soup freezes really well. Portion it out before you freeze it and defrost in the morning for a quick and easy lunch.
Buy harissa paste from a gourmet supermarket, or make it yourself easily with this recipe here.
Serve this soup with warm, buttery flatbreads.
To make this soup vegetarian, omit the lamb and replace with a tin of lentils, and be sure to use vegetarian stock.