MODULE 3:   THE NORTH African feast

North African cuisine is the product of a whole host of historical, cultural and topographical factors.  Ancient trade routes, links with Europe, and a water-less climate have all influenced tastes from Algeria and Morocco in the west to Egypt in the east.  Famously, the cuisine of North Africa is packed full of colorful spice mixtures, as cities like Sfax in Tunisia are home to large spice markets.

Most of the North African countries have several similar dishes, sometimes almost the same dish with a different name (the Moroccan tangia and the Tunisian coucha are both essentially the same dish, a meat stew prepared in an urn and cooked overnight in a public oven), sometimes with a slight change in ingredients and cooking style. To add to the confusion, two completely different dishes may also share the same name (for example, a "tajine" dish is a slow-cooked stew in Morocco, whereas the Tunisian "tajine" is a baked omelette/quiche-like dish). There are noticeable differences between the cooking styles of different nations, from the sophisticated, full-bodied flavors of Moroccan palace cookery to the fiery dishes of Tunisian cuisine and the humbler, simpler cuisines of Egypt and Algeria.

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Mhadjeb
Mhadjeb, or mahjouba, is a staple of Algerian cooking and a common street food in Algiers and Oran. You’ll sometimes find it in recipe books as Algerian crêpes. In essence, mhadjeb is a crêpe filled with a paste of tomatoes and chopped vegetables like carrots, onions and chilis which have been simmered.  A street vendor will place a piece of flat dough on the skillet, add the paste, and fold the dough into a square to cook.

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Tajine
Tajine is perhaps the most famous Berber dish. It takes its name from the earthenware pot in which it is cooked. The tajine has a conical top so that the juices and water aren’t lost during cooking — an important consideration in desert areas where there are so few water sources. The tajine dish is a slow-cooked stew and can be made up of all sorts of ingredients — chicken, lamb, beef, fish or vegetables, cooked in a tajine along with the spice mixture ras el hanout, some honey, saffron, ginger, almonds and raisins and dried fruit and served with couscous and breads. The combination of saffron and ras el hanout gives tajine its unique aroma.

Shakshouka
Shakshouka, or chakchouka, is a Tunisian dish that has spread across North Africa and is popular in Israel, as well, having been taken there by Maghrebi Jews.  It can be served for breakfast, lunch or as part of the evening meal. It’s one of the most colorful of the dishes on this list and is made up of chopped onions, chili peppers, tomatoes and cumin, cooked in a skillet to form a rich sauce in which a couple of eggs are poached.  Add some chopped parsley to the top.

Matbukha
In many countries throughout the Middle East and Mediterranean, it is customary to start a meal with a variety of cold “salads.” These appetizer-style dishes are often more like dips then salads. They’re served with bread, olives, and sometimes pickles.

Matbukha, a salad with Moroccan origins, is a popular appetizer in Israel. It’s become so popular, in fact, that it rivals hummus and baba ganoush as one of the most popular appetizers.  Most families have a tub of matbucha in their refrigerator, and you’ll often find it served by restaurants before the main course.  It is served as an appetizer, often as part of a meze table.

Mechoui
Mechoui is the traditional North African roast — a whole lamb roasted on a spit or in a pit dug into the ground.  The meat is served with flatbreads and dips and yogurt.  The meat from the head, such as the cheeks and eyes, and the offal is regarded as a delicacy and is handed out to guests in attendance at the meal.  You can replicate the mechoui at home with just a shoulder of lamb roasted with spices like cumin, coriander and thyme.

DESSERT

North African Orange Cake
​An easy recipe for an Orange Cake that uses a few tablespoons of breadcrumbs.  It is sweet but not cloyingly so.  Orange, cinnamon and cloves in the syrup make a winter kitchen smell warm and cozy. 
There are several great things about this recipe: It only takes a few minutes to make it, you don’t need to preheat the oven, you can make it a day or two ahead and it will stay good for several more days, it is gluten free, and the syrup is so good it can be used in many other recipes such as a trifle. Delicious!

BEVERAGE