Couscous tfaya — Fez, Morocco

Couscous is Morocco's Friday dish, built from steamed semolina, a simmered broth, and toppings that vary by region, season and occasion. In most parts of the country it is served with a mix of vegetables and sometimes fruit, but festive versions built around a single sweet garnish are reported from several cities, and this one belongs to that family. This version is associated with Fez, where the semolina is crowned with tfaya, a thick topping of onions cooked down slowly with honey, cinnamon, saffron and raisins until they turn soft, dark and jammy. Chicken, sometimes lamb, is cooked separately in a fragrant broth flavored with ginger and saffron, and the two components are only brought together at the end, on the serving dish. The semolina itself is prepared following the usual couscous method: moistened, rolled between the palms to separate the grains, and steamed three times over the simmering broth, with a pass of fluffing and re-moistening between each round so the grains stay light rather than clumping. Chickpeas cooked with the chicken are folded in, and the finished semolina is buttered before it is mounded into a dome on a large platter. The chicken sits on top, the tfaya is spooned generously over the whole dish, and fried almonds and halved hard-boiled eggs finish the presentation. Because of the honey and the long-cooked onions, this couscous reads sweeter than the vegetable versions eaten on an ordinary Friday, and it is reported to appear more often at celebrations — festive Fridays, family gatherings, and meals marking a return from pilgrimage — than as everyday fare.