Harira fassia — Fez, Morocco

Harira is the soup that opens the fast during Ramadan in Morocco, and it is cooked in nearly every household in the country, each family and each town shaping it a little differently. At its base sit tomatoes, pulses and fresh herbs, simmered into a soup that is meant to be gentle on a stomach that has gone without food since dawn, yet substantial enough to carry the household through the evening. This version is associated with Fez, in the north of the country, where cooks are known for a particular thickening technique called the tadouira. Instead of leaving the soup thin, a mixture of flour and water — sometimes with a little leaven added — is stirred into the pot in a slow, steady stream near the end of cooking, while the liquid is kept moving so no lumps form. The result is a velvety body that coats a spoon without turning the soup into a paste. Celery and a touch of cinnamon are also common additions in Fez kitchens, giving the broth a slightly different aromatic note from harira made elsewhere. Preparation begins with browning small pieces of lamb or beef together with onion, celery and a base of ginger, turmeric and cinnamon, before tomatoes, tomato paste and chickpeas that have soaked overnight go into the pot with water for a long simmer. Lentils and half of the chopped herbs join partway through, since they cook faster than the chickpeas and would otherwise fall apart. The tadouira is added only near the end, together with a handful of fine vermicelli, and the soup is finished with the remaining herbs, salt, pepper and a splash of lemon juice. What sets this bowl apart from harira made in other regions is mainly that thickening step and the small additions of celery and cinnamon, rather than any difference in the core list of pulses and vegetables. During Ramadan it is served with dates, hard-boiled eggs and the honeyed sesame pastry chebakia, forming the first course of the evening meal; outside the fasting month, a bowl of harira on its own is considered a complete dinner.