cuisinetyJournal · Moroccan · By Amira
What is ras el hanout? Which spices belong in a Moroccan tagine? Here is the essential Moroccan spice list — 12 spices, what each one does, and how to combine them like a Moroccan cook.
Moroccan cooking runs on a short list of spices used generously, and most of them are already in your drawer. Cumin is the workhorse — earthy, warm, everywhere in tagines and zaalouk. Paprika brings color and mild sweetness. Turmeric adds that golden glow and gentle earthiness. Ginger (ground) shows up in both savory stews and sweets like sellou. Cinnamon is the surprise: it goes into lamb tagines with prunes as happily as it goes into chebakia. Coriander seed is the quiet aromatic under so many of these dishes, ground fresh when you can.
Then the finishing players: saffron threads for the golden onion sauce of a proper chicken tagine, cayenne for those who want heat, black pepper for balance, aniseed for the flower cookies, sesame for amlou and sellou, and the blend that binds them all — ras el hanout.
Ras el hanout literally means "head of the shop" — the best spices a merchant has, blended together. Every blend differs, but the soul is consistent: warmly sweet cumin, ginger, and cinnamon, with cardamom, nutmeg, and a little black pepper, and often a whisper of cayenne. It is the shortcut to Moroccan flavor: a spoonful replaces five individual spices.
The blend matters more than the brand. Buy it from a shop with turnover, smell it before you buy (it should smell sweet and warm, not dusty), and store it away from light. If you want to make it yourself: 2 tablespoons cumin, 2 of paprika, 1 of ground ginger, 1 of turmeric, 1 of coriander, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon cardamom, 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg, 1/4 teaspoon cayenne — ground and mixed. That is a doorstep-worthy ras el hanout.
The best way to learn these spices is one recipe at a time. A 5-Ingredient Moroccan Tagine shows what cumin, paprika, and preserved lemon do with almost nothing else. Harira soup layers celery, cilantro, and paprika into a soup that tastes of comfort. Zaalouk is the cumin showcase: eggplant, tomato, garlic, and a generous hand of cumin and smoked paprika, bright with fresh cilantro.
And the sweets use the same pantry from a different angle — anise, cinnamon, and orange-blossom honey in chebakia, sesame in sellou and amlou. Once you have the twelve, you have every Moroccan recipe this site publishes.
These recipes pair with this article — make them tonight:
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