Archive for the ‘Vegetable Pastilla’ Category

Morocco for Vegetarians, Your Morocco Tour Guide

Sunday, June 2nd, 2013

Moroccan Vegetable Tajine

Morocco offers plenty of fulfilling options for vegetarian travelers . It has wonderful  and abundant fresh vegetables and spices like cumin, saffron cinnamon and paprika and seasonal fruits which you will see piled high in local souks.

For breakfast  you will be offered bread with honey and jam and  omelettes . You can also try Moroccan pancakes and crepes called malouai with honey which are often served in local cafes.

Lunch is the main meal of the day and everything stops from noon to 3:00 p.m. Restaurants usually begin by serving a salad, which includes an array of vegetables such as tomatoes, onions, radishes, green peppers, beetroot  and eggplant, with spices and herbs.

Moroccan Vegetable Dish

The main course often consists of a tagine or couscous.  A tagine is a slow-cooked stew  served in an earthen ware pot and funnel shaped cover.  Restaurants in the main cities are now more aware of  vegetarians and vegetable tangines are usually on the menu, but you need to make sure that they are not using a meat stock. Moroccan traditions do change to accommodate tourists but sometimes you have to make sure your requirements have been fully understood. Carry a phrase book in French and Moroccan Arabic. The same is also true for Morocco’s other favourite dish the couscous. Couscous is semolina grains which are steamed above a pot of boiling vegetables. Pieces of meat are also included so vegetarians have to ensure that there is no meat in the couscous and no meat based stock.

During Ramadan and other special occasions, harira with dates is served to break the fast. This  nutritious and delicious soup has a tomato base and is thick with lentils, chickpeas and herbs. Harira is often made with vegetables but you will need to check beforehand with the restaurant to ensure that it is made without meat or meat  based broth.

Street food and restaurant appetizers also offer an array of meatless delights including olives and hummus, dried fruits, roasted nuts and b’sarra (white bean soup with olive oil and garlic).

In Marrakech  Earth Café is well known as an organic vegetarian and vegan restaurant  and it is in the heart of the medina, just off the Jemaa el Fna square. They have six entrees, three of which are vegan at 60 dirhams [about 5 or 6 euros] for huge delicious portions. They also have good fresh juices.  Chez Chegrouni  also offers good vegetarian fare.

Café des Epices  and Terasse des Epices also offer excellent vegetarian meals as does the stylish Le Foundouk restaurant, not far from the Medersa Ben Youssef in the Medina.

Riad 58 Blu is a charming riad which serves excellent vegetarian food to order and  is open to non residents . Food needs to be ordered the night before.

Pepe Nero is a high class riad restaurant with an impressive menu of Moroccan and Italian vegetarian  dishes which need to  be ordered the night before.

Cuisine de Mona‘s  serves superb Lebanese  food  and vegetarian dishes which can be enjoyed  in  the restaurant or as a take away. The restaurant  is on an early  turning off the route de Targa just  before the three pizza  restaurants on the right hand side.

 In Essaouira two recommended restaurants are:

Lalla Mira is an organic and ‘eco’ restaurant, hotel and spa.

La Petite Perle,   a popular  restaurant which serves good vegitarian dishes.

In Fes

Riad Dar Dmana is inside the medina and serves excellent vegetarian meals to its guests which need to be ordered  the night before.

Café Clock  has several vegetarian and vegan dishes on its extensive menu and is a great meeting place in Fes for tourists, expats and locals.

For More Information on Morocco for Vegetarians or a Morocco Tour  
Morocco’s Imperial CitiesSeaside Resorts,Sahara Desert,Berber villagesA Taste of MoroccoMagical Kasbahs, Ruins & WaterfallsAbsolute Morocco, The Best of MarrakechFes, and Ouarzazate
Travel Exploration specializes in Morocco Travel.We provide Tours and travel opportunities to Morocco for the independent traveler and tailor-made tours for families and groups with a distinctly unique flavor. From Morocco’s Seven Imperial Cities, to the Magical Sahara Travel Exploration offers a captivating experience that will inspire you. At Travel Exploration we guarantee that you will discover the best of Morocco! Call Travel Exploration at 1 (800) 787-8806 or + 1 (212) 618882681 and let’s book a tour to Morocco for you today.

Moroccan Cooking Classes, Your Morocco Travel Guide

Sunday, October 24th, 2010
Moroccan Cooking Class Chef

Moroccan Cooking Class Chef

If you’re planning a Morocco vacation one of the best ways to discover the culture of the Maghreb is to taking a cooking class or a private, cooking course in Morocco’s Imperial Cities of Marrakech and Fes or consider a Moroccan culinary tourMarrakech and Fes offer some of the Morocco’s best cooking classes as a result of their subculture and history of fine cuisine alongside being able to lay claim to some of the best restaurants in Morocco.

A Morocco cooking class usually starts with a comprehensive introduction that highlights the importance of cooking in Moroccan society, and reviews the variety of recipes created by dadas (traditional woman cooks) over the centuries for special occasions such as marriages, holidays such as Ramadan, Eid El Kebir, Moroccan baptisms, and circumcisions.

Moroccan Spices

Moroccan Spices

Before taking a cooking class in Morocco most leading chefs will take you on a tour of the Marrakech or Fes medina on a tour and in search of the most favored spices that are used in Morocco cooking. During your medina tour you will discover spices such as fresh cumin, ginger, wild saffron grown from the Moroccan city of Talouine, indigenous sea salt from the Souss region of Agadir and pepper.

Lahcen's Cooking Class, Spice Shopping Fes

Lahcen's Cooking Class, Spice Shopping Fes

The core spices used in Moroccan cuisine include ginger, saffron, Cumin, ras el hanout (a mixture of up to 35 different spices and a famous Moroccan must in any kitchen), as well as salt and pepper. Olive oil, of which there is an abundance in Morocco, is also an essential ingredient in the local cuisine, as well as ghi (a kind of aged butter).

Most Moroccan recipes use parsley and coriander. Other important herbs such as thyme, oregano, bay leaf, rosemary and basil, are used depending on the recipe being prepared.

Traditionally, Moroccan homes used charcoal and clay pots to cook tajines or couscous. Modern Moroccan homes of course use the same gas or electric ranges found in European or American homes.

Le Jardin Des La Medina Cooking Class, Marrakech

Le Jardin Des La Medina Cooking Class, Marrakech

The cooking workshops at in Marrakech at famous five star Riads such as Le Maison Arabe and Le Jardin Des La Medina are conducted using modern equipment, so that the participants can easily prepare the dishes they have learned once they have returned to their own countries. A typical Moroccan cooking class lasts approximately 3-4 hours depending on the dish of choice you have chosen to make.

The same goes for the top cooking classes in Fes at Lahcen’s Moroccan Cooking class and culinary tour which is acclaimed by the New York Times and also at Café Clock

Before beginning your Moroccan cooking workshop, your chef will first offer an an overview of the most traditional recipes such as pastilla, couscous, and the broad variety of tajines (stews usually made with lamb or chicken), while reviewing some of the basic pillars of Moroccan cuisine.

Then the class will begin and take you away on a Moroccan adventure that will fill tempt your pallet.

Tajine La Maison Arabe Cooking Class

Tajine La Maison Arabe Cooking Class

Moroccan cooking Techniques for a typical tajine recipe calls for searing the meat, softening the onions, bringing to a boil and allowing to slowly simmer. This results in a reduced, thick sauce.

Woman Making Pastilla

Woman Making Pastilla

Techniques for pastilla and couscous will also be reviewed. Finally, before the practical part of the cooking class begins, you will be acquainted with the recipe of the day, whether it’s a chicken tajine with olives and preserved lemons, couscous or pastilla, and review the various vegetables and ingredients that will be used.

Most Moroccan cooking classes are structured around easy-to- make traditional recipes. Each participant has his or her own workstation and equipment, and follows step-by-step the preparing of that day’s dish. In a typical workshop or Moroccan cooking class you will learn how to make a main course as well as a Moroccan appetizer or salad (for example, eggplant or roasted green peppers with tomatoes).

Pigeon Pastilla

Pigeon Pastilla

When the class has finished, you will be able to savor the result of your labor by enjoying the meal you’ve prepared, in the cool shade of an olive or fig tree or in a special part of the Riad where you have taken your Moroccan cooking class.

Listed below are sample offerings that La Maison Arabe in Marrakech has as options of what you learn to cook during your Moroccan cuisine adventure. These recipes duplicated by other cooking classes in Morocco using their own chef’s unique style:

Briouate class:
-Assortment of Moroccan briouates (turnovers) – cheese, chicken ground meat, vegetables and seafood

Pastilla class (choice of):
– Chicken with almonds
– Seafood
– Vegetables

Tajine class (choice of):
– Chicken tajine with lemon and olives
– Chicken tajine M’derbel (stewed tomatoes with cinnamon and
sesame seeds).
-Chicken tajine with almonds and boiled eggs
-Lamb tajine with dates and almonds
– Lamb tajine with figs and walnuts
– Beef or lamb tajine Makfoul (steamed tomatoes with small
onions)
– Lamb tajine with prunes and apricots

Couscous class (choice of):
– Chicken or lamb with caramelized onions
– Chicken or lamb with seven vegetables

For more information about Moroccan Cooking Classes or a Morocco Culinary Tour

For more information about Travel and Tours to Morocco plus highlights on Moroccan culture visit Morocco’s Imperial CitiesSeaside Resorts,Sahara DesertBerber villagesA Taste of MoroccoMagical Kasbahs, Ruins & WaterfallsAbsolute Morocco, The Best of MarrakechFes, and Ouarzazate

Discover The Best of Morocco - Travel Exploration

Travel Exploration specializes in Morocco Travel. We provide Tours and travel opportunities to Morocco for the independent traveler and tailor-made tours for families and groups with a distinctly unique flavor. From Morocco’s Seven Imperial Cities, to the Magical Sahara Travel Exploration offers a captivating experience that will inspire you. At Travel Exploration we guarantee that you will discover the best of Morocco! Call Travel Exploration at 1 (800) 787-8806 or 1 (917)703-2078 and let’s book a tour to Morocco for you today.

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