Algerian Cuisine Cuisine Algerienne by Farid ZADI

Chorba for Ramadan

This chorba is very low salt, nutrient dense and soothing- perfect for suhur (pre-sunrise meal). Instead of using a more traditional whole chicken I used cubed chicken breast for a lighter finished product. I used a soup pot but this recipe can be made in a pressure cooker or slow cooker.

This soup is so easy that it's a none recipe. I went to Whole Foods (oops, didn't have a chance to go to a farmer's market) and purchased a variety of vegetables based on freshness and color. I bought onions, garlic, carrots, kale, yellow zucchini, a fresh fennel bulb, and kuri squash. The key ingredient for me is the kuri squash, it gave the soup a beautiful golden yellow/orange hue and added body to the broth. You can substitute acorn, kombucha or pumpkin.

I finely chopped the onion and minced the garlic, the kale was cut into a chiffonade and the remaining vegetables were cut into small cubes.

Le Creuset Tagine- Cookware Review

First of all I'd prefer a larger and deeper base. The shallow, small base limits the kind of tagines that can be prepared in it. It performs best for braised tagines with very little liquid added, but is simply not large enough for layered tagines or tagines that call for lots of sauce.

Algerian Samsa

I used the same dough and stuffing for these samsas that I prepared for my meloui

Ramadan is the month for fried foods! Especially fried sweets or savory pastries like these samsas. These are fried in just a little bit of oil and are quite light compared to most fried pastries or turnovers. They taste rather like a semolina pizza dough stuffed with spiced potatoes.

I serve these with a spicy chermoula or a salsa tomatish. A mixed green salad or a sweet and peppery orange and arugala salad. A spicy chick pea or lentil soup is also quite nice with these samsas.

According to The Oxford Companion to Food 10th and 13th century Arab cookbooks call these sanbusak derived from the Persian sanbosag. South Asian samosas, Afghani sambosas, Central Asian waraqi samsa or sambusai varaqi, and Turkish samsas all belong to the same family of turnovers.

Samsa is an Ottoman influence in Algerian cooking, but that doesn't mean we didn't have stuffed turnovers before the Turks. We had Moorish pastillas (beestiya), Arab trid, and Berber kesrettes. And post Ottoman rule, Algerians added cocas from Catalan to our culinary lexicon.

 

Algerian Meloui- Layered Bread

Ramadan is also the month for special breads and savory pastries in Algeria. Breads, boureks and samsas perfumed with spices or stuffed with a variety of vegetables or meats.

Meloui is a layered flatbread, some versions are similar to South Asian parathas or Malaysian roti canais. It can made with durum wheat semolina, whole wheat flour or all purpose flour. I prefer to use semolina or Indian durum atta which is the closest thing to Algerian whole wheat flour I can find in the states. White flour is becoming increasingly available in urban areas in Algeria. I don't like to use it, the flavor and texture just isn't doesn't sing bled (countryside) to me.

I made a very large batch of dough because I used the same dough to make samsas (my next post). I used 4 cups of fine semolina, salt, and 1 package of yeast (you can use natural starter or a piece of leftover dough from a previous batch of bread dough), but I used packaged yeast because it was convenient for me. Besides, most North African cookbooks call for packaged yeast.

I only kneaded the dough for 10-15 minutes because I wanted a very tender meloui. The addition of yeast also helps make for a lighter meloui. Some versions of meloui call for 30-40 minutes of kneading to really build up the gluten.

Marqa Recipe for Ramadan (Marka, Maraq or Marak)

This is my entry for Super Soup Challenge another food blogging event via Is My Blog Burning.

Marqa is the Algerian derja (dialect) word for Arabic maraq (marak or marag). I was curious about the variations in pronunciation and meaning, so I looked up the word in Medieval Arab Cookery and Delights from The Garden of Eden by Nawal Nasarallah.

In Algerian derja marqa means sauce. Medieval Arab Cookery confirms my understanding of the word. I found a South Asian food blog that refers to marag as a stew (Hyderabad marag). In Delights from The Garden of Eden Nawal Nasrallah tells us that marga or marag in Iraq is a stew "of meat and vegetables simmered in tomato sauce". In Tunisia marqa usually refers to braises or stews cooked in tagines.

Lamb and Fig Tagine Cooked in a Clay Tagine- It's Fig Season!

This is another intermediate tagine recipe, which means I am assuming basic knowledge of clay tagine cooking for the cook who wants to try this. You can make this tagine, as with all my clay tagine recipes, in a casserole or dutch oven. Many of my recipes can also be prepared in a pressure cooker or slow cooker. Contemporary North Africans cooks mix old and new cooking techniques.

I used thick lamb loin chops- but duck, chicken, veal or rabbit are also delicious with figs. However, the cooking methods must be modified a bit for different proteins.

I sprinkled the lamb chops with spices and a 1/4 teaspoons of salt, placed them in my clay tagine with 4 tablespoons of olive oil and turned the heat on a low setting to seize the meat, not brown it. I added one cup of water and let it braise for 2 hours, adding more water as needed. Remember the rate of moisture loss can vary considerably depending on the type of clay tagine you use.

When the meat is almost done cooking let the braising liquid reduce to a glaze of olive oil and rendered lamb fat. At this point the lamb chops will start browning. Remove the lamb pieces from the tagine when they are lightly browned on both sides.

Cut the figs in half or quarters depending on how large they are. Add them to the tagine and cook until they start to caramelize. If you're not experienced with cooking in clay and controlling heat, I suggest browning the figs in a non stick skillet. The sugars from the figs will caramelize and it's just a short step to burning if the tagine vessel gets too hot. Remember clay retains heat longer than say a non-stick skillet, once a clay vessel is hot moving it off the fire won't work as a quick way to reduce temperatures to impede burning.

Ramadan Recipes Around the World

In anticipation of one of my upcoming cookery books about spice trade routes and silk roads for this year's Ramadan I'm traveling the world (virtually) in search of recipes. My wife and I have already begun preliminary research for our books and we have a pantry stocked with the necessary spices.

I think I'll start with Indian Ocean trade and the South Indian State of Kerala. Grains, Greens and Grated Coconuts: Recipes and Remembrances of a Vegetarian Legacy by my friend Ammini Ramachandran (www.peppertrail.com), an excellent source of historical information and delicious recipes. Ammini's cookbook is one of the first to focus on the Hindu traditions of Kerala for a Western audience. She tells us though that Kerala cuisine is informed by a confluence of peoples including Muslims and Christians. Indian Ocean trade, as with all trade, is not just about ingredients and goods- it is also about the migration of peoples and dynamic exchanges of ideas.

Ammini sent me a copy of Malabar Muslim Cookery by Ummi Abdula (book link) - I can see quite a few similarities with North African cooking in terms of basic techniques. Obviously we don't use tropical ingredients such as coconuts or mangoes in Algerian cookery, but after a quick glance of the recipes in the book I estimate that I have about 95% of the spices and herbs, the remaining 5% are really easy to find in Los Angeles.

Then I'll go "island hopping" over to Southern Thailand inspired by a recent meal at Jitlada in Hollywood to make a Mussaman beef curry then go just a little further south into Malaysia for a flaky roti canai.

I'll sprinkle in a little food history and make cultural connections on our Ramadan culinary adventure. For example Malaysian roti canai, Indian paratha and Algerian meloui are all cousins and share very similar preparation methods. Of course there are fine distinctions between them, what I hope to do is offer something balanced between looking at things too broadly from miles away and standing one inch in front of the blackboard. 

I doubt that I'll have enough time to cover the entire realm of Islamic cooking, but there is always next Ramadan... Oh, and what I mean by Islamic cuisine is something along the lines of what Rachel Laudan wrote in "The Mexican Kitchen's Islamic Connection":

Today Mexican families still sit down to dinners that reveal their Islamic origins. They begin with a “watery” soup (sopa aguada), such as a broth with tiny albondigas. Then comes a “dry soup” (sopa seca), such as “Spanish rice,” which is none other than the pilau of the Islamic world. The main course is a piece of chicken or meat accompanied by a green sauce, a nut sauce (nogada), an almond sauce (almendrada) or a spicy reddish-brown sauce (mole). After the meal comes a quince paste, with a little fresh cheese. Accompanying the meal is a refreshing drink—an agua fresca, as the Islamic sharbat is called in Mexico—a colorful, lightly sweetened homemade beverage of lime, melon or milky ground rice with almonds and cinnamon.

 

 

Badendjal Chtetha, Eggplant Ratatouille, Ratatouille d'Aubergines

This post was initially published on October 13, 2005. Not surprisingly lately it's been one of the post popular posts. Yes, I saw the movie Ratatouille too.

I'm bumping up this almost 2 year old post to link to Russ Parsons' LA Times blog post about The rat's ratatouille .

You'll see a couple of comments at the bottom of the post.

Me:

"I am beginning to investigate whether or not byaldi entered the French lexicon via Algeria. Some say byaldi is derived from the Turkish imam bayildi and the historical "bridge" between France and the Ottoman empire is Algeria. (Where is Charles Perry to answer?)

Anyway, a byaldi (with neatly sliced or coarsley chopped vegetables) in a casserole is a Provence style tian to me.

Enjoy!"

Response from Charles Perry (staff writer for The Times):

"Now Chef Zadi mentions it, Algeria probably is the route by which imam bayildi reached France. You can say it could have come by way of Syria or Lebanon when they were French protectorates in the Twenties and Thirties, but there was a much older, broader and more intimate contact with Algeria, so my vote is for Algeria."

A Provence style tian of layered ratatouillevegetables is also an Algerian Badenjal bil Tomatish (eggplant and tomato) Tagine.

The same ingredients and essentially the same cooking techniques are found in more than one food culture.

Seksu Khoubbiz, Couscous with Lavender, Couscous au Lavande

I left my camera somewhere and will not have it until tomorrow morning. So there go my plans to take photos of ghribia. I'll present a sweet couscous dish that is not well known. It's actually a very simple variation.

Ingredients:

500 gr of cooked couscous
500 gr de couscous cuit

1 tablespoon of lavender flowers, discard the stem
1 cuillere a soupe de fleur de lavande

1/4 cup of confectioner's sugar
25 gr de sucre glace

Method:

1) After the final couscous steaming add the lavender and dust with confectioner's sugar. Paula Wolfert's recipe for a sweet couscous with raisins. In Algeria we call couscous with raisins simply mesfouf, mesfouf b'z-zbib or seffa b'z-zbib. There are possibly more variations in what it's called.

Baghrir, Algerian Pancakes, Crêpes Algérienne

My maman made baghrir with 100% semolina flour. Other cooks use a combination of semolina and all purpose flour which produces more holes and a lighter pancake. Some versions do not contain eggs. I'll do a photo tutorial of those too. But my preference is for the way my maman made it, so I present her recipe first.

I think of Algerians more than other Maghrebis as having a preference for breads, cakes and crepes made from 100% semolina flour.

Dersat el'sane, Algerian Spicy Beef Tongue, Langue de Boeuf en Sauce

I prefer to serve dishes with a red sauce like this on darker colored plates, preferably earth toned. Even a little splatter of red sauce on the sides of a light colored plate does not look so nice to me. But we did not have a darker colored plate, so here you are.

It's taking me longer to post all the recipes from the Iftar photo than it did me to cook them!

Ingredients:

1 beef tongue (boil in water for about 20 minutes, peel off the skin with a very sharp knife)
750 gr- 1kg de langue de boeuf

3 tomatoes concassee
3 tomates

2 red bell peppers chopped
2 poivrons rouges hachees

1 onion chopped
1 oignon hache

2 carrots cut into rounds
2 carrottes coupees en rondelles

1 branch of celery chopped
1 branche de celeri hache

2 bay leaves
2 feuilles de laurier

Optional herbs include thyme, basil, flat leaf parsely or coriander leaf.

Vineger or lemon juice
Vinaigre ou jus de citron

Spices my ras el hanout or you can keep it simple and use cumin, paprika and turmeric.

Salt and pepper
Sel et poivre

Olive oil
Huile d'olive

(other versions include olives, chick peas, garlic or artichokes)

Loubia b'Dirsa, Algerian White Bean Stew, Potage aux Haricots Blancs et Pois Chiches

This dish has often been described as Algerian chili. I suppose one can call it that when explaining it to an American audience. It does have beans, optional ground or minced meat and spices. But the similarities end there. The flavor and texture are very different. The white beans and chick peas are cooked to buttery tenderness that contrasts nicely with the spiced broth and piquant dirsa.

Dirsa is a chili sauce made from fresh or dried hot red peppers.

Felfel, Algerian Hot Peppers Stuffed with Nuts, Piments Farcies aux Noix

If you like hot peppers you'll love this dish. I should have made more, my Korean in laws were practically fighting over them. My mother in law called me to wax poetic about these peppers.

I used Jalapenos because that is what I can fnd in Los Angeles for a good price. If you are in an area where Algerian peppers are not available use your favorite small Mediterranean peppers.

I will discuss the specific varieties used in Algeria in separate posts. My recipes are here to encourage you to make due with what you have, to think like an Algerian. Of course if you have the time and the money demand ingredients from your grocer, farmer or supermarket. It's amazing to read about Paula Wolfert struggling to find even cilantro in America  when she was working on her Moroccan cookbook.

The pool of olive oil is delicious. You can dip bread into it or reserve for a vinaigrette. This is a rich and flavorful dish. You can serve it as part of a meze/kemia or as a side dish or condiment.

Qara, Algerian Baked Pumpkin, Citrouille Rotie

This small pumpkin was baked in a 300F (167C) oven for about one hour. Bigger pumpkins take longer to cook.

Cut the pumpkin in half, remove the seeds and membrane. If you like wash the seeds and dry them to make spiced pumpkin seeds. I have photos of some I made that I will post later. Place a pat of butter inside each half of pumpkin, cover the pumpkin with foil, remove foil about 10-15 minutes before it's done to add some color.

Spices such as cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves can be sprinkled on about 15 minutes before the pumpkin is done.

Drizzle with honey and sprinkle with pine nuts or almonds and dried fruits such as raisins, chopped apricots, dates or figs.

This can be eaten as a dessert or as a side dish.

Slata bel Clementinas, Algerian Orange and Onion Salad, Salade d'Oranges aux Oignons

Another version of orange salad. Orange salads are clean tasting and help refresh and cleanse the palate especially during multi-course meals.

I prefer to slice my onions much more thinly than shown in the photo. I did not slice these onions.

This salad is only as good as the oranges and the sweetness of the onions used. If the onions you have aren't not so sweet soak them in cold water for about thirty minutes. A little sugar in the water helps too. Marinading the onions in 1 part vinegar and 3-4 parts olive oil help take the bite out of lesser quality onions.

Orange salad variations include: thinly sliced fresh fennel (I prefer young, tender fennel for this), grated fennel (I use this method for older fennel), blood oranges, wild greens and herbs, almonds, walnuts, pine nuts, orange flower water (be careful, if you are not used to this it can smell almost cosmetic), rosewater (good quality ones actually have a refreshing aroma) olives, dates, radishes, grated carrots, shallots, sugar, honey and cinnamon.

 

Dolma Khodra, Algerian Stuffed Vegetables, Legumes Farcies a la Viande Hachee

I decided to stuff some of the smaller vegetables from my Iftar mise en place Dolmas are an Ottoman introduction to Algerian cuisine. Before the Turks came the Badwi were stuffing meats and vegetables and there were Moorish stuffed dishes as well. So the concept of stuffing was not introduced by the Ottomans, rather a set of dishes and techniques were added to the layers of Algerian cuisine.

Scoop out the center of the vegetables with a small spoon, be careful not to dig too deeply. You want to leave at least a 1/4" at the base. Chop up the scooped bits of vegetable to use in the stuffing. You can saute them for more flavor, remember to cool them before adding the meat.

I know, I know most of my dishes contain meat. That's my own preference. I'm a big meat eater. There are stuffings made entirely from vegetables as well. I will post recipes for those later.

Ingredients:

5 small onions
5 petits oignons

4 small tomatoes
4 petites tomates

1 zucchini cut into even cylinders approximately the same height as the onions and tomatoes
1 courgette

Stuffing:

100 gr of ground lamb or beef
100 gr de viande hachee

5-6 green olives* (use Spanish or Italian if you cannot find Algerian olives), chopped
5-6 olives vertes hachees

1 shallot minced
1 echalote emincee

1 tablespoon of chopped herbs such as basil, thyme, flat leaf parsley or coriander leaf (cilantro)
1 cuillere a soupe d'herbes hachees, basilic, thyme, persil plat ou coriandre

Salt and pepper
Sel et poivre

1 egg
1 oeuf

Butter
Beurre

Olive oil
Huile d'olive

 

Chlada Bandjar, Algerian Beet Salad, Salade de Betteraves

Algerian beet salads can be as simple as the one I show or more complex with wild greens and herbs, thinly sliced sweet onions and nuts.

This is another recipe from my mise en place for Iftar.

Djedj M'fouar, Algerian Steamed Chicken, Poulet Cuit a la Vapeur

Another recipe from last week's iftar made from this mise en place. I have alot of catching up to do this weekend.

This is a method for steaming chicken in a crock pot for 6 hours.

Ingredients:

3 whole chicken legs
3 cuisses de poulet

1 parsnip peeled and chopped
1 panais pele et hache

1/2 medium onion chopped
1/2 oignon hache

1 bulb of kohlrabi cut into 6 pieces.
1 chou rave coupez en 6 morceaux

1/2 a bulb of fennel chopped
1/2 un bulb de fenouil hache

1/2 cup chick peas soaked overnight
Pois chiches

Salt
Sel

2 pinches of saffron or turmeric
2 pinces de safran ou curcuma

If you don't have a crockpot use the stove top method I describe here. Plating is the same.

Method:

1) Layer the vegetables in the pot, add the chickpeas, lightly season with salt, stir, add the chick peas and 1 1/2 cups of water.

2) Sprinkle about 1 tablespoon of salt evenly on the chicken and rub in the spices. If you don't want turmeric stained fingers wear gloves.

3) Place the chicken pieces on top as shown. Cover and cook push the cook for "6 hours on high" button. This is my first crock pot and I as sit here typing this I wonder what the settings are on other crock pots. I will find out and add to this post. In the meantime if you have a question just ask me.

Seksu bil Khodra, Algerian Couscous with 7 Vegetables, Couscous aux Sept Legumes

I decided to make couscous with seven vegetables last weekend while preparing my mise en place for Iftar. I had a good variety and combination of vegetables to make the dish.

There are as many variations of this dish as there are possible combinations for the vegetables we have available in the Maghreb. Some say the number seven is lucky. Some say it's a Badwi or Bidawi (Bedouin) dish. Others say any cook with seven vegetables makes this dish.

I chose my seven based on what I had and also the other dishes I was thinking of making. I knew that my guests liked piquant dishes so I planned on making a few along with a side of harisa. I decided a mild version of couscous with seven vegetables would be a nice contrast to the heat and spice of the soups in particular. I also did not want to add eggplant, tomatoes and peppers because I was making Badenjal chteta or Badenjal zaloka (eggplant ratatouille*).

Keftas, Algerian Meatballs, Boulettes de Viande

This is only one version I have, there are many more to come.

Ingredients:

500 grams of ground lamb or beef. Traditionally lamb is used. The fattier the better.
500 gr de viande hachee

1 small onion finely chopped
1 oignon finement hache

2 tablespoons of freshly grated bread crumbs
2 cuilleres a soupe chapelure

1 tablespoon of finely chopped flat leaf parsely
1 cuillere a soupe de persil plat finement hache

2 teaspoons of spice blend with cumin, coriander and fennel
2 cuilleres a cafe d'epices avec cumin, coriandre et fenouil

1-2 teaspoons of cayenne
1-2 cuilleres a cafe de cayenne

Salt and Pepper
Selt et Poivre

2 tablespoons of olive oil
2 cuilleres a soupe d'huile olive

1 tablepoon of white vinegar
1 cuillere a soupe de vinaigre blanc

Iftar

The table was set early for the purposes of taking the photo. There were more dishes that I did not have time to photograph. I'm am exhausted at the moment and will post recipes later inshAllah.

Obviously the plates and setting are not Algerian. Some of the plates are Korean celadon. We had this at my in-laws place.

Algerian ingredients

These are some of the ingredients I cooked with today. I bought them at a local Middle Eastern market. The prices are very good. Sometimes I get a great deal, other times I'm reminded "you get what you pay for". The store occasionally carries produce from smaller farmers.

I also try to purchase vegetables and fruits at the local farmer's market. There are many in Los Angeles County, one that is only about 2 miles away from where I live.

The game plan for cooking alot of Algerian dishes  is to go to the market and see what's available. High quality ingredients are still only as good as the cook. Common ingredients can be elevated by a very good cook. I know the trend in professional cooking is using the best available ingredients, but if you plan on being a professional you have to know how to cook poor ingredients as well. Otherwise you will be a slave to your ingredients and when they are sub-par you will be too.

Algerian cooking is all about depth of flavor. It may comes as a surprise to some, but the cooking in the Sahara and the bled (countryside) of Algeria are more than just meat on sticks. Okay, sometimes it is a whole lamb on a stick for a mechoui.

I wrote a little bit about the sort of ingredients we have on our family farm in Setif. It's beyond free range or organic. It is whole, pure food, wild ingredients that speak of the earth and the whims of nature. For those blown away by pre sale lamb from Brittany, a lamb from my family farm in setif that's grazed on the wild greens of the mountains is a whole other experience.

I washed and trimmed all of my vegetables first. Afterwards I decided what to make. It's difficult to do alot of cooking during the day and then sit down to post about it in a timely manner, especially during this month. Stay tune for more...

Ramadan!

Salam Aleikum

Ramadan Mubarkek!!!!

Need I say more?

Apologies for not posting more recipes. I will try to post at least three tomorrow and many more this weekend inshAllah.

Algerian Briks, Braewats, Samsas and Boureks

Algerian savory pastries range in sizes and shapes from triangles, little logs, longer thinner fingers, slender cigars, half moon briks, crescent shaped cocas to humongous moon shaped pastillas.

These are briks with a potato filling Brik b'il Batata. I also used the same filling to make little boureks, braewats or samsas.

Khobz Mbesses, Algerian Semolina Cake with Eggs, Gateau de Semoule aux Oeufs

This is a very simple, homey cake. It's heavy and very filling. The interior is moist and the crust is  chewy. Traditionally it's made in a tadjine.

There are versions of this cake that are baked or made like a halwet (halva).

Djej M'ammer b'r-roz, Algerian Chicken Stuffed with Rice, Poulet Farci au Riz

Another dish for Ramadan. Actually all the recipes on my site are suitable for Ramadan.

This is a very easy dish to make. It's one of those slow cooked all day dishes that are found in Algeria. It's very flavorful and satisfying.

Some cooks will leave a dish like this on the stove or fire all day long, until everything is meltingly tender.

 

Lham b'l-'ayn, Algerian Braised Lambshanks with Prunes, Jarrets d'Agneau aux Pruneaux

Sweet meat dishes are another Ramadan specialty. This version is unctuous and sweetened in layers with caramelized vegetables, dried fruits and honey. But it is not cloying when eaten in the proper quantities with other dishes to refresh the palate.

I have been omitting serving sizes intentionally. If an Algerian family of twelve has three lamb shanks, well then that's feeding twelve mouths. If an Algerian family of four has three lamb shanks, well then that's feeding four mouths.

The Algerian way of eating is always communal. A sense of sharing and consideration is inherently built into this concept.

I am aware that I have been presenting alot of meat dishes. I mentioned early on that the Zadi family ate much more meat than is typical. The Algerian diet for the most part is composed of whole grains, legumes and vegetables much more so than meat.

Algerian Harira

During the month of Ramadan every evening the fast is broken with dates and water,  lben or milk or with fruit and nut drinks usually followed by a nutritious and invigorating soup such as harira.

These are the ingredients for one version of harira. There are many others. I will try to post as many as I can eat from now and through Ramadan

I won't give quantities for this recipe. You want to cook Algerian dishes, think like an Algerian. We cook intuitively and creatively with what we have. A shopping list with measured ingredients is unheard of. We go to the market or souk we buy what's available, sometimes that means just piles of onions and squash. You don't have lamb? Use a chicken. You don't have any meat? Omit it. Yes, there are versions with no meat. You don't have eggs? Omit them from the recipe.

Ramadan Recipes, Recettes de Ramadan

Salaam Aleikoum

Jilal, other Algerians and Magrebis have begun requesting recipes for Ramadan such as harira, zalabiya de boufarik, more variations of l'ham lalou, briks, etc.

If you like, give me the Algerian, Tunisian or Moroccan (Arabic or Tamazight names) and French or English name of your family favorites for Ramadan. I will present the versions of those dishes as I know them along with recipes and photos.

I will begin with a post for harira on Tuesday.

Je compte mettre des recettes pour le ramadan, ca va etre interessant. Je demande seulement votre cooperation a toutes et a tous, si vous avez des plats et recettes speciales dans vos regions, et si vous pouvez me les envoyer avec le nom des recettes en francais, je me ferais un plaisir de les poster sur mon blog en Francais et en Anglais. Merci a tous. Bon ramadan

Djouaz el Hummus, Algerian Chick Pea Soup, Potage de Pois Chiches

This is a very satisfying and easy to make soup. It's nutritious and full of strong, simple flavors. As with most Algerian dishes there are endless variations of chick pea soup. This the first in a series that I will post.

It might come as a surprise to some that Algerian cuisine has a large range of vegetarian, vegan and whole grain dishes. Most seem to be more familiar with meat and chicken dishes. But that is not representative of the diet. My family ate an unusually high amount of lamb and beef compared to most.