The tomato, lentil, and chickpea soup that breaks the fast across Morocco — silky, herbal, and lemon-bright.

Where does Harira come from?

Harira is a Moroccan dish from Fès-Meknès, Morocco.

Can Harira be made vegan, gluten-free, or dairy-free?

Yes. This Harira recipe includes ingredient substitutions to make it vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, or egg-free — including several of those at once, such as gluten-free and dairy-free together.

How long does Harira take to make?

About 70 minutes total (20 minutes prep, 50 minutes cooking), serving 6.

Recipe

Name: Harira
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 50 min
Total time: 70 min
Yield: 6 servings
Cuisine: Moroccan
Ingredients: 8 oz lamb shoulder, small dice; 3/4 cup brown lentils; 1.5 cups cooked chickpeas; 28 oz can crushed tomatoes; 2 stalks celery with leaves, chopped; 1 yellow onion, grated; 1 cup total cilantro + parsley, chopped; 1 tsp ground ginger; 1 tsp turmeric; 1/2 tsp cinnamon; 3 tbsp flour (for the tadouira thickener); 1/2 cup fine vermicelli; 2 tbsp tomato paste; 3 tbsp olive oil; plenty lemon wedges + dates, to serve

Africa → 🇲🇦 Morocco → Fès-Meknès

Harira

Moroccan · medium · serves 6

prep 20 min · cook 50 min

~419 cal · 27g protein · 57g carbs · 10g fat (estimated, per serving)

🍽️

Bowl of thick red harira soup with lentils, herbs, and lemon

🇲🇦 Fès-Meknès

When the sunset cannon sounds in Ramadan, Morocco eats harira: every household in Fès has its own balance of tomato, herbs, and the flour-thickened silkiness called tadouira. It’s eaten year-round too, with dates on the side and lemon squeezed over.

Make it yours

Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.

🥕 Vegetarian

🌱 Vegan

🌾 Gluten-Free

🥛 Dairy-Free

🥜 Nut-Free

🥚 Egg-Free

Ingredients

Serves 6 —

•

8 oz lamb shoulder, small dice

•

3/4 cup brown lentils

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1.5 cups cooked chickpeas

•

28 oz can crushed tomatoes

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2 stalks celery with leaves, chopped

•

1 yellow onion, grated

•

1 cup total cilantro + parsley, chopped

•

1 tsp ground ginger

•

1 tsp turmeric

•

1/2 tsp cinnamon

•

3 tbsp flour (for the tadouira thickener)

•

1/2 cup fine vermicelli

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2 tbsp tomato paste

•

3 tbsp olive oil

•

plenty lemon wedges + dates, to serve

Instructions

Brown the lamb (or mushrooms) in oil with the onion, celery, and spices, 5 minutes.

Add tomatoes, tomato paste, lentils, and 7 cups water. Simmer 35 minutes until the lentils are tender.

Add the chickpeas and half the herbs; simmer 5 more.

Whisk the flour with 1 cup cold water and stream it in, stirring — a few minutes later the soup turns glossy and velvet. Add the vermicelli for the last 4 minutes.

Finish with the remaining herbs. Serve hot with lemon to squeeze and dates alongside, the way Fès breaks the fast.

Fès Ramadan-table tradition.

Ratings & reviews

No reviews yet — be the first to cook it.

🌏 While it simmers — know your destination

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Fès-Meknès. The old imperial city whose harira breaks the Ramadan fast.

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Morocco. Where the Sahara meets the sea and spice routes crossed.

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Africa. Fifty-four countries of tagines, stews, and fire-kissed grills.

The story behind this dish is up top — worth a read while the pot works.

👩‍🍳

Richard Moore & Kelsey Tucker

Recipes cooked, tested, and researched by the creators of Spin the Globe. How we build our recipes →