‹ The best bowl in 50 cities › Marrakech
Soup season · Marrakech, Morocco
The best bowl in Marrakech: Harira
Morocco's tomato, lentil and chickpea soup with lamb, herbs and spices, thickened with flour and egg, eaten with dates and chebakia.
Harira breaks the fast every night of Ramadan and warms everyone the rest of the year. At dusk on Jemaa el-Fnaa, the harira stalls ladle it for a few dirhams a bowl.
The harira stalls of Jemaa el-Fnaa
Jemaa el-Fnaa, Marrakech
Get: A bowl of harira with a squeeze of lemon, a few dates and a piece of chebakia (sesame honey pastry)
عافاك، واحد الحريرة. (Afak, wahed l-harira.)One harira, please.
The square fills with food stalls at sundown, and the soup stalls are where locals sit down: a wooden spoon, a bench and a bowl for 10 to 15 dirhams.
Evenings, from sundown; every night of Ramadan is the busiest.
Make it at home
Moroccan harira with lamb, lentils and chickpeas
Harira gets its silky texture from a flour-and-water thickener stirred in at the end, called the tadouira. Lots of fresh cilantro and parsley, and lemon at the table, keep it bright.
You need
- 1 cup (200 g) dried chickpeas, soaked overnight (or 2 cans, drained)
- 3/4 cup (150 g) brown or green lentils, rinsed
- 12 oz (340 g) lamb shoulder, in 1/2-inch pieces
- 2 tbsp olive oil and 1 tbsp butter
- 1 large onion, grated
- 2 celery stalks with leaves, finely chopped
- 1 large bunch cilantro and 1 large bunch parsley, finely chopped
- 1 tsp ground ginger, 1 tsp turmeric, 1 tsp black pepper, 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 2 lb (900 g) ripe tomatoes, grated (or 1 can, 28 oz, puréed)
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 3 quarts (2.8 l) water
- 2 1/2 tsp kosher salt, plus more to taste
- 2 oz (60 g) broken vermicelli or 1/4 cup rice
- For the tadouira: 1/2 cup (65 g) flour whisked into 1 1/2 cups (360 ml) cold water
- 2 eggs, beaten (optional)
- To serve: lemon wedges, dates, and chebakia or bread
How to make it
- In a large pot, warm the oil and butter over medium heat. Add the lamb, onion, celery, half the herbs and all the spices. Cook 10 minutes, stirring, until the lamb has browned lightly.
- Add the drained chickpeas (if dried), the tomatoes, tomato paste and water. Bring to a boil, then simmer, partly covered, 45 minutes.
- Add the lentils (and canned chickpeas if using) and the salt. Simmer 35-40 minutes until the lentils and chickpeas are tender.
- Add the vermicelli or rice and the rest of the herbs. Cook 8 minutes.
- Whisk the tadouira again and pour it in a thin stream into the simmering soup, stirring all the time. Simmer 10 minutes, stirring often, until the soup turns silky and coats a spoon.
- If using eggs, drizzle them in while stirring so they form threads.
- Taste for salt and serve hot, with lemon, dates and chebakia or bread.
Pans and tools
- 8-quart heavy pot
- box grater
- whisk
Chef's tips
- Keep stirring after the flour goes in, or it sticks to the bottom.
- Leave out the lamb and use vegetable stock for a vegetarian version.
- It thickens as it sits; add water when you reheat.
Four more bowls in Marrakech
Fava bean soup
Thick split fava bean soup with olive oil, cumin and paprika, eaten with bread for breakfast in winter.
The breakfast counters of Bab Doukkala
Get: A bowl of bissara with olive oil, cumin and bread, and a msemen
Wahed bissara, afak.One bissara, please.
The counters by this medina gate feed workers bissara and msemen from dawn; it's the morning soup of Marrakech.
Early mornings, mostly in the cool months (November to February); gone by midday. Cash.
Make it at home: Bissara
Morocco's winter breakfast. Peeled dried split fava beans cook fast and purée smooth.
You need
- 1 1/2 cups (300 g) peeled dried split fava beans, rinsed
- 6 cups (1.4 l) water
- 4 garlic cloves
- 1/3 cup (80 ml) good olive oil, plus more to serve
- 2 tsp ground cumin, 1 tsp sweet paprika, a pinch of cayenne
- 1 1/2 tsp salt
- Juice of 1/2 lemon
- Crusty bread
How to make it
- Put the beans, water and garlic in a pot, bring to a boil, skim and simmer 50 minutes, until falling apart.
- Blend smooth with the olive oil, 1 tsp cumin and the paprika.
- Season with salt and lemon; add water for a thinner soup.
- Serve with a pool of olive oil and a sprinkle of cumin and cayenne, with bread.
Chef's tips
- It thickens as it stands; loosen with hot water.
Snail broth
Small snails in a broth with more than a dozen spices and herbs, eaten from a little bowl with a toothpick.
The snail stalls of Jemaa el-Fnaa
Get: A small bowl of snails, and drink the broth
Wahed babbouche, afak.One snails, please.
The steaming pots on the east side of the square are a Marrakech evening ritual; locals drink the broth for digestion.
Evenings, from about 6pm.
Make it at home: Babbouche (spiced snail broth)
Moroccan cooks swear by the spice mix: thyme, licorice, orange peel and more. Canned or frozen cooked snails make it a home dish.
You need
- 1 lb (450 g) cooked snails (canned or frozen, rinsed)
- 6 cups (1.4 l) water
- 1 tbsp dried thyme, 1 tbsp dried mint or peppermint tea
- 1 piece licorice root or 1 tsp anise seed
- 1 tsp caraway, 1 tsp cumin seed, 1 tsp black peppercorns, 2 bay leaves
- 1 strip dried orange peel
- 1 dried chile
- 1 1/2 tsp salt
How to make it
- Put everything except the snails in the water and bring to a boil.
- Simmer 30 minutes to make a strong, herbal broth.
- Add the snails and simmer 15 minutes more.
- Season and serve in small bowls with toothpicks to pull the snails out; drink the broth.
Chef's tips
- Tie the spices in cheesecloth for a clear broth.
Chicken and vermicelli soup
A light tomato and chicken soup with fine vermicelli, coriander and a squeeze of lemon.
Café Clock · 224 Derb Chtouka, Kasbah, Marrakech
Get: The soup of the day, and the camel burger if you're brave
Shorba, afak.The soup, please.
A Kasbah café known for Moroccan home dishes, storytelling nights and cooking classes.
Soups change by the day; ask.
Make it at home: Moroccan chorba with chicken and vermicelli
Lighter than harira and quicker: no lentils, no flour thickener.
You need
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 onion, grated
- 1 lb (450 g) chicken thighs, in small pieces
- 1 tsp ground ginger, 1 tsp turmeric, 1 tsp paprika, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 3 tomatoes, grated
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 6 cups (1.4 l) chicken broth or water
- 1 carrot and 1 zucchini, finely diced
- 2 oz (55 g) fine vermicelli, broken
- 1 1/2 tsp salt
- A handful each of chopped coriander and parsley
- Lemon wedges
How to make it
- In the oil cook the onion 5 minutes, add the chicken and spices and stir 3 minutes.
- Add the tomatoes and paste and cook 5 minutes.
- Add the broth and carrot and simmer 20 minutes.
- Add the zucchini and vermicelli and cook 6 minutes, until soft. Season.
- Stir in the herbs and serve with lemon.
Chef's tips
- A few dates on the side, as at Ramadan, is how it's often eaten.
Barley soup
Cracked barley cooked with milk, anise and a little butter, a gentle breakfast soup of the Moroccan home.
Riad and café breakfast tables across the medina
Get: Ask your riad for hssoua at breakfast
Wash kayna hssoua?Is there barley soup?
More a home soup than a restaurant one: riads and small cafés make it for breakfast in the cold months.
Winter mornings; ask the day before.
Make it at home: Hssoua belboula (barley soup)
Barley grits (belboula) are sold in Moroccan and Middle Eastern shops; coarse bulgur works too.
You need
- 2/3 cup (120 g) barley grits (belboula) or coarse bulgur
- 4 cups (950 ml) water
- 2 cups (480 ml) milk
- 1 tsp anise seed, crushed
- 2 tbsp butter or smen
- 1 tsp salt
- Olive oil or honey, to serve
How to make it
- Rinse the barley and simmer it in the water with the anise and salt 25 minutes, stirring often.
- Add the milk and simmer 10 minutes more, until creamy.
- Stir in the butter.
- Serve hot with a drizzle of olive oil, or honey for a sweet version.
Chef's tips
- Some cooks make it with water and olive oil only, no milk.
Bowls nearby
All 50 bowls The 25 best soup recipes
No. 1 checked October 28, 2026; the other four picked the same day from local guides and menus. Places change; if one has, tell us at hello@chefamazing.com.
Chef Amazing remembers every place you ate, keeps the lists friends send you, and helps you cook it at home.
Our founder's story · For chefs and food creators · Privacy · Terms