Harira Soup

I got this recipe from David Tanis A Platter of Figs

Its absolutely fantastic and quite hardy. In some ways, it reminds me of a South Indian dish, Sambar, which is also a lentil based soup (albeit this has the addition of Lamb) It also reminds me of a Mongolian Lamb Soup I have made previously. According to Wikipedia, Harira is a Moroccan dish, usually eaten during Ramadan.

This soup tastes best if you make it a day in advance and let the flavors develop fully before devouring!

Ingredients
2 tablespoon olive oil
1 lbs shoulder of lamb, boneless (I made it with the bone and it was delicious)
2 large onions, finely diced
1/2 teaspoon crumbled saffron
1 teaspoon each ginger, cinnamon, turmeric, black pepper
2 teaspoons powdered red hot chile
1/2 teaspoon Harrisa powder
6 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 cup dried fava beans, picked over and washed
1 cup red lentil, picked over and rinsed
13 cups water
Salt
6 ripe tomatoes, coarsely chopped
1 cup coarsely chopped cilantro plus slivered cilantro for garnish
1/3 cup all purpose flour
4 tablespoon butter
Lemon wedges

1. Heat olive oil in a large stockpot. Brown the lamb lightly, then add chopped onions, stir and brown them. Add all of the spices and garlic and let them sizzle for a few minutes. Add the fava beans, lentils and 12 cups water. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to a simmer. Add 2 teaspoons salt and simmer for 1.5 hours, stiring occasionally.

2. Put tomatoes, parsley and cilantro into a blender with a litte salt and puree. Add the puree to the soup and simmer for another 1/2 hour.

3. Now, puree half of the soup and return it to the pot.

4. Add 1 cup of water to the flour in a separate bowl. Whisk it together until smooth. Add it to the soup. Simmer for another 10 minutes.

5. Add butter and stir until melted. The texture should be quite smooth, neigher thick nor thin.

6. Ladle into bowls and sprinkle with cilantro. Squeeze some lemon juice ontop. Season to taste with Salt and Pepper.

This goes really well with some freshly baked bread!

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