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Rfissa is a fabulous Moroccan dish of stewed chicken, lentils, and onions served on a bed of shredded msemen, trid pastry or bread. A fragrantly seasoned broth is poured over all.
Some Moroccan foods are so good. You’ll never find them on a restaurant menu. Trid is one of those dishes. The simple ingredients of chicken and lentils are elevated with spices and a slow cooking time – until everything falls apart.
Rfissa is a kind of chicken tagine served with thin stripes of pan-fried bread similar to msemen – called trid – and then topped with lentils.
Because making trid is relatively time-consuming, when we make rifssa at home in Morocco, we usually buy the trid from the souk or a local bakery.
It is a family dish par excellence, as it is prepared at family reunions and religious occasions, or what is termed in Morocco as “Zarda”.
This dish is prepared mostly on the occasions of childbirth, as it is prepared for women who have just given birth because it contains healthy, beneficial, and milk-producing ingredients such as fenugreek, lentils, and special spices called “Makhan ”
Origin Of Rfissa
Chicken Rfissa is a variation of trid, a Moroccan dish that traces its origins back to tharid, a centuries-old Arab dish of stew and broth served over bread.
While trid can take different forms, rfissa is specifically a chicken and lentil dish that’s served on a bed of shredded trid pastry, msemen, meloui (or rezat el kadi), harcha, or day old bread.
When served over crumbled harcha, it’s referred to as rfissa medhoussa; when served over cubed bread, it’s called treda.
Rfissa’s signature broth is uniquely and fragrantly seasoned with Ras el Hanout, fenugreek seeds (helba in Arabic), saffron, and other spices. While not an elegant dish, it’s memorably delicious and regarded by many as Moroccan comfort food at its best.
In some regions or on some occasions, a seasoning blend called msakhen is used instead of ras el hanout.
Many consider the two blends to be similar, but msakhen includes herbs while ras el hanout does not. Msakhen also adds an element of heat, so it’s sometimes favored in cooler weather.
Rfissa Recipe
An organic, free-range chicken (djaj beldi) is often preferred in Morocco when making rfissa, and it works best due to the long cooking time.
If using a regular chicken (djaj roumi) you’ll need to remove it from the broth once cooked to avoid it falling apart before the lentils, onions, and fenugreek have finished stewing.
The chicken and lentil stew is quite easy to make, but plan ahead to marinate the chicken (preferably overnight) and soak the fenugreek. The pastry can be made while the chicken is stewing or well in advance of the serving day.
In Morocco, we can buy shredded pastries or msemen at local markets. This is a real time-saver!
However, many cooks prefer to make their pastry or msemen because they have control over the quality of the ingredients.
Planning to serve rfissa over leftover bread or store-bought paratha bread will eliminate this prep time.
The shredded msemen or pastry can be stored in the freezer until needed. At serving time, it’s usually steamed in a couscoussier.
Serving Suggestions
You’ll find rfissa served for family gatherings and casual company meals. It’s also traditionally served on the third day following the birth of a baby, due to the health benefits that fenugreek offers a nursing mother. Of course, it can be offered at other times as well.
Be Sure to Try These Other Authentic Moroccan Dishes!
Be sure to recreate this incredible delicacy that is not only delicious but also full of proteins, fiber, and tons of vitamins like iron and calcium needed for your body. Bon appétit!
Moroccan Chicken Rfissa
Ingredients
For the chicken
- 1 large chicken – quartered or left whole
- 3 large onions – thinly sliced
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1 tsp. ginger
- 1 tsp. pepper
- 1 tsp. Ras el Hanout (optional)
- 1 1/2 tsp turmeric (could be replaced by curry powder)
For the Lentils
- 1/2 cup uncooked lentils
- 4 tbsp fenugreek seeds – soaked overnight and drained
- 1 1/2 tsp saffron threads – heated gently and then crumbled (optional)
- 1 handful fresh cilantro – finely chopped
- 1 handful fresh parsley – finely chopped
- 4 1/2 cups water
- 1 1/2 tsp Smen – (Moroccan preserved butter) (could be replaced by softened butter) Msemen or Trid
- 1 1/2 batches msemen, shredded – (or trid pastry)
Instructions
Instruction Ahead of Time
- Making and shredding Msemen is best done ahead of time. We tear the Msemen into bite-size pieces while hot off the griddle.
- When cool, store in a Tupperware. If prepared more than a day in advance, freeze the shredded Msemen until needed.
- The night before (or at least six hours before cooking), soak the fenugreek seeds and lentils in separate bowls of cold water.
- Drain when ready to use. (If desired, the soaked fenugreek seeds can be tied in cheesecloth to keep them separate from other ingredients in the pot.)
- The night before (or at least six hours before cooking), we should mix the chicken with the onions, olive oil, salt, and pepper, ginger, turmeric, saffron and Ras el Hanout spices in a heavy-bottomed pot.
- Stir to coat the chicken well, cover, and leave in the fridge to marinate.
Cooking the Chicken and Lentils
- Place the pot with the chicken on the stove over medium heat and cook, covered, stirring occasionally, for about 15 to 20 minutes, until a rich sauce has formed.
- Then we add the drained lentils, drained fenugreek seeds, parsley, cilantro, and water.
- Simmer, covered, over medium-low to medium heat for about 1 hour, or until the lentils are tender and the chicken is well cooked.
- There should be a rich, ample broth in the pot. (If there’s not, add a little water during cooking, and tasting to be sure that the seasoning is not diluted.)
- Taste the broth for salt, afterward, we add the smen, swirling the pot to incorporate it into the broth. If desired, remove the chicken from the pot, then place it under a broiler for a few minutes to brown and crisp the skin.
Serve the Chicken Rfissa:
- Steam the shredded msemen in a couscoussier for about 10 minutes, or until steaming hot and tender.
- Spread or mound the hot, shredded msemen on a large serving dish.
- Add the chicken to the bed of msemen, after that, distribute the lentils, onions and most of the broth overall.
- Reserve a bowlful or two of broth to offer on the side. (If you tied the fenugreek in cheesecloth, empty it into a bowl to offer on the side as well.)
- Rfissa is traditionally enjoyed communally from the serving dish, with each person eating from his own side of the plate by hand or with a spoon. And Voilà!
Notes
- N.B: Smen is a preserved, clarified butter that adds a distinctive flavour to traditional Moroccan recipes such as this one. It can be omitted without too much compromise. However, those familiar with the dish will note its absence.
- If your chicken cooks faster than the lentils, we recommend to remove it from the broth and set aside, covered, to avoid it falling apart in the broth. Once the lentils are cooked, we can return the chicken to the pot to heat through for serving
- Ras el Hanout: (Literally translating to “top of the shop,”), main ingredient in Moroccan Chicken Rfissa, which is complex Moroccan mix traditionally blends the best-quality spices a merchant has to offer. The recipe varies widely depending on who makes it but tends to include at least a dozen (and often many more) distinct spices including ginger, cardamom, cumin, fennel, coriander, cinnamon, star anise, peppercorns, and turmeric. It is typically used for special occasions, flavoring Tagines or as a rub for meat.
