Recettes Algeria

Chtitha Batata

Chtitha batata is the Algerian potato stew, and it is built on dersa. Dersa is a paste of garlic and chilli ground in a mortar with cumin, paprika, black pepper and cayenne, and it is the starting point for a whole family of Algerian dishes, chtitha among them. The technique is straightforward and the order matters. The dersa is fried first until fragrant, which is what opens up the spices, and the potatoes go in and are turned through it so every surface is coated before any liquid arrives. Tomato paste follows, then just enough water to cover, and it cooks until the potatoes are soft and the sauce has thickened around them. It is vegan as written and eaten as a main course on its own terms, not as a compromise, which is unusual for a stew of this kind. Meat can go into the sauce and often does, and chickpeas are a common addition that the source's prose mentions though the recipe itself does not include them. It keeps four days refrigerated and reheats well, and the flavour improves overnight as the dersa works into the potatoes.

55 minEasyAlgeria

Recette de Blessing · Africook

Makroud

Makroud is a North African semolina pastry, filled, cut into diamonds, fried and then soaked in honey syrup. Diamond is the literal meaning of the word, and the shape is the point of the name. It belongs principally to Algeria and Tunisia, and it is also made in parts of Morocco, Libya and Malta. Where exactly it began is contested. Some accounts place it in the oases of Mzab and the steppes of Sétif in Algeria; others link it to Kairouan, the spiritual capital of Tunisia, which hosted the first national makroud festival in May 2008. It is written variously as makrout, maqroudh and maqrouth. The filling is the thing that varies most and the thing this recipe departs on. Traditional makroud is packed with dates, and figs and almonds appear as alternatives. **This recipe uses an almond filling rather than the date one**, which is a legitimate variation but not the classic. The semolina base is where the technique lives: it is rubbed with oil and butter and rested for at least two hours, ideally overnight, until it resembles wet oily sand. That rest is not optional. It is what allows the dough to come together with very little water and stay tender rather than tough.

★★★★★Les mieux notées

1 hr 45 minHardAlgeria

Recette de Blessing · Africook

Tamina (Algerian Toasted Semolina with Honey)

Tamina is semolina steamed, toasted until golden, and worked into warm honey and butter. It is Algerian, and it is made for occasions, engagements, weddings, baby showers and Mawlid, the birthday of the Prophet Muhammad. The three ingredients carry meaning, and the source explains it well: semolina for sustenance, honey for the sweetness of love, butter for blessings. That symbolism is why tamina appears at the birth of a child in particular, offering it to guests is the Algerian way of announcing a new baby, which makes the dish a message as much as a dessert. The toasting is the whole technique and it cannot be rushed. Semolina taken to a proper golden colour tastes nutty and complex; under-toasted, it tastes raw and pasty. It also burns from golden to black very quickly, so it needs constant movement over medium-low heat. The steaming step is unusual and the source explains its own reasoning: it is a safety measure, in case the semolina has not been toasted thoroughly enough. Many recipes skip it and toast alone. Economics have changed the ingredients. Margarine and sugar syrup now often replace butter and honey, which the source records without judgement. One caution: it identifies tamina with bsisa, which is a different Tunisian and Libyan preparation.

50 minEasyAlgeria

Recette de Blessing · Africook

Makroud el Louse (Algerian Almond Cookies)

Makroud el louse is the almond version of makroud, and it is a genuinely different cookie from the one that name usually brings to mind. Ordinary makroud is a semolina pastry stuffed with date paste and deep-fried, then soaked in syrup. Makroud el louse has no semolina, no dates and no frying: it is ground almonds, sugar and egg, shaped, baked, dipped in an orange-flower syrup and rolled in icing sugar. "Louse" is the Algerian word for almond, so the name simply distinguishes the almond one. Both are cut on the diagonal into the same lozenge shape, which is where the shared name comes from, makroud derives from the Arabic for something cut at an angle. The shape is the family resemblance; the ingredients are not. Because there is no flour in the dough, this version is naturally gluten-free, which is unusual among North African pastries and is worth knowing if you need it. One caution: the source's own instructions send you to a floured work surface, which would undo that. Use icing sugar or a little extra ground almond instead. These are keeping cookies. Sealed in a tin they hold for over a month, which is why they are made in quantity for Eid, Ramadan and weddings rather than a few at a time.

45 minMediumAlgeria

Recette de Nympha · Africook