Moroccan Harira Soup (Lentil, Chickpea & Tomato)

Harira is the tomato-and-pulse soup that shows up on Moroccan tables year-round and especially at iftar in Ramadan. This version builds flavour the usual way: onion and celery softened slowly, tomato cooked down until it turns jammy, then lentils and chickpeas simmered with ginger, turmeric, cumin and a little cinnamon. Near the end you stir in vermicelli and a flour slurry (tedouira) so the soup thickens enough to coat a spoon, then finish with lemon and a lot of fresh herbs.

You do not need a clay tagine or special gear—just a heavy pot. The method below is the home style common in Casablanca and other cities: thick, lemony, and good with dates or bread on the side. If you already make our Turkish red lentil soup, this sits in a similar “everyday bowl” lane but with a different spice profile and that classic Moroccan body from the tedouira.

Serves 6. About 20 minutes of prep and 1 hour 10 minutes of cooking.

A short note on the dish

Harira varies by household. Some cooks add small pieces of lamb or beef; many keep it meatless for everyday meals. Cities and families disagree on how much cinnamon to use and whether to blend part of the soup. What stays consistent is the tomato base, the lentils and chickpeas, the warm spice mix, and the lemon-herb finish. The flour slurry is traditional—it is what turns a thin broth into something you can eat with a spoon that feels substantial.

For a fuller Moroccan meal, pair a bowl with bread and something from the tagine posts: chicken tajine with apricots or lamb tagine with prunes. Those are richer mains; harira works as a starter or as a light dinner on its own.

Ingredients

Base

• 2 tbsp (30 ml) olive oil, or 1 tbsp (15 g) smen or butter plus 1 tbsp (15 ml) oil
• 1 large onion (225 g / 8 oz), finely chopped
• 2 celery stalks (100 g / 3½ oz), finely chopped
• 2 medium tomatoes (300 g / 10 oz), grated or finely chopped, or 1 can (400 g / 14 oz) crushed tomatoes
• 2 tbsp (30 g) tomato paste
• 3 garlic cloves, finely grated
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 1 tsp ground turmeric
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• ½ tsp ground cinnamon
• ½ tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tsp fine sea salt, plus more to taste
• About 15 saffron threads, crumbled into 2 tbsp (30 ml) warm water (optional)

Pulses and liquid

• 100 g (½ cup) brown or green lentils, rinsed
• 1 can (400 g / 14 oz) chickpeas, drained and rinsed (about 240 g / 1½ cups cooked), or the same weight cooked from dried
• 1.5 L (6¼ cups) water or low-sodium chicken or vegetable stock
• 1 small bunch cilantro (20 g / ¾ oz), stems finely chopped, leaves reserved
• 1 small bunch flat-leaf parsley (20 g / ¾ oz), stems finely chopped, leaves reserved

Thickener and finish

• 40 g (⅓ cup) fine vermicelli or broken thin spaghetti
• 2 tbsp (16 g) all-purpose flour mixed with 60 ml (¼ cup) cold water (tedouira)
• Juice of 1 large lemon (about 3 tbsp / 45 ml), plus wedges to serve
• Dates or crusty bread, for serving (optional)

Method

1. Warm the oil in a heavy 5–6 litre (5–6 qt) pot over medium heat. Add the onion, celery and a pinch of salt. Cook 8–10 minutes, stirring now and then, until soft and translucent. Do not brown them; you want sweetness, not caramel colour.
2. Stir in the grated tomato and tomato paste. Cook 5–7 minutes until the mixture looks jammy and most of the watery liquid has cooked off. This step matters: undercooked tomato tastes sharp and thin.
3. Add the garlic, ginger, turmeric, cumin, cinnamon, pepper, salt and the saffron with its soaking water. Stir for about 1 minute until the spices smell warm and the paste looks glossy.
4. Add the lentils, chickpeas, chopped herb stems and the water or stock. Bring to a boil, skim any foam, then lower to a steady simmer. Cover partly and cook 40–45 minutes, until the lentils are tender and the broth tastes rounded rather than raw-spice.
5. Taste and adjust salt. For a thicker, more traditional body, blend about 2 cups (480 ml) of the soup with an immersion blender (or mash some chickpeas against the side of the pot) and stir it back in. Leave plenty of whole chickpeas and lentils.
6. Add the vermicelli and simmer uncovered 5–7 minutes until the pasta is just tender. Stir often so it does not clump on the bottom.
7. Whisk the flour and cold water again until smooth. Pour it into the pot in a thin stream while stirring. Simmer 3–5 minutes more, stirring often, until the soup coats a spoon. If it thickens too much, loosen with a splash of hot water.
8. Take the pot off the heat. Stir in most of the chopped herb leaves and the lemon juice. Taste again for salt, lemon and pepper—harira should taste bright, not flat.
9. Ladle into bowls, top with the remaining herbs, and serve with lemon wedges. Dates on the side are traditional at iftar; bread works any other day.

Technique notes that change the result

Tomato first, liquid later. Cooking the tomato paste and grated tomato until jammy before you add stock is the difference between a bright red soup and a pale, sharp one. Do not rush this.

Tedouira without lumps. Mix the flour with cold water until completely smooth, then stream it in while stirring. If you dump dry flour into hot soup, it clumps. Some cooks use a spoon of fermented sourdough starter or beaten egg instead; flour-water is the most reliable home method.

Thickness. Harira should be spoonable and slightly creamy, not as thin as a clear broth and not as thick as a stew. It will thicken more as it sits, so stop a little short of your ideal if you plan to reheat later.

Herbs in two stages. Stems go in with the simmer for aroma; leaves go in off the heat so they stay green and fresh.

Swaps and serving ideas

Keep it vegetarian with olive oil and vegetable stock. For a meat version, brown 250 g (9 oz) diced lamb or beef with the onion, then continue as written and add 10–15 minutes to the simmer if needed. Skip vermicelli if you prefer, or stir in a handful of cooked rice at the end. Leftovers keep 3 days in the fridge; freeze up to 2 months (best without pasta—add vermicelli when you reheat). Always finish reheated bowls with fresh lemon and herbs.

If you’d like a main course after the soup, our Moroccan lamb tagine with prunes or Moroccan chicken tajine with apricots keeps the meal Moroccan, and Ethiopian doro wat makes a spicier contrast.

New to these spices? Read our Moroccan spice guide. For cooling, freezing and reheating soups, see our make-ahead, storage and freezing guide.

Moroccan Harira Soup

A thick Moroccan tomato soup with lentils, chickpeas, warm spices and a tangle of vermicelli, finished with lemon and fresh herbs. Suitable for a heavy pot on the stove; no special equipment needed.

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Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 1 hour hr 10 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 30 minutes mins

Course Soup

Cuisine Moroccan

Servings 6

Equipment

• 5–6 litre (5–6 qt) heavy pot or Dutch oven immersion blender optional

Ingredients

  

Base

• 2 tbsp (30 ml) olive oil, or 1 tbsp (15 g) smen / butter + 1 tbsp (15 ml) oil
• 1 large onion (225 g / 8 oz), finely chopped
• 2 celery stalks (100 g / 3½ oz), finely chopped
• 2 medium tomatoes (300 g / 10 oz), grated or finely chopped, or 1 can (400 g / 14 oz) crushed tomatoes
• 2 tbsp (30 g) tomato paste
• 3 garlic cloves, finely grated
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 1 tsp ground turmeric
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• ½ tsp ground cinnamon
• ½ tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tsp fine sea salt, plus more to taste
• about 15 saffron threads, crumbled into 2 tbsp (30 ml) warm water (optional)

Pulses and liquid

• 100 g (½ cup) brown or green lentils, rinsed
• 1 can (400 g / 14 oz) chickpeas, drained and rinsed (about 240 g / 1½ cups cooked), or 240 g cooked from dried
• 1.5 L (6¼ cups) water or low-sodium chicken or vegetable stock
• 1 small bunch cilantro (20 g / ¾ oz), stems finely chopped, leaves reserved
• 1 small bunch flat-leaf parsley (20 g / ¾ oz), stems finely chopped, leaves reserved

Thickener and finish

• 40 g (⅓ cup) fine vermicelli or broken thin spaghetti
• 2 tbsp (16 g) all-purpose flour mixed with 60 ml (¼ cup) cold water (tedouira)
• Juice of 1 large lemon (about 3 tbsp / 45 ml), plus wedges to serve
• Dates or crusty bread, for serving (optional)

Instructions

 

• Warm the oil in a heavy pot over medium heat. Cook the onion and celery with a pinch of salt for 8–10 minutes until soft and translucent, not browned.
• Stir in the grated tomato and tomato paste. Cook 5–7 minutes until the mixture darkens and looks jammy and most of the watery liquid has cooked off.
• Add the garlic, ginger, turmeric, cumin, cinnamon, pepper, salt and the saffron with its water. Cook 1 minute until the spices smell warm.
• Add the lentils, chickpeas, chopped herb stems and the water or stock. Bring to a boil, skim any foam, then reduce to a steady simmer. Cover partly and cook 40–45 minutes, until the lentils are tender and the broth tastes rounded.
• Taste and adjust salt. For a thicker, more traditional body, blend about 2 cups (480 ml) of the soup (or mash some chickpeas against the side of the pot) and return it to the pot.
• Add the vermicelli and simmer uncovered 5–7 minutes until the pasta is just tender.
• Whisk the flour-water slurry again, then stir it into the pot in a thin stream. Simmer 3–5 minutes, stirring often, until the soup coats a spoon. If it gets too thick, loosen with a splash of hot water.
• Off the heat, stir in most of the chopped herb leaves and the lemon juice. Taste again for salt, lemon and pepper.
• Ladle into bowls, top with the remaining herbs, and serve with lemon wedges and dates or bread.

Notes

• Vegetarian: use water or vegetable stock and olive oil (skip smen if you want it fully plant-based).
• No vermicelli: leave it out, or stir in a handful of cooked rice at the end.
• Make-ahead: the soup thickens in the fridge. Reheat gently and thin with water; add fresh lemon and herbs just before serving. Fridge up to 3 days; freeze up to 2 months (best without vermicelli, add pasta when reheating).
• Tedouira tip: always mix flour with cold water until smooth before adding, or the soup can clump.

Keyword chickpea tomato soup, harira, Moroccan harira soup, Moroccan lentil soup, Ramadan soup

Common questions

Can I use red lentils? You can, but they break down completely and the soup will be smoother and less textured. Brown or green lentils hold their shape better for classic harira.

Do I need saffron? No. It adds colour and a light aroma, but the soup still works with ginger, turmeric, cumin and cinnamon alone.

Why is my harira thin? Usually the tomato was not cooked down enough, the simmer was too short, or the tedouira was skipped or undercooked. Blend a cup or two of the soup and simmer the slurry a few minutes longer.

Is this the same as Turkish mercimek? No. Mercimek is a blended red-lentil soup with cumin and paprika. Harira uses mixed pulses, tomato cooked to a paste, cinnamon-ginger spices, vermicelli and a flour thickener. Both are everyday soups; the flavours are different.

Photo: hamzaoui fatma on Pexels