Oriental spices: Tunisian harissa, Lebanese za'atar, sesame tahini and ras el hanout. All you need to season your tagines, couscous, hummus and manakish.
Our oriental spices bring together ready-to-use blends and pastes that give dishes from the Maghreb and Lebanon their flavour. Each has a specific origin and use. They keep for a long time and lift an everyday dish just as well as a festive meal.
Harissa is a Tunisian paste of dried red chillies, garlic, salt and oil, often seasoned with caraway and coriander. UNESCO added it to the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2022. Harissa arbi is the traditional version, with a more rustic texture. Every Tunisian family has its own recipe, more or less hot.
Lebanese za’atar blends dried wild thyme, toasted sesame seeds and sumac, a tangy red berry. Ras el hanout, “head of the shop” in Arabic, often combines more than ten spices: cumin, coriander, cinnamon, ginger or turmeric. Every Moroccan spice seller keeps their own recipe. Sumac gives za’atar its red colour and its lemony taste.
Tahini completes this range: it is a cream of ground sesame seeds, the base of hummus, baba ganoush and many sauces. It comes in a light version, made from hulled seeds, or a wholemeal one, darker and more bitter.
For harissa, look at the heat level and the format. Among Tunisian brands, Le Phare du Cap Bon sells its harissa in a tube or a tin. The tube can be closed again and suits use in small amounts; the tin is for big tables.
For za’atar, check the ingredients: a good blend lists thyme or oregano first, then sesame and sumac. Some blends add salt or olive oil; read the label if you are watching your salt. A bright red sumac and a golden sesame signal a recent blend.
A quality tahini contains 100% sesame, hulled, with no added oil or sugar. Brands such as Al Rabih offer it. Its texture should be smooth and runny, with a toasted sesame taste and no strong bitterness. It keeps for several months after opening, without refrigeration.
Ras el hanout is best bought in a small quantity, as it loses its fragrance within a few months. A vivid colour and a strong smell when you open it signal a fresh blend. Buy it in a sealed jar rather than loose, to keep its aromas.
A teaspoon of harissa lifts a chorba, a couscous or a shakshuka. Diluted in a little stock, it becomes a sauce to serve on the side. Ras el hanout flavours tagines and couscous from the start of cooking. Harissa can also be stirred into mayonnaise or yoghurt for a dipping sauce. For ras el hanout, one teaspoon is enough for four people.
Za’atar is mixed with olive oil and spread on bread dough before baking: these are manakish, a Lebanese breakfast. Tahini, mixed with lemon, garlic and water, makes a white sauce for falafel. Sprinkled over labneh, a cream of strained yoghurt, za’atar makes a nibble in two minutes. Tahini can also be added to cakes and biscuits, like peanut butter.
Store the spices in an airtight tin, away from the cooker. After opening, harissa keeps in the fridge under a film of oil. Tahini keeps in the cupboard; stir it before use, as the oil rises to the surface. Whole spices, such as cumin seeds, keep their fragrance longer than powders.
To finish the meal, discover our mint tea and our oriental sweets. The whole range can be found in our oriental grocery range.
