Harira Soup

Harira is a traditional Moroccan soup with lentils, chickpeas, and a rich and flavorful broth with warm spices, herbs, and tomatoes.

It’s a nourishing and fulfilling high-protein meal with over 20 grams of healthy, high-quality plant protein per small bowl.

Harira is a hearty, flavorful, aromatic soup from Morocco and North African Cuisine.

It’s often served to break the fast during Ramadan but is also excellent as a comforting and nourishing meal all year round.

Like other Moroccan and North African dishes – think of our Moroccan lentil soup, Moroccan Couscous, Moroccan Carrot Salad, and Zaalouk (Eggplant Salad), Harira uses flavorful spices to transform humble ingredients like lentils and chickpeas into a delicious and nourishing meal.

Most of our legume-based recipes, like chickpea soup, chickpea curry, spinach stew, lentil curry, and this Moroccan Harira Soup, are heart-healthy, high-protein vegetarian meals that will keep you satiated and fulfilled for hours.

They all provide complete plant protein, are without cholesterol, have few saturated fats, and plenty of dietary fiber to make you feel great.

Also, traditional world recipes are often the tastiest and most flavorful because they combine spices, herbs, and ingredients brought about by centuries of cultural contamination.

For example, take lentils and rice Mujadara, Tuscan white bean soup, hummus with pita bread, and chana masala; they are wholesome, nutritious, and super tasty recipes.

In this Moroccan Harira soup, we can taste how spices that go as far as India (turmeric and ginger) meld beautifully with cinnamon (common in Arab and Persian cuisine) and cumin (heavily used in Middle-Eastern and Eastern Mediterranean Recipes).

We think you’ll love harira soup because every spoonful will make you travel through centuries of history.

Quantities are in the recipe box at the bottom of the page.

Flavor base

• Extra virgin olive oil: substitute regular olive oil, avocado oil, or another vegetable oil for olive oil. Sometimes, traditionally, butter or smen is used instead of olive oil.
• Onion: you can use white, red, or yellow onion. Substitute shallot for onion.
• Celery: chopped into pieces.
• Garlic: use fresh garlic; grated, minced, pressed, or finely chopped.

Spices

• Ground ginger: substitute grated fresh ginger.
• Turmeric powder
• Ground cumin: substitute cumin seeds.
• Red pepper flakes: substitute cayenne pepper, a fresh chopped red chili, or a tablespoon of harissa paste.
• Saffron: optional. Some people might not be used to the flavor of saffron, so if you think you might not like it, it’s best to keep it out.
• Cinnamon: optional. Cinnamon is traditional in Moroccan cooking, but it can throw some people off since it’s mostly used in sweet preparations in the West. We recommend adding cinnamon, but if you are not sure you’ll like it, start with a small amount, like 1/8 teaspoon, and add more to taste.

Vegetable stock

We use a reduced sodium vegetable broth, although traditionally, beef, lamb, or chicken can be added to flavor the stock.

Tomatoes

We use either crushed or diced canned tomatoes. Substitute tomato puree for crushed tomatoes.

We also add some tomato paste for richness and umami.

Dried lentils

Opt for dried green lentils or dried brown lentils. They are best because they keep their shape.

We would avoid split red lentils because they get mushy.

Substitute canned lentils for dried ones. In this case, you’ll need half the amount of vegetable broth, and you can reduce cooking time in half.

Note that dried lentils don’t require soaking. Rinse them under running water and add them to the pot. They’ll cook in 15 to 45 minutes.

You can learn more about lentils in our how to cook lentils guide.

Chickpeas

We recommend canned chickpeas or dried chickpeas that you previously cooked separately.

To cook chickpeas, soak them overnight in plenty of water with a teaspoon of baking soda. Then rinse them, add them to a pot with fresh water, and cook until tender, about 60 to 120 minutes.

For more step-by-step instructions, check out our guide on How to cook chickpeas.

Fresh herbs

• Fresh parsley: preferably flat-leaf parsley. If you can’t find that, curly parsley is your best alternative.
• Fresh cilantro leaves or fresh coriander: optional.
• Celery leaves: optional.

Flour (optional)

Harira means silk in Arabic, and this recipe uses a slurry (mixture) of all-purpose flour and water to slightly thicken the consistency of the broth and develop an ultra-creamy and velvety soup with a silky mouth feel.

You can substitute cornstarch for flour if you are on a gluten-free diet.

Also, flour is optional, and harira is also delicious without it.

Pasta or rice (optional)

In Morocco, some people add pasta, some add rice, and others make it without pasta or rice.

We add pasta to make Harira soup a complete meal.

The most traditional pasta type is vermicelli noodles, but not Asian vermicelli made from rice or soy. They are vermicelli made with hard wheat semolina flour, just like Italian pasta.

Since traditional Moroccan vermicelli pasta might be hard to find in Western supermarkets, we recommend replacing it with Italian pasta, for example, Angel Hair pasta.

They are virtually identical to Moroccan vermicelli and are perfect for this recipe. Break them in with your hands as you add them to the soup.

Alternatively, you can substitute another long pasta shape for vermicelli. For example, spaghettini or spaghetti, broken by hand, is also a great option.

If you use rice, we recommend cooking it separately and adding it to the harira soup minutes before serving it. You can use white, brown, basmati, and even black rice.

Salt and black pepper

Season with sea salt or kosher salt and black pepper to taste.

US cups + grams measurements in the recipe box at the bottom of the page.

How to Make Moroccan Harira Soup

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet. Add chopped onion and celery and sauté for 4 minutes or until translucent.

Add pressed garlic, ground ginger, turmeric powder, ground cumin, red pepper flakes, and optionally saffron and cinnamon.

Cook the spices and garlic for a minute or until fragrant. Add a splash of water if the pan gets dry.

Stir in the vegetable broth, crushed tomatoes, rinsed dried lentils, canned or cooked chickpeas, and season with salt and black pepper.

Tip: dried lentils don’t require soaking. Rinse the lentils under running water to remove dirt, and look for small stones that might hide in between the lentils.

Cover with a lid, boil, crack the top open, lower the temperature, and simmer gently for 30 to 45 minutes or until the lentils are cooked.

Stir occasionally to prevent the legumes from sticking to the bottom of the pan. Add more vegetable broth if the pan gets dry.

Tip: Different lentils have different cooking times, which generally vary between 30 and 45 minutes depending on their size and age. You’ll need to add more broth as you extend the cooking time.

When the lentils are cooked, stir in chopped celery leaves, parsley, and cilantro.

Optionally, whisk the flour in a cup of water and add it to the soup to make it extra velvety and creamy.

Finally, add in the vermicelli or angel-hair pasta or cooked rice.

If you choose pasta, break it with your hands as you add it. Also, you’ll probably need to add an extra cup of vegetable broth or water, as the pasta will absorb it.

Finish cooking, stirring often, until the pasta is al dente.

Harira soup is a nutritious and satiating main meal.

You can serve it in a bowl and garnish it with a dollop of Greek yogurt, fresh herbs, lemon wedges, dehydrated or preserved lemons.

You can also make it without pasta and serve it with some warm pita bread on the side, preserved lemons, or a squeeze of lemon juice and Greek yogurt.

Quick pickled red onions are a great alternative to preserved lemons.

Make ahead: Harira soup is an excellent recipe to make in advance. If you plan to make it for meal prep and have it throughout the week, we recommend making it without pasta or rice as it keeps best this way. You can serve it on rice, with pasta, pita bread, or crusty bread.

Refrigerator: Harira without pasta or rice keeps well in an airtight container in the fridge for 5 days. The soup is even more flavorful the following days as the ingredients have time to meld. Harira with pasta or rice keeps for up to 48 hours.

Freezer: Harira without pasta or rice freezes well for up to 3 months. Let it cool down completely, then transfer it to an airtight container and freeze. We don’t recommend freezing harira with pasta or rice.

Thaw & Reheat: Defrost the soup in the fridge for several hours. Warm it in the microwave or a saucepan with a splash of water.

If you like aromatic flavors, these are more delicious Moroccan recipes to try:

• Moroccan carrot salad
• Moroccan lentil soup
• Eggplant zaalouk
• Moroccan couscous

Salads

Moroccan Carrot Salad

30-Min Meals

Moroccan Couscous

Salads

Zaalouk (Moroccan Eggplant Dip)

Soups

Moroccan Lentil Soup

• Lentil vegetable soup
• Curry lentil soup
• Italian lentil soup
• Red lentil soup

Soups

Lentil Soup

Soups

Red Lentil Soup

Soups

Curry Lentil Soup

Soups

Lentil Vegetable Soup

For more curries, stews, and soups, check out our soups category page.