All Purpose Moroccan Spice Blend (Ras-El-Hanout)
This vibrant spice blend is one of my favourites to use in stews and grilled meats. It’s has some strong flavours in it along with some lovely warm and sweet spices. Because of its strong flavours, it makes a great marinade or spice rub for meats, and it’s traditionally used in tajines, soups and stews. It also makes an excellent addition to lamb burgers or roasted chicken. I also love to toss my root veggies in some before roasting - especially carrots. It’s very easy to make ras el hanout at home because all of the spices are surprisingly common - you may even have all of them on your spice rack already.
You can use as much or as little dry rub as you want, but usually 1 tablespoon of dry rub for every 1 pound (450 g) of meat you’re cooking. Make sure you coat all sides of the chicken so the dry rub covers the entire piece of meat. I love to use it when I’m roasting or grilling chicken whole or in pieces - just like in my Moroccan chicken with apricots.
Recipe
Makes 2 tablespoons
Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¾ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground coriander
- ½ teaspoon cayenne
- ½ teaspoon ground allspice
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
Directions
- Whisk together all ingredients in a small bowl until combined well. Spice blend keeps in an airtight container at cool room temperature 1 month.
