Morocco: Ras El Hanout Spice Rub & Carrot, Chickpea & Orange Salad

By Tom Hunt

Ras el hanout translates from Arabic as "head of the shop": ra's meaning head or top, hanout meaning shop, so essentially the best a spice merchant has to offer. Traditionally it was a maker's signature, no two blends from neighbouring stalls in a souk would be quite the same, and the most elaborate historic versions ran to 20 or 30 ingredients, including dried rosebuds and grains of paradise.

Carrots and oranges are a classic Moroccan pairing in their own right, often dressed simply with cumin and orange blossom water as a starter salad. Here I've made an orange juice and ras el hanout dressing to toss over the vegetables.

Other ways to use the rub

• To make a tagine
• Stirred through couscous
• Whisked into yoghurt as a quick marinade for chicken

Ingredients

For the ras el hanout spice rub (makes about 90ml/6 tbsp):

• 2 tbsp coriander seeds
• 1 tbsp cumin seeds
• 1 tsp black peppercorns
• 4 cloves
• 4 allspice berries
• 2 tsp sweet paprika
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground turmeric
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp flaky sea salt

For the salad:

• 700g carrots, halved lengthways (quartered if large)
• 1 organic orange (of 3 in total) juiced (and zested if organic)
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp ras el hanout spice rub
• Salt, to taste
• 1 x 400g tin chickpeas, drained
• 2 oranges (of 3 in total) peeled and sliced into rounds
• Big handful flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped
• Big handful mint leaves, roughly chopped

Method

To make the ras el hanout spice rub:

1. Toast the coriander, cumin, peppercorns, cloves and allspice in a dry frying pan over medium heat for 2–3 minutes, shaking often, until fragrant.
2. Cool, then grind to a fine powder.
3. Stir in the sweet and smoked paprika, ginger, cinnamon, turmeric, cayenne and salt.
4. Store in an airtight jar or tube, labelled and dated. Keeps up to 3 months.

To make the carrot, chickpea and orange salad:

1. Boil the halved carrots for 8-10 minutes or until just tender, then drain and allow to cool.
2. To make the dressing add the zest and orange juice to a jar with the olive oil and ras el hanout. Season with salt to taste and shake well. This will keep in the fridge for up to three days and can be used on any salad.
3. Toss the carrots with the chickpeas, orange slices, parsley and a generous drizzle of the dressing. Serve on a platter garnished with mint.