Droo

Ingredients

Porridge

• 250 gsorghum flour, droo
• 1.5 litreswater
• 1/2 teaspoonsalt

To finish

• 500 mlwhole milk
• 150 gsugar, or to taste
• 1 teaspoonground cinnamon
• 2 tablespoonsorange blossom water
• or 2 tablespoons rosewater

To top

• 100 gpistachios, chopped
• 100 galmonds, chopped
• 50 gwalnuts, chopped
• raisins or dried dates, chopped
• extra cinnamon, for dusting

Directions

1. Put the sorghum flour in a bowl. Add about a third of the cold water. Whisk it into a completely smooth slurry. Work out every lump at this stage. Adding flour to hot water gives lumps forever. Bring the rest of the water to a boil. Add the salt to the boiling water.
2. Keep whisking as it comes back to the boil. Let it cook for about thirty minutes. Stir it regularly with a wooden spoon. Judging the porridge takes a taste.
3. Cook it for longer if it does. It should coat the back of a spoon. Add hot water if it becomes too stiff. Warm the milk in a separate pan. Do not let it come to a full boil. Add the milk a little at a time.
4. Whisk it in steadily as you pour. Sweetening it is done at the end. Add the sugar and stir until dissolved. Add the ground cinnamon to it.
5. Taste it and adjust the sweetness. It should be gently sweet rather than a dessert. Take the pan off the heat entirely. Stir in the orange blossom water.
6. Add it off the heat so it does not evaporate. It should be a loose pourable porridge. Take it off looser than you want it. Add warm milk if it has gone too thick. Serving it is done warm in bowls.
7. Pour it into bowls or small glasses. Use them generously rather than sparingly. Scatter raisins or chopped dates over. Dust ground cinnamon over everything. It is also eaten cold from the refrigerator.

Technique

• Droo is given to women after childbirth and is held to help with milk production, a traditional belief rather than a clinical claim, though it is certainly warm, sweet and easy to eat.
• Mouled marks the birthday of the Prophet, and Tunisia celebrates it with grain and seed puddings topped with nuts, of which zgougou made from Aleppo pine seed is the best known.
• The flour must be mixed to a smooth slurry in cold water first, since adding it to hot water gives lumps that never come out.

Substitutions

• Sorghum flour is sold in North African and African shops and has no substitute that behaves quite the same.
• Rosewater and orange blossom water are interchangeable here.

Variations

• Some households add a swirl of honey over the top.
• A version made with more milk and less water is richer.
• Zgougou, made from Aleppo pine seed, is served alongside it at Mouled.

History

Cooked for new mothers and served on Mouled, the celebration of the Prophet’s birthday.

Frequently asked questions

What is Droo?

Droo is a breakfast from Tunisia: warm sorghum porridge with milk, sugar and chopped nuts. Cooked for new mothers and served on Mouled, the celebration of the Prophet’s birthday.

How long does Droo take to make?

Droo takes 10 minutes of preparation and 40 minutes of cooking. The recipe makes serves 6. It is rated easy to make.

What can I substitute in Droo?

Yes, within limits. Sorghum flour is sold in North African and African shops and has no substitute that behaves quite the same. Rosewater and orange blossom water are interchangeable here.

What is the most important thing to get right in Droo?

Cook it for longer if it does. It should coat the back of a spoon. Add hot water if it becomes too stiff. Warm the milk in a separate pan. Do not let it come to a full boil. Add the milk a little at a time.