Mhamsa

Ingredients

The grains

• 500 gcoarse semolina
• 100 gfine semolina, for rolling
• about 200 ml salted water
• 1 tablespoonolive oil

The broth

• 800 glamb on the bone
• in pieces
• 2onions, chopped
• 5garlic cloves, crushed
• 4 tablespoonsolive oil
• 3 tablespoonstomato purée
• 2 tablespoonsharissa
• or to taste
• 1 tablespoonground coriander
• 2 teaspoonscaraway seed, ground
• 1 teaspoonground turmeric
• 250 gchickpeas, soaked overnight
• about 2 litres water
• salt and black pepper

Sometimes added

• 2carrots, in chunks
• 1potato, in chunks
• a handful of parsley

To serve

• in deep bowls
• more harissa
• olive oil

Directions

1. Adjust it if you want less heat. Put the coarse semolina in a wide shallow bowl. Sprinkle a little salted water over it. Add it very sparingly indeed to it. Too much water makes a dough rather than grains. Sprinkle it rather than pouring it. Rub the semolina between your palms.
2. Work in steady circular movements. Sprinkle more water as you work. Add more dry semolina as the grains grow. Keep rubbing and rolling throughout. This takes a long time to do properly. Shake them through a coarse sieve. Spread the grains on a tray in one layer. Dry them in the sun or a warm place. Put the chickpeas in a bowl of water. Cover them well and leave them overnight.
3. Heat the oil in a large heavy pot. Add the lamb pieces in batches. Brown them well on all of their sides. Do not crowd the pot at any point. Add the chopped onions to the pot. Cook them for a good ten minutes. Add the crushed garlic to them.
4. Cook it for two more full minutes. Add all the harissa to the pot. Add the tomato purée in with it. Fry them for about three minutes. Do not let it burn at any point.
5. Add the coriander and the caraway. Add the ground turmeric as well. Fry them for about thirty seconds. Put the browned lamb back in the pot. Add all of the drained chickpeas. Add the water and a little salt. Bring it up to a gentle simmer.
6. Cover the pot and let it cook on. Give it about one full hour there. Cook them on if either resists. Add the carrots and potato if using them. Give them about fifteen minutes. Add the mhamsa grains to the pot. Stir them through the whole broth. There must be plenty in the pot.
7. Add hot water if it looks short. Cooking them takes about twenty minutes. Stir it regularly all the way through. Stirring keeps them separate and moving. Taste it and adjust the salt as needed. Add more harissa if you want more heat.
8. Add plenty of black pepper as well. Serving it is always done hot. Ladle it out into deep warm bowls. Put more harissa on the table. Scatter chopped parsley over it. It keeps three days refrigerated.

Technique

• Ordinary couscous is fine and steamed above the pot; mhamsa is large, coarse and boiled in the broth directly, so it absorbs the liquid and thickens it into a stew rather than staying a light separate grain. That is a genuinely different method rather than a variation.
• The grains are made by sprinkling salted water very sparingly over coarse semolina and rubbing it between the palms in circles, adding more dry semolina as the grains grow; too much water makes a dough rather than grains. It takes half an hour or more and cannot be hurried. Dried mhamsa is sold ready made and most households now buy it.
• Stir the pot every few minutes once the grains are in, since they sink, catch on the bottom and stick to each other; and they should stay firm with some chew rather than going mushy, which is what distinguishes them from fine couscous.

Substitutions

• Shop-bought dried mhamsa saves an enormous amount of work and is widely sold.
• Fresh rolled grains cook faster than dried ones; the drying is only for storage.

Variations

• Rolling was traditionally a communal task, with a whole year’s supply made in one session and sun-dried.
• Caraway is central to Tunisian spicing and appears both in the harissa and in the pot.
• Carrots, potato and parsley go in in some households.

History

Coarser than couscous and cooked in the sauce rather than steamed above it; the grains are rolled by hand and sun-dried for storage.

Frequently asked questions

What is Mhamsa?

Mhamsa is a main from Tunisia: large hand-rolled couscous grains simmered in a spicy lamb and chickpea broth. Coarser than couscous and cooked in the sauce rather than steamed above it; the grains are rolled by hand and sun-dried for storage.

How long does Mhamsa take to make?

Mhamsa takes 1 hour plus drying of preparation and 1 hour 30 minutes of cooking. The recipe makes serves 6. It is rated hard to make.

What can I substitute in Mhamsa?

Yes, within limits. Shop-bought dried mhamsa saves an enormous amount of work and is widely sold. Fresh rolled grains cook faster than dried ones; the drying is only for storage.

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

Adjust it if you want less heat. Put the coarse semolina in a wide shallow bowl. Sprinkle a little salted water over it. Add it very sparingly indeed to it. Too much water makes a dough rather than grains. Sprinkle it rather than pouring it. Rub the semolina between your palms.