Chakhchoukha is a traditional Algerian dish made with torn flatbread called khobz and a stew of vegetables, chickpeas, and spices including Moroccan ras el hanout. Algerian cuisine combines African, Moroccan, and European influences. The dish is served by pouring the stew over the bread.
An age-old tradition in Algeria is a meal known as chakhchoukha, which roughly translates to “torn flatbread.” The reason for the name is immediately apparent when the cook learns what constitutes a cornerstone of the dish: a piled-up pile of flatbread pieces, called a khobz. These foods champion a vegetarian or meat-laden stew of various greens, chickpeas, and a regional spice blend that combines mint, garlic, chili, and Moroccan ras el hanout, combining up to 50 unique spices from aniseed to rose petal.
Land of couscous, Algeria’s cuisine combines many cultural traditions thanks to its location in North Africa bordering the Mediterranean Sea. Several generations ago, African cuisine merged with Moroccan traditions, so they were introduced to the food by Arab invaders, who brought spices from Asia with them. Later, European colonization from France and nearby Spanish influences resulted in a national cuisine with many unique flavor combinations.
Some make their own khobz flatbread for use in chakhchoukha. Others use store-bought bread. Either way, the dish’s flavor profile depends on a bread with an almost equal blend of semolina and flour, along with just a little oil, water, and salt. This is often done by sticking the flattened dough to the walls of a tandoor oven. Many Arab-influenced countries such as Algeria eat focaccia as part of most meals.
Chakhchoukha comes together after preparing a soup called marqa or maraq. This starts with a tomato sauce infused with or without beef or lamb and chickpeas, and veggies like onion, garlic, potato, and chili. What makes this soup different from most others are the spices, which include not only mint, coriander and chiles or jalepenos, but also the famous Moroccan blend of spices called ras el hanout. Ingredients vary widely in this concoction, but common are aniseed, cumin seeds, mace, galangal, dried rose petals, and lavender, as well as cardamom, nigella, turmeric, and mace.
When the stew and meats are cooked, the chakhchoukha is ready to assemble. First, the khobz is torn into small pieces which are piled into bowls. The stew is then poured on top of the bread, which will absorb the many flavors.
A close cousin to this Algerian stew is a cold Spanish soup called gazpacho. A gazpacho pie is the Spanish version of khobz, also torn up and placed in soup. Even when spiced vigorously, most types of gazpacho can be said to lack the intensity of heavy, spicy chakhchoukha.
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