by Elisabeth Duckeck

Only about a year ago, we discovered an Arabic restaurant in town, and my daughter and I decided to give it a try.

It serves real, authentic Arabic food – absolutely delicious! You often read about ethnic restaurants claiming to offer authentic cuisine, only to discover that the chef does not actually come from that culinary tradition.

This restaurant, however, is different. It is run by a young Egyptian man and his Greek wife. On their menu, you will find dishes that the owner learned to cook from his mother, which means you can enjoy traditional Arabic recipes prepared with genuine knowledge and passion.

I immediately loved the flavors, especially the spices they use. Their aromas and combination of flavors transport your thoughts straight to the Middle East.

When I found a lovely recipe for a Crispy Air Fryer Halloumi, one of the ingredients was Ras El Hanout. As I prefer to create my own spice blends – my husband sometimes reacts allergically to certain ingredients in ready-made supermarket mixes – I started researching this wonderful blend.

I discovered that Ras El Hanout might actually be the spice mixture used in that Arabic restaurant, which inspired me to create my own version at home.

When I prepared the Halloumi dish, the flavors immediately reminded me of this special restaurant, and the wonderful spice blend they use. It brought back the same warm, aromatic notes that had impressed me during our visit and made me realize that this was probably the flavor I had been searching for.

I created this homemade Ras El Hanout spice blend especially for my Cypriot Haloumi recipe, where it adds a unique depth of flavour and creates a beautiful connection between Cypriot and Middle Eastern cuisine.

Tips for the success of your cooking

You will find many different Ras El Hanout recipes online, as every family has its own blend, often passed down from generation to generation.

From all these variations, I created the perfect blend for our taste. As my husband does not enjoy very spicy food, I made my mixture rather mild and balanced.

With this recipe, you can easily adjust the quantities and decide how intense and spicy you would like your own Ras El Hanout to be.

This Middle Eastern spice blend is incredibly versatile. It can be used not only for dishes with Manouri cheese, but also for seasoning vegetables, roasted potatoes, rice dishes, couscous, chicken, lamb, soups, stews and even marinades. It adds a warm, aromatic depth to both vegetarian and meat dishes.

Cooking tip: Whole Spice or Grounded – which is better

For this recipe, I used ground spices for convenience. However, you can also use whole spices and grind them finely yourself using a spice grinder or a mortar and pestle.

If you choose whole spices, I recommend lightly roasting the seeds in a dry pan over medium heat until they begin to release their aroma. Be careful not to burn them, as this will make the spices bitter. Allow them to cool completely before grinding.

Freshly ground spices will give your Ras El Hanout an even more intense and aromatic flavor.

Last but not least:

I have also included the quantities of the whole spices needed to achieve the correct amount of ground spice required for this recipe.

Loved this salmon recipe? Find more ideas for salmon dishes and follow this link to Fish dishes

Don’t forget to comment and rate. For more fish recipe ideas push the subscribe button.