Prepare your taste buds for a taste trip to Algeria! Here is our top 15 Algerian culinary specialties.
Summary
- A little appetizer
- – Le Bourek, savory pastry
- – Chakchouka, a mixture of flavors
- – The Msemmen, to taste according to your desires
- – La Chorba, warms the body and the spirit
- Main dishes
- – Couscous, star of Algerian cuisine
- – The Tagine, the terracotta dish
- – Chicken with olives, the festive dish
- – The Berkoukes, the big couscous
- Regional specialties
- – The Constantine Trida
- – And Tlitli chaoui
- – The Algiers Rechta
- The sweet delights
- – The Baghrir, the Algerian pancake
- – Dates, jewels of Algeria
- – The Tcharek or gazelle horn
- – Makrout, star of oriental pastries
For some, the desire to travel lies in the temptation to discover new landscapes, populations with unknown customs, architectures dating back several centuries and to accumulate as many photos of the world as possible…
For others, a good reason to travel would be to learn about a new musical culture and hunt down local artists.
Finally, for food lovers, traveling is above all an opportunity to awaken their taste buds! Taste new combinations of products, discover the typical dishes of each country…
It is for all these reasons that Generation Voyage now offers you to find, for multiple destinations, our top of the most beautiful photos but also our top of culinary specialties !
Today, we embark towards Algeria for a journey to discover Algerian culinary specialties. From the essential Couscous to the delicious Tlitli , without forgetting the tasty Baghrir , Algeria has something to satisfy the taste buds of the most gourmet…
A little appetizer
1. Le Bourek, savory pastry
We start our top Algerian culinary specialties with the Bourek, a friendly starter and synonymous with sharing. Indeed, it is often served when receiving guests and is a dish eaten during the endless evenings of Ramadan, after breaking the fast.
There are a thousand and one ways to prepare Bourek. However, the most common recipe remains that of stuffing a pastry sheet with kefta (spiced ground beef), parsley and onions.
2. Chakchouka, a mixture of flavors
Okay, Chakchouka is not only an Algerian specialty and is common to the whole of the Maghreb. But it was impossible for us not to mention it in our top Algerian culinary specialties as its place is important.
Normally prepared with tomatoes, onions, peppers, eggs cooked on the surface and delicious spices, Chakchouka is a dish that can very well be reinvented according to what is in the fridge. Tunisian friends sometimes add merguez sausages, while Moroccan colleagues spice it up with garlic.
3. The Msemmen, to taste according to your desires
Although the term Msemmen is the most common, this small puff pastry of Berber origin has many other names. Semniyette in Constantine, M’chehed in Tlemcen or Mlaoui in Tébessa, Algerians will still agree to tell you that these pancakes are delicious and are among the best Algerian culinary specialties.
Although often accompanied by honey – jujube honey is excellent – Msemmen can be enjoyed with anything you fancy, whether sweet or savoury.
4. La Chorba, warms the body and the soul
This soup cooked with lamb meat, vermicelli and vegetables is a staple of Algerian culinary specialties. Much appreciated by Algerians, Chorba is the perfect dish to open up hunger and quench thirst after a long day of fasting during Ramadan.
In addition to being succulent, the Chorba brings people together. It is traditionally offered to the poorest and is often eaten after prayer, for a moment of sharing and intimacy.
Main dishes
5. Couscous, star of Algerian cuisine
How to talk about Algerian culinary specialties without mentioning Couscous? Moroccan and Tunisian friends don’t worry! We know that couscous is a specialty spread throughout the Maghreb and that it does not belong to a single country.
Although the base of the dish, consisting of durum wheat semolina, vegetables and spices, is the same everywhere, there are many ways to prepare Couscous. Some add raisins, merguez sausages, dried meat or even cinnamon. With Couscous, there is something for everyone.
6. The Tagine, the terracotta dish
Anything can be a Tagine. This sentence may sound crazy but it is true. The Tajine basically refers to the terracotta container surmounted by a conical lid in which the food is stewed.
Fish, potato, red meat, beans, olives, as we told you, the Tagine can be cooked with whatever you fancy. It is a dish that delights all palates, however different they may be.
7. Chicken with olives, the festive dish
This recipe may seem simple and seems to come from everywhere at the same time, but chicken with olives is indeed an Algerian culinary specialty. And it’s even a party dish! Indeed, he is the star of Algerian wedding meals and delights all the guests.
Prepared with saffron, parsley, onions, and of course olives, it is often eaten with potatoes and tajine khobz (a flatbread) to sauce the delicious sauce that emanates from it.
8. Berkoukes, the big couscous
Cooked from pasta in the shape of large grains of couscous, Berkoukes is undoubtedly one of the best Algerian culinary specialties. In Kabylia , this dish is synonymous with celebration. It is tasted after childbirth, when a baby makes its first tooth or at the inauguration of the first agricultural work.
Embellished with vegetables, red meat and the famous “leads” (pasta), the Berkoukes can be transformed into a soup according to taste by adding just a little more water.
Regional specialties
9. The Constantine Trida
Originally from the city of Constantine, in the northwest of the country, the Trida is made from very fine and square pasta made by hand. They are accompanied by chicken, chickpeas, carrots and hard-boiled eggs, all served with a white sauce.
This Algerian culinary specialty is tasted by the people of Constantine during Al Mawlid , which celebrates the commemoration of the birth of the Prophet Mohamed.
10. And Tlitli chaoui
This delicious Algerian culinary specialty has its origins in the east of the country, particularly in the cities of Constantine, Skikda and Jijel. Made from pasta in the shape of a grain of rice (not to be confused with bird tongues), Tlitli is simmered in tomato sauce and accompanied by chickpeas, meat and many spices such as Raz El Hanout.
The Tlitli is generally also accompanied by hard-boiled eggs which symbolize prosperity and fertility in popular Algerian beliefs.
11. The Algiers Rechta
Coming from the word “son” in Persian, the Rechta is nevertheless an Algerian culinary specialty from the capital. This dish is often shared during the celebration of Eid-El-Fitr , a festival symbolizing the end of the month of Ramadan.
Accompanied by a cinnamon-scented sauce, the Rechta is made with very thin filar pasta, chicken, chickpeas, turnip and zucchini.
The sweet delights
12. The Baghrir, the Algerian pancake
Commonly known as a thousand-hole crepe, Baghrir is an Algerian culinary specialty that has spread throughout the Maghreb. Prepared with semolina (or flour), yeast and salt, this pancake is served hot, accompanied by butter and honey.
The recipe for this sweetness may vary depending on the region. Some will soak it in orange blossom, olive oil or even cinnamon. The greediest among us will even cover it with spread.
13. Dates, jewels of Algeria
Experts will tell you, the best dates are Algerian. This elongated fruit with energetic virtues is omnipresent in Algerian homes. Tasted fresh or dry, dates are traditionally eaten to break the fast according to the Muslim rite.
14. The Tcharek or Gazelle Horn
Finding its origins in the ramparts of Algiers, this Algerian culinary specialty is a must in North African pastry. Much appreciated by Algerians, it is a symbol of celebration and is often consumed at weddings, births or even for Eid-El-Fitr.
This little crescent moon is prepared with a dough flavored with orange blossom and filled with a delicious almond filling. All sprinkled with icing sugar, enough to delight the most gourmet!
15. Makrout, star of oriental pastries
We end this top Algerian culinary specialties with the most famous oriental pastries: Makrout. In addition to being popular in Algeria, it is also popular in countries with a large population of Algerian origin, such as France.
Prepared with a layer of pastry made from durum wheat semolina itself wrapped around date pastry, it is then fried in vegetable oil then soaked in a syrup made up of honey and orange blossom. You have therefore understood, it is a very rich dessert, but so delicious that it is impossible to feel guilty after having tasted a plate.
So, what have you already had the chance to taste among all these Algerian culinary specialties?
