Ras el hanout recipe

I saw one of the top chef using this ingredient where he uses it to smoke the beef. I must ry this on Wagyu beef... Smoked Wagyu.. mmmmm

This apparently is used in molecular gastronomy... which i think i would like to learn...mixing morrocan spice with Japan style cooking... should be interesting...


From wikipedia -

Ras el hanout (Arabic: رأس الحانوت) is a popular blend of herbs and spices that is used across the Middle East and North Africa. The name means "head of the shop" in Arabic, and refers to a mixture of the best spices a seller has to offer.

There is no definitive set combination of spices that makes up Ras el Hanout. Each shop, company, person would have their own secret combination containing over a dozen spices. Typically they would include cardamom, clove, cinnamon, ground chili peppers (also known as paprika), coriander, cumin, mace, nutmeg, peppercorn, and turmeric.

Some recipes include over one hundred ingredients, some quite unusual, such as ash berries, chufa, Grains of Paradise, orris root, Monk's pepper, cubebs, dried rosebud, and the potentially toxic belladonna and insects such as the beetle known as Spanish fly (however, the sale of Spanish fly was banned in the spice markets of Morocco in the 1990s). Usually all ingredients are toasted and then ground up together. Individual recipes are often improvised.

Ras el hanout is used in pastilla, the Moroccan squab/young pigeon and almond pastie, is sometimes rubbed on meats, and stirred into couscous or rice. It is often believed to be an aphrodisiac.

Ras el hanout

Ingredients

• 5 bay leaves
• 1 tbs za'atar*
• 1 tbs each of black peppercorns, ground nutmeg, ground cloves, ground cinnamon and coriander seeds
• 1/2 tsp mace
• 1 tsp ground cardamom
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp allspice berries* or ground allspice
• 1/2 tsp turmeric
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

Method

1. Place all the ingredients in a mortar and pestle or a spice grinder and process to combine.
2. Keep in an airtight container for up to 2 months.