Chorba frik
Local name : شربة فريك
An Algerian soup of cracked green wheat and chickpeas built on a tomato base scented with cinnamon and celery.
Photo : Slothtysloth · CC BY-SA 4.0
- Prep
- 15 min
- Cook
- 45 min
- Total
- 60 min
- Serves
- 4
- Difficulty
- Easy
Method
- Rinse the freekeh in a fine sieve under cold water until it runs clear. The smoked grain carries a lot of dust.
- Heat the oil in a casserole and sweat the onion with the celery for 6 minutes.
- Add the tomatoes, purée, paprika and cinnamon. Cook for 5 minutes so the tomato loses its edge.
- Pour in the water, bring to the boil, then add the drained freekeh.
- Lower the heat and hold at a shiver for 25 minutes, covered, stirring now and then so the grain does not catch.
- Add the chickpeas and courgette and give it another 10 minutes. The soup should stay pourable.
- Fish out the cinnamon, stir in the chopped coriander and check the salt. Serve with lemon.
Freekeh is wheat harvested green then burned in the field: the fire takes the straw without reaching the damp grain, which leaves the smoke behind. It keeps drinking liquid as it cools, so loosen the soup with water when you reheat it.
