Technique
Charmoula
The herb-and-spice paste that meets the fish, and the meat, and the larder.
- Darija
- Chermoula
- العربية
- شرمولة
Definition
Charmoula is a wet marinade — coriander, parsley, garlic, cumin, paprika, lemon, olive oil — that anchors a vast range of Moroccan cooking. There is a fish charmoula (the most famous), a meat charmoula, a preservation charmoula for khlii.
Method
- Chop a generous bunch of coriander and a smaller bunch of parsley as fine as you can.
- Pound four cloves of garlic with a teaspoon of salt to a paste.
- Combine with two teaspoons cumin, two teaspoons sweet paprika, half a teaspoon hot paprika, juice of a lemon, and enough olive oil to make a loose paste.
- Let it sit thirty minutes before using — the flavours need to bind.