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Moroccan Food: 15 Dishes You Must Try

Q: What is Morocco's national dish?

Couscous, served across the country every Friday and recognized by UNESCO as intangible heritage. The tagine is the other icon travelers remember.

Q: How much does eating out cost in Morocco?

A hearty street meal costs 20-40 dirhams, a family restaurant 40-80 dirhams, and a nice restaurant 150-300 dirhams per person.

Moroccan cuisine is regularly ranked among the best in the world - a slow-cooked blend of Amazigh, Arab, Andalusian and Jewish kitchens, layered with saffron, preserved lemon, olives and warm spices. Here are the 15 dishes to hunt down during your trip, from the royal pastilla to the humble bowl of bissara.

The Essentials

Moroccan dishes you must try
Dish	What it is
1. Tagine	The icon: meat or vegetables slow-cooked under the cone-shaped clay lid. Try chicken with preserved lemon and olives, or lamb with prunes.
2. Couscous	The Friday family dish - steamed semolina under seven vegetables and tender meat. Order it on a Friday like a Moroccan.
3. Pastilla (bastilla)	The showstopper: sweet-savory pie of pigeon or chicken, almonds and cinnamon in crackling warqa pastry.
4. Harira	The velvety tomato, lentil and chickpea soup that breaks the fast every Ramadan evening - served with dates and chebakia.
5. Tanjia marrakchia	Marrakesh's bachelor dish: beef slow-baked overnight in an urn buried in the hammam furnace ashes. Unforgettable.
6. Mechoui	Whole roasted lamb, meltingly tender, sold by weight in dedicated medina alleys.
7. Kefta	Spiced ground-beef skewers off the grill - or simmered in tomato sauce with eggs (kefta tagine).
8. Rfissa	The comfort dish: chicken, lentils and fenugreek over shredded msemen pastry - the dish of new mothers and family feasts.
9. Briouates	Crisp filo triangles filled with cheese, meat or shrimp - the star of every appetizer table.
10. Zaalouk and taktouka	The cooked salads: smoky eggplant-tomato (zaalouk) and pepper-tomato (taktouka), scooped up with bread.
11. Bissara	Fava bean soup with olive oil and cumin - the workman's breakfast, a few dirhams a bowl.
12. Msemen and baghrir	Breakfast royalty: flaky square pancakes and thousand-hole crepes, with honey, butter or amlou (argan-almond spread).
13. Grilled sardines	The Atlantic coast on a plate - stuffed with chermoula in Essaouira, Safi or Agadir.
14. Babbouche	The brave one: snail broth simmered in a dozen spices, slurped at street carts - famously good for colds.
15. Chebakia and mint tea	The sweet finale: sesame-honey pastry flowers alongside the ritual mint tea.

Where to Eat

Street food and souk stalls: the tastiest and cheapest - follow the locals and the queues, and read our food and water safety tips first.
Family restaurants (snacks): tagines, brochettes and salads for 30 - 60 Dhs.
Riad dinners: home cooking at its best - book in the morning for that evening.
Fine dining: our selection of the best restaurants in Morocco covers every city.

Vegetarian in Morocco?

Easier than you think: vegetable tagine and couscous, zaalouk, taktouka, bissara, lentils (l3des), loubia (white beans), msemen and the fruit stalls cover you well. Say "bla lhem" (without meat) - and note that many kitchens cook vegetables in meat broth, so ask. More phrases in our Darija survival guide.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Morocco's national dish?

Couscous - protected by UNESCO as intangible heritage and served across the country every Friday. The tagine, though, is what travelers remember.

Is Moroccan food spicy?

Flavorful rather than hot: cumin, ginger, cinnamon and saffron dominate. Heat comes on the side as harissa - add it yourself.

How much does eating out cost in Morocco?

A hearty street meal costs 20 - 40 Dhs, a family restaurant 40 - 80 Dhs, and a nice restaurant 150 - 300 Dhs per person - full budgets in our cost of living guide.