What is Ras el Hanout?
Ras el Hanout is a Middle Eastern spice blend used in tagines, soups, rice dishes, and on vegetables. In Arabic, Ras el Hanout means “head of the shop”, a phrase that basically means top-shelf, signifying that this spice blend is the best thing in the shop.
There isn’t really one traditional Ras el Hanout recipe – many families and shops have their own blend that they consider the best. Mixtures often contain over a dozen spices!
Ras el Hanout ingredients usually include ginger, coriander, and cardamom and often include allspice, cumin, chili peppers, clove, cinnamon, fenugreek, nutmeg, paprika, peppercorn, and turmeric.
Ras el Hanout Recipes
Want to use Ras el Hanout in some creative and delicious recipes? Here are some of my favorite recipes with ras el hanout.
- Garden Vegetable Tagine
- Moroccan Chicken with Preserved Lemon
- Ras el Hanout Apple Hand Pies
- Ras el Hanout Chicken Pitas
- Ras el Hanout Loaf Cake Toast with Yogurt and Sesame Sprinkles
- Vegan Lentil Soup
- Vegetarian Cauliflower Rice Bowl
How to Make Ras el Hanout Spice Blend
There are hundreds of recipes for Ras el Hanout, but here’s my favorite way to make it.
Ras el Hanout Spice Mix
Ras el Hanout is a Middle Eastern spice blend used in tagines, soup, rice dishes, and on vegetables.
Ingredients
- 2 teaspoons coriander seeds
- 2 teaspoons cumin seeds
- 2 teaspoons red pepper flakes
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 2 teaspoons dried rose petals
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cardamom
- 1 1/2 teaspoons paprika
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1 teaspoon cayenne
- 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
- 1 teaspoon allspice
Instructions
- In a small skillet, over medium-low heat, toast the coriander and cumin seeds.
- Combine the coriander and cumin seeds with the rest of the spices in a high-speed blender or food processor and blend for 30 seconds or until the mixture is fully combined and in powder form.
- This spice blend can be saved up to three months in an airtight container.
Where to Buy Ras El Hanout
Ras El Hanout is available in most grocery stores and from several online vendors.
When buying spices, it’s important to make sure you are buying from distributors that sell high-quality spices. We love The Spice House and recommend their Ras el Hanout blend.
If you’d prefer to buy this spice blend on Amazon, we also like Frontier’s Ras El Hanout.
Ras el Hanout Substitute
Can’t get your hands on Ras el Hanout? If you’re pressed on time and don’t have time to make up a batch of Ras el Hanout or get to a spice store to buy it, you can use coriander, saffron, or a mixture of paprika, cumin, and ground ginger.
If you want to use another spice blend in its place, baharat is a good choice.
