Christmas menu
Moroccan Christmas Menu — A Spiced Feast for the Festive Table
A Moroccan Christmas keeps all the warmth and abundance of the festive table while swapping the usual flavours for saffron, cinnamon and preserved lemon. This menu for eight builds a proper celebration: a spread of festive cooked salads, a show-stopping lamb tagine with prunes and almonds, golden saffron couscous, and an orange-and-almond dessert scented like the season. Much of it is made ahead — a gift on a busy holiday. Whether it stands in for the traditional roast or sits beside it, this spiced feast fills the house with the smell of ras el hanout and honey. Generous, aromatic and unmistakably celebratory.
The menu
Festive starters
Zaalouk, beetroot salad and preserved-lemon olives
A jewel-coloured spread of cooked salads to open the feast — the ruby beetroot is especially festive. All made ahead.
Centrepiece
Lamb tagine with prunes, almonds and honey
The great celebration tagine, sweet with prunes and cinnamon and rich with slow-cooked lamb. Fitting for the grandest table.
Second main
Roast chicken with ras el hanout and saffron
A whole spiced roast chicken for those who want a bird on the Christmas table, glazed golden with saffron butter.
Grain
Saffron and dried-fruit couscous
Buttery couscous studded with raisins, apricots and toasted almonds — festive, fragrant and a natural partner to the tagine.
Bread
Warm khobz and festive breads
Plenty of warm bread for the salads and sauce, perhaps a seeded loaf to make the table feel special.
Dessert
Orange and almond cake with cinnamon
A moist flourless orange-almond cake perfumed with cinnamon and orange-blossom, served with mint tea to close the feast.
Shopping list
- Lamb shoulder on the bone (1.5-2 kg) and a whole chicken
- Soft prunes, dried apricots, raisins and blanched almonds
- Aubergines, beetroot and tomatoes (for the salads)
- Onions, garlic, fresh ginger and saffron
- Ras el hanout, cinnamon, cumin and paprika
- Preserved lemon, mixed olives and honey
- Couscous (medium grain) and butter or smen
- Oranges and ground almonds (for the cake)
- Eggs, sugar and orange-blossom water
- Bread or flour, green tea and fresh mint
Prep timeline
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Two days before
Make the orange-almond cake — it keeps beautifully and improves. Buy and portion the lamb and chicken.
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Christmas Eve
Make all the cooked salads and marinate the olives. Marinate the chicken in ras el hanout and saffron overnight.
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Morning
Start the lamb tagine early and cook it low and slow, then set aside to reheat. Steam the couscous once.
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2 hours before
Roast the spiced chicken. Reduce the tagine sauce and fry the almonds. Prepare the dried fruit for the couscous.
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To serve
Give the couscous its second steaming, bring the salads to room temperature, warm the bread, and carve the chicken alongside the tagine.
Host's tips
- Make the orange-almond cake two days ahead — it deepens in flavour and frees the oven on the day.
- A lamb tagine with prunes is the ideal festive centrepiece: celebratory, sweet-savoury and better for being cooked ahead.
- Toast the almonds and warm the dried fruit at the last minute so they stay glossy and fragrant on the couscous.
- Serve the spiced roast chicken alongside, not instead of, the tagine so there is generous choice on the table.
- Steam couscous twice even at Christmas — the light, separate grain is worth the extra effort on a feast day.
Questions about this menu
What makes a good Moroccan Christmas centrepiece?
A lamb tagine with prunes, almonds and honey is the natural choice — grand, sweet-savoury and celebratory, and better for being cooked ahead. For those who want a bird, a whole chicken roasted with ras el hanout and saffron butter sits beautifully beside it, giving the table festive abundance and choice.
Can I combine Moroccan dishes with a traditional roast?
Very happily. A Moroccan spiced roast, saffron couscous and cooked salads sit well alongside a classic turkey or ham, adding colour and fragrance to the spread. Many families serve a lamb tagine as a second main, or bring Moroccan flavours to the sides and dessert while keeping the traditional roast.
What festive dessert works for a Moroccan Christmas?
An orange and almond cake, moist, flourless and scented with cinnamon and orange-blossom, is ideal — festive, made ahead and naturally gluten-free. Serve it with mint tea or a spoonful of cream. Sticky chebakia and stuffed dates also make a lovely Moroccan sweet plate for the holiday table.
How much can I prepare in advance?
A great deal, which is the gift of this menu on a busy day. The cake keeps for days, cooked salads and the tagine are better made ahead, and couscous can be steamed early. On the day you need only roast the chicken, finish the couscous and warm everything through.
What spices define a Moroccan festive feast?
Ras el hanout above all — the celebratory blend of a dozen or more spices — plus cinnamon, saffron, ginger and cumin. Sweet notes of honey and dried fruit against savoury lamb capture the festive spirit. A good jar of ras el hanout and a few threads of saffron carry the whole menu.
Learn to cook this menu with a local in Marrakech
Every dish here is taught, hands-on, in a Marrakech cooking class — or taste them across the medina on a guided food tour.