Spring menu
Spring Moroccan Menu — Fresh Greens, Peas and Artichokes
Spring in Morocco fills the markets with young artichokes, fresh peas, broad beans and armfuls of herbs, and the cooking turns lighter and greener to match. This seasonal menu for six celebrates that freshness: a delicate pea and artichoke tagine, herb-heavy salads, a spring-vegetable couscous, fresh broad-bean bissara and a strawberry dessert scented with orange-blossom. The dishes are brighter and quicker than the deep braises of winter, letting the young vegetables speak. Much can still be prepared ahead, but the emphasis is on freshness and green. Fill the table with the season's vegetables and welcome the lighter days. Fresh, green and gently fragrant.
The menu
Fresh soup
Fresh broad bean bissara
A springtime bissara made with fresh young broad beans rather than dried favas — greener, lighter and finished with olive oil and cumin.
Herb salad
Herb, spring onion and preserved-lemon salad
A bright, herb-heavy salad of parsley, coriander, spring onion and preserved lemon. Fresh, sharp and full of the season's green.
Centrepiece
Pea and artichoke tagine with lamb
Young artichoke hearts and fresh peas with tender lamb in a light, lemony saffron sauce. The quintessential Moroccan spring tagine.
Grain
Spring-vegetable couscous
Couscous topped with peas, courgettes, young carrots and broad beans in a light broth — a lighter, greener couscous for the season.
Bread
Warm khobz
Soft bread to scoop the salads and the lemony tagine sauce. Warm it just before the table sits down.
Dessert
Strawberries with orange-blossom and mint
Fresh spring strawberries macerated with orange-blossom water, a little sugar and torn mint. Simple, seasonal and refreshing.
Shopping list
- Fresh young broad beans (for bissara and couscous)
- Fresh peas and young globe artichokes
- Lamb, a small amount (for the tagine)
- Courgettes and young carrots
- Big bunches of parsley, coriander and mint
- Spring onions, preserved lemon and lemons
- Couscous and butter
- Cumin, ginger, saffron and paprika
- Strawberries and orange-blossom water
- Bread or flour and good olive oil
Prep timeline
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Day before
Make the herb salad dressing and prep the preserved lemon. Podding peas and beans and trimming artichokes can be done ahead too.
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Morning
Cook the fresh broad bean bissara and cool. Prepare the artichoke hearts and keep them in lemon water so they do not brown.
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2 hours before
Start the pea and artichoke tagine — it cooks more quickly than a winter braise, so it needs less time.
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1 hour before
Steam the couscous and cook the spring vegetables in a light broth. Macerate the strawberries with orange-blossom.
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To serve
Toss the herb salad fresh, mound the spring couscous, warm the bread and reheat the bissara gently before serving.
Host's tips
- Let the young vegetables lead — spring cooking is about freshness, so keep sauces light and lemony, not heavy.
- Keep trimmed artichokes in lemon water until you cook them, or they will brown quickly.
- Dress the herb salad only at the last minute so it stays bright and crisp.
- A fresh broad-bean bissara is greener and lighter than the dried-fava winter version — a lovely seasonal change.
- Macerate the strawberries only an hour ahead so they keep their shape and freshness.
Questions about this menu
What vegetables are in season for Moroccan spring cooking?
Spring brings young globe artichokes, fresh peas, broad beans, young carrots, courgettes and masses of herbs to Moroccan markets. Cooking turns lighter and greener to suit — think pea and artichoke tagines, fresh broad-bean bissara and herb-heavy salads, quite different from the deep root-vegetable braises of winter. Fresh, tender produce is the star.
What is the classic Moroccan spring tagine?
A tagine of lamb with fresh peas and young artichoke hearts in a light, lemony saffron sauce is the great spring dish. Sometimes made with veal or simply with the vegetables alone, it celebrates the season's tender produce and cooks more quickly and lightly than the rich, long-braised tagines of the colder months.
How is spring bissara different?
Winter bissara is made from dried split fava beans, giving a dense, earthy purée. In spring, cooks use fresh young broad beans instead, producing a brighter, greener and lighter soup. Finished the same way with olive oil, cumin and paprika, it tastes distinctly of the season and makes a lovely fresh start to a spring meal.
What is a good light spring dessert?
Fresh strawberries macerated with a little sugar, orange-blossom water and torn mint is perfect — seasonal, simple and refreshing after the lighter savoury courses. An orange salad works too. Spring desserts lean fresh and fruity rather than rich, letting the season's first berries and the fragrance of orange-blossom shine through.
Can I still prepare a spring menu ahead?
Much of it, yes, though freshness matters more than in winter. Bissara, dressings and prepped vegetables can be done ahead, and the tagine reheats well. But dress the herb salad and macerate the strawberries only shortly before serving, so the bright, green character of a spring table is not lost to sitting around.
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.