As is usual for these internet recipes, I had to translate volumetric measures to weights. For that task, I turned to the National Ducks` Union analytical services at Laboratorio `No-Le-Hace` which, although not very accurate, is that way consistently. Inside, an army, make that flock, of efficient technicians hustled and bustled about, making noises best described as those that Angry Birds or ninja grandchildren at play make. ("Ooh! Ow! Ooch. Oi-Oi!") ...so bear in mind that the measurements are just crying out to be tinkered with. Aiyee! Oi-Oi! Most were obtained by measuring the actual spices. (What a mess!)
The spice blend makes enough for six of the original recipes! Be sure to scale it. It's more accurate to make the full batch, then weigh it, then measure out 1/6 for use with a kilo of lamb mince. (Better, though- - use the scaled recipe 'for the whole thing' that follows.)
1/4 cup sweet paprika = 24 gm (at 6 gm/Tbsp = 2 gm/tsp)
2 Tbsp ground fennel seeds = 14 gm
2 Tbsp ground cumin = 20 gm
1 Tbsp ground coriander seeds = 5.8 gm
2 Tbsp salt = 46 gm
1 tsp ground cinnamon = 2.5 gm
1 tsp cayenne pepper = 3.1 gm
3/4 tsp black pepper = 2.25 gm
Some Moroccans prefer a sweet taste, in which case the author advises adding up to 4 teaspoons of powdered sugar.
The harissa (hot sauce) blend makes a bit more than 2 Tablespoons. You need two plus a bit, so this is enough for one batch of lamb mince described below. (Note, though, the non-standard amount of meat. ...typical internet recipe!)
12 to 15 red chili peppers (approx. 1-1/2 oz or 100 gm). The lab reports that dried peppers, seeded, yield 1/2 to 2/3 of the starting weight, so use 50 to 65 grams of red pepper powder. (Frankly, though, this seems like WAY too much.) For dried whole chiles, remove seeds and stems, then crush.
3 or 4 cloves of garlic, minced
1 tsp (or to taste) salt
1 tsp ground cumin (varies with taste)
1/2 tsp ground coriander (varies...)
1/2 tsp ground caraway seeds (varies...)
2 to 3 tsp lemon juice
Olive oil to wet.
Grind it all up in a mortar & pestle, or a mini food processor.
The sausage recipe calls for half a pound (or 500 gm) of lamb plus 1/4 pound (or 120 gm) of fat, ground. If you take apart what lamb is available in my part of the world (boned leg of lamb), then weigh the piles of meat and fat, you find that it`s about 25% fat, which is right on target. The recipe is:
650 gm ground lamb (or beef)
3 cloves (15 gm) fresh garlic, minced
2 Tbsp (maybe 6 gm) fresh cilantro leaves
2 Tbsp (one sixth of the above) spice mix
2 to 3 Tbsp (all of the above mix) harissa
The usual admonishments apply: this is a fresh sausage recipe, so if you plan to smoke the sausage, be sure to add the correct amount of cure #1. (In Morocco, this is not done. The fresh sausage is typically cooked over a charcoal fire.) Stuff the mix into anything except hog casing if you want to be authentic, Morocco being a Moslem country. (Sheep casing would be small, but ideal. However, being a heathen, migratory agnostic, I went on and used hog casing.) Use or freeze within four days. Cook before eating.
Comparison: A REAL Recipe- - Practically speaking, few will want to have six times as much spice mix sitting idle in their spice pantry as is needed. Through the magic of spreadsheets, then, let`s scale the spice mix down to a sixth, then scale the whole thing up to one kilo of meat + fat, so we can compare it side-by-side with other recipes. After all, that`s what we`re really interested in. ...especially the large number of ducks idly standing around who otherwise would be non-productively waiting in line for handouts from the Federal Grain Subsidy office.
Using (what else?) the "hunt-and-peck" method, the above recipe was input into Excel, manipulated, crunched, and rendered otherwise unrecognizable. The results are as follows:
This Recipe___________________________________Marianski
1000 gm ground lamb (or beef), 25% fat-----------------1000. gm
41 gm garlic, minced----------------------------------------7 gm
10 gm fresh cilantro leaves
24 gm salt----------------------------------------------------18 gm
6.6 gm sweet paprika---------------------------------------4.0 gm
50 (would you believe 10?) gm red pepper---------------4.0 gm
. . . . . . . . . . + 0.5 gm cayenne
3.8 gm ground fennel seeds
10.7 gm ground cumin--------------------------------------1.0 gm
3.3 gm ground coriander seed
0.7 gm ground cinnamon
0.7 gm black pepper----------------------------------------4.0 gm
1.7 gm ground caraway seeds (varies...)
0.0 gm Allspice----------------------------------------------1.0 gm
15 gm lemon juice
15 gm Olive oil to wet.--------------------------------------14. gm
They look like different sausages entirely, don`t they? As per usual, the Marianski recipe has less "perfumes" in it than others. (...nothing wrong with that tradition.) Most Mediterranean foods vary widely in their spicing, but seem to have a lot of it. This particular version, char-grilled and served on a warm pita with grilled onions and peppers and maybe a little extra harissa, is pretty good. Tinker with the spicing, if you`re interested.
...and while you're in the mood, have a look at Butterbean's recipe: http://wedlinydomowe.pl/en/viewtopic.php?p=11569#11569 which shows another great way to eat these sausages. He's stuffed them correctly, looks like, in sheep casing. These ethnic dishes and sausages are fun, aren't they? هذا صحيح! ("That's right!" in Arabic, according to Google translate.)
Maybe we should have a Moroccan food cook-off, one of these columns? Hey! I know! We could call it "Project M."
