Marrakech

Moroccan food - true culinary delights
In the Orient
still tell fairytale stories of the luxurious life at the court of the
court of the caliphs. There they surrounded themselves with everything the Orient had to offer
precious things: incense and fine essences, jewels and precious stones
precious stones, silks and exquisite exotic spices. While
Middle Ages still prevailed here, people in the Orient already knew how to
world cuisine of the most refined flavors. One of the
famous chefs of that time was Ibn al-Warraq - a kind of Paul Bocuse
of the ancient Orient. He cooked only for the families of the upper
ten thousand. Around the year 950 AD, he wrote one of the most important
cookbooks of all time, the "Annals from the Caliph's Kitchen". In it
contains hundreds of recipes for precious spice mixtures. With saffron
and cinnamon, cardamom and almonds, lemons and oranges. Ibn al-Warraq's
elegant way of cooking took root early on, especially in Morocco.

Saffron - the color of dawn
Morocco alone
its favorable location alone, Morocco offers ideal conditions for
good cuisine: fertile farmland in the coastal regions, at the foot of the Atlas Mountains
of the Atlas Mountains grazing land for cattle, sheep and goats. Finally
the Atlantic and the Mediterranean as fishing grounds for sea fish,
seafood and crustaceans. No wonder that this attractive
attractive region aroused desires early on - Morocco was not only sought after by
North African Berber peoples, but also by Arab tribes in pre-Islamic times.
by Arab tribes in pre-Islamic times. From the coasts of the Middle East,
especially from what is now Syria, they brought their goods along the
silk and incense routes and across the Mediterranean to Morocco.
trade goods to Morocco. This also brought their good cuisine to the country. And
the cultivation of oranges and lemons. And of course their spices.
First and foremost saffron. Saffron originally comes from Crete and has
has also been cultivated in Morocco for thousands of years. The town of
Taliouine at the foot of the High Atlas has become famous for its saffron cultivation.
become famous. Alongside Iranian saffron, Moroccan saffron is considered to be
the best. Its aroma is elegant and powerful, its scent warm and intense.
intense. Since Ibn al-Warraq's time at the latest, saffron has been an integral part of
Moroccan cuisine would be unthinkable without it. Especially in
spice mixtures, for example with cinnamon, ginger or pepper, for meat
meat dishes, ragouts and grilled food. Or with ground almonds and
pistachios for desserts. Not forgetting for couscous. And because
spices and specialties are either transported from far and wide or - like saffron
had to be laboriously refined by hand, they were once as expensive as gold.
expensive as gold. Only high society from the Arabian Nights could afford them.
could afford them. They even offered spices as sacrifices to the gods.
The poet Homer once sang of the red-hot yellow of saffron as the "color of dawn".
"color of the dawn".

The yellow cuisine of Morocco
Not only
the bright yellow of saffron that makes Moroccan cuisine so sunny.
appear so sunny. It is also oranges and lemons, apricots and almonds,
prickly pears and chickpeas that give many of the country's traditional dishes an
give many of the country's traditional dishes an exceptionally cheerful appearance. Anyone who is surprised
that Andalusian and Moroccan cuisine have so many things in common
similarities, this observation strikes at the heart of Morocco's cultural identity.
cultural identity of Morocco. At the time of the Arab caliphs, Morocco and
Morocco and southern Spain belonged together for a time - which is only logical
only obvious when you consider that the Strait of Gibraltar between Tangier
Tangier and the Andalusian coast is just 14 kilometers at its narrowest point.
kilometers at its narrowest point. The fact that bitter oranges are still harvested in Seville today and
Moroccan desserts are flavored with orange blossom, that the Spanish paella and
Spanish paella as well as Moroccan couscous are traditionally flavored with saffron.
saffron is anything but a coincidence. This tradition
tradition became even stronger in the 15th century when, in the course of the
recatholization of Spain, many Jews and Muslims had to emigrate to the Maghreb.
had to emigrate. This gave another boost to Morocco's culinary heritage.
another boost. The style of Moroccan cuisine finally took shape.
developed. Today, connoisseurs refer to it as "yellow cuisine".
Apricots and almonds, oranges and lemons, saffron and cinnamon flavor the two
the two pillars of Moroccan cuisine: couscous and tagine. Like the
couscous, tagine is also a dish from the Berber tradition.
It consists of meat, usually beef, goat or lamb, mixed with vegetables,
vegetables, fruit or nuts and spices in a clay pot with a pointed lid.
pot with a pointed lid.
 
On the back of the camels
Moroccan
Moroccan cooks handle spices like conductors who drive their orchestra to
drive their orchestra to harmony. They have mastered the sophisticated use of cinnamon,
cardamom and coriander, mint and orange blossom, saffron, nutmeg and pepper.
pepper from the inside out. Just as if the tradition of
Ibn al-Warraq's tradition of aromatic cuisine continues to this day. Al-Warraq
created spice blends from pepper, rose petals, nutmeg, cinnamon and galangal, saffron
galangal, saffron, cardamom, lemons and cane sugar. He sourced the ingredients
from India and China, the Spice Islands and the Middle East.
In those days, instead of ships and airplanes, the spice trade was carried along the
the routes of the Silk Road. Donkeys and camels were used for transportation.

Fine craftsmanship: argan oil
Not
not only the lengthy transportation, but also the fact that many spices were
spices were refined by hand also contributed to their preciousness. Today
more than ever a guarantee of quality. This also applies to
argan oil, the "liquid gold" of Morocco. The tradition of
of argan oil extraction was founded by Berbers. Even today, the best
argan oil is still produced by hand in Morocco. The fruits of the argan tree are
the fruits of the argan tree are harvested and dried, the pulp is removed by hand
and beaten individually until the almonds are exposed. These
sorted, roasted and - again by hand - ground in stone mills.
ground in stone mills. The result is a nutty-tasting, incredibly fragrant, balsamic
fragrant, balsamic oil. Once you have tasted it, you will understand why
why the Berbers did not usually use it themselves. Instead, they preferred to sell it to the
caliph's court.
 

Morocco golf vacation - The most beautiful golf courses in Marrakech


Golfing has a certain tradition in Morocco. Already
since the early 1920s, thanks to King Hassan II, there has been the exquisite Royal
Golf Course in Marrakech, which strongly promoted this sport. Once a year
a major invitational tournament was organized once a year, in which the best players in the
world took part and put their skills to the test. Since 1996, the
Moroccan national tourism office has organized an international press golf tournament
to promote golf in Morocco and make it a leader in the development of tourism.
tourism development.
Sights in Marrakech - A feast for the senses



Due to the large number of architecturally
and historically significant buildings, a walk through the city is like a journey through history.
history. The old town of Marrakech has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
declared a World Heritage Site.


You should not miss the Koutoubia Mosque, which was built in 1162,
the Kasbah from the 12th century and from the 14th century the
Ben-Jusuf-Medersa in the old town. The world-famous medieval market
Djemma el Fná, is one of the city's main attractions. Here you will meet
oriental storytellers, musicians, acrobats, snake charmers and jugglers.
jugglers.

But the new town also has some sights to offer.
and a visit to the Jardin Majorelle is always worthwhile. This stands out
from other gardens due to its variety of plants and unique architecture.
gardens.