What tanjia is
Meat is packed into a tall clay urn with preserved lemon, garlic, cumin, saffron and smen, an aged butter. The top is sealed with paper and string, and the urn is buried in hot ashes for hours.
No. 02, The food issue: slow fire
Tanjia and mechoui: Marrakech's slow-cooked lamb and beef
- Tanjia
- the sealed urn, in hammam ashes
- Mechoui
- pit lamb, sold by weight
- When
- midday, until about 14:00
Get my written quoteQuote for: the evening food tour with a local
Marrakech local time
Tanjia is Marrakech's own dish: beef or lamb sealed in a clay urn with preserved lemon, garlic, cumin and saffron, then cooked for hours in the ashes of a hammam furnace. Mechoui is whole lamb roasted in a pit oven. Both are sold in Mechoui Alley by Jemaa el-Fnaa at midday, until about 14:00.
What are tanjia and mechoui, and where to eat them
The man who heats the bathhouse
The farnatchi feeds the fire that heats a hammam's water. He has a second job: the neighbourhood's sealed tanjia urns sit in his ashes. Traditionally men fill the urn in the morning and collect it for a shared lunch, Marrakchis call it a dish made by men for men.
Mechoui Alley
In a short lane off the northeast corner of Jemaa el-Fnaa, beside the spice market, whole lambs roast in clay pit ovens under the street and are sold by weight at the stall, MAD 170–200 a kilo paid there. A quarter-kilo is about one portion, with cumin, salt and bread. Chez Lamine Hadj Mustapha is the best-known stall.
When to go
Around midday. The best cuts are gone by about 14:00. Most mechoui stalls close on Friday, so go another day.
Ordering tanjia
Mechoui Alley cooks tanjia to order, MAD 80–100 a portion paid at the stall. Ask the price before you order.
Tanjia is cooked for hours in the ashes of a hammam furnace.
Try tanjia and mechoui with a local guide
Tell us your dates and group size. A planner writes back within 24 hours with a plan and a fixed written quote. Asking costs nothing.
Worth knowing before you go
- Check the price per kilo on the board before the meat is weighed.
- Eat with your right hand, using bread to pick up the meat.
Tanjia and mechoui: FAQ
What is tanjia?
A Marrakech stew of beef or lamb sealed in a clay urn with preserved lemon and spices, cooked for hours in the ashes of a hammam furnace.
Where is Mechoui Alley?
In a short lane off the northeast corner of Jemaa el-Fnaa, beside the spice market.
How much mechoui should I order?
A quarter-kilo is about one portion. It is sold by weight at the stall, MAD 170–200 a kilo paid there.
What do you eat mechoui with?
Cumin, salt and round bread, with mint tea.
Photo credits: Vegetable tagine: Khammal92, CC BY-SA 4.0 (Wikimedia Commons).