North African Ras El Hanout

Ras-el-hanout, sometimes spelled raz-el-hanout, literally "head of the shop", is a mixture of spices used in the cuisine of the Maghreb countries.

It is found on sale at the spice shops, in all souks, either ground or raw. Its price varies from simple to double depending on the ingredients used. It is also called "Maghreb curry".

The name "ras-el-hanout" which refers to the spice blend known from the Maghreb cuisine comes from two Arabic words: ras, meaning literally "head", and hanout, meaning "grocery store".

There is no definitive composition of spices that makes up ras el hanout.

Each shop, company, or family may have their own blend.

The mixture usually consists of over a dozen spices, in different proportions. Commonly used ingredients include cardamom, cumin, clove, cinnamon, nutmeg, mace, allspice, dry ginger, chilli peppers, coriander seed, peppercorn, sweet and hot paprika, fenugreek, and dry turmeric.

Some spices may be particular to the region, such as ash berries, chufa, grains of paradise, orris root, monk's pepper, cubebs, dried rosebud, fennel seed or aniseed, galangal, long pepper.

Ingredients may be toasted before being ground or pounded in a mortar and mixed together.

The composition of ras el hanout differs somewhat from the “Baharat” spice mix, but they differ more by the types of dishes they are associated with and by region rather than the ingredients in them.

Although used by Berber people, it should not be confused with "berbere" spice mix from Ethiopia.

The traditional “ras-el-hanout” recipe varies between 24 and 27 ingredients (the most common formula) and can go up to more than forty.

The following list represents the current recipe in the region of Biskra, Algeria. All spices, mainly seeds and rhizomes, are washed, dried and ground: Cardamom, Coriander, Nutmeg, Allspice, Cinnamon, Long peppercorn, Clove, Turmeric, Ginger, Lavender, Rose Buttons, Caraway, Cumin, Fennel seeds, Green anise, Cubeb berries, Pellitory-of-the-wall roots.

The following ras el hanout blend is based on the spices mostly available in France

This one has 27 different spices and I use it for the broth of my couscous recipes (raw whole spices) and when ground in powder as a dry rub or mixed with olive oil to marinate different meats or skewers.

You can also watch to video for some more details

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XPcBrwHLMQ0