Baharat just means ‘spices’ in Arabic. It is a fragrant and delicious blend of spices, such as pepper, cinnamon, cloves, cumin and paprika. Perfect to blend with ground beef on flatbread or just dip your favorite naan in a bowl of baharat and olive oil.
It’s so satisfying to make your own spice blends. You know exactly what’s in there, and you learn so much in the process too. What flavors work together and what spices each cuisine likes to use. That’s also why I have so many spice blend recipes, like Italian Seasoning, Za’atar, Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto, Everything Spice and Shawarma seasoning. Never too many!
Baharat just means ‘spices’ in Arabic. It is such a fragrant and mouth watering spice blend. Full of ingredients such as pepper, cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, cumin and paprika. It does contain a lot of ingredients, but it’s totally worth it. I was almost jumping up and down in my happy dance when I first smelled this mix. No joke.
What recipes to use baharat in?
Where has baharat been all my life? Totally missed out on marvellous Middle Eastern cuisine. You can use baharat as a dry rub on meat, or mix it with a little bit of olive oil to make a marinade. You can sprinkle some with sea salt over caramelized onions (for Mujaddara rice). Mix with olive oil and spread on top of naan, flatbread or any kind of bread really.
Maybe instead of garlic and cilantro, sprinkle baharat on these naan? You just have to try it on different things, and eventually you’ll know just what you want baharat on (which is basically everything).
Some specific recipes using baharat:
- Middle Eastern Flatbread with Baharat Beef and Mint from yours truly
- Lebanese Meatballs in Baharat Sauce also from me
- Spiced Instant Pot Chickpea Salad from Recipes from a Pantry
- Baharat Ramen Snack Mix from This Healthy Table
- Middle Eastern Stuffed Eggplants from Little Sunny Kitchen
- Baharat Falafel from Little Sunny Kitchen
I used ground spices for this mix, but you could also just use a spice grinder and grind the spices up yourself. I will try that the next time, but still, this smelled so goood so it’s no rush. This recipe is adapted from Genius Kitchen.
Other Middle Eastern/North African food:
- Middle Eastern Tabbouleh
- Moroccan Butternut and Chevre Soup with Pomegranate and Ginger Coconut Cream
- Grilled Harissa Chicken with Creamy Cilantro Sauce
- and you could also use these Indian Garlic Cilantro Naan for any of the Middle Eastern dishes
- Chicken Shawarma
- Za’atar Spice Blend
I hope you’ll like it! Please tell me what you think, either in the comment section below or tag me @thegingerwithspice on Instagram. And don’t forget to Pin it for later!
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Homemade Baharat (Arabic 7 Spice)
A very versatile Middle Eastern spice blend that is so fragrant and rich in flavors of cinnamon, cardamom, cumin and so much more. Known as both baharat and Arabic 7 Spice.
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp freshly ground pepper
- 2 tbsp ground paprika*
- 1 1/2 tbsp ground cumin
- 1 tbsp ground coriander
- 1 tbsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tbsp ground cloves
- 1 tbsp ground nutmeg
Instructions
- Mix all the spices together and store in an airtight container. Keep away from direct sunlight.
- Enjoy as dry rub on meat and vegetables or mix with olive oil to make a marinade, or make kofta with baharat sauce. Mix with olive oil and spread on any kind of bread. Sprinkle over rice or caramelized onions. Get lost in the Middle Eastern cuisine with your own mix of baharat!
Notes
* Swapping paprika with allspice, and cumin with ginger and you have Lebanese 7 Spice. To make Moroccan 7 spice you can swap paprika with ginger, cumin with turmeric and coriander with cardamom.
Adapted from: Genius Kitchen
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 9.5 Serving Size: 1 tbspAmount Per Serving: Calories: 22Total Fat: 1gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 0gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 5mgCarbohydrates: 4gFiber: 2gSugar: 0gProtein: 1g
Nutrition information isn't always accurate, estimate for informational purposes only.
