These North African spice mixes are easy to make with store cupboard ingredients. I sprinkle some over a salad, use them as a topping for fish or a steak or serve them as a pre-dinner dip with a bowl of extra virgin olive oil and slices of home made bread. The nuts and seeds must be fresh. You can toast the nuts and seeds in a dry, heavy bottomed pan but I find it easier to put them in the oven for about five minutes in a roasting tin while something else is baking. Kept in the fridge in an air-tight container they’ll be fine for a week or two.
Za’atar
2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves, removed from the stems
2 tablespoons sesame seeds, toasted
2 teaspoons ground sumac
Half a teaspoon salt
Grind the ingredients together in a spice mill or coffee grinder.
Dukkah
Quarter of a cup sesame seeds, toasted
One tablespoon cumin seeds, toasted
One tablespoon coriander seeds, toasted
One tablespoon fennel seeds, toasted
Half a teaspoon black peppercorns, toasted
Quarter of a cup raw almonds, toasted
Two teaspoons ground paprika
One teaspoon salt
Grind the ingredients together in a spice mill or coffee grinder.
