Beghrir is a traditional style of pancake which originates from the Berbers, an indigenous ethnic group from North Africa. It’s a popular breakfast meal & daytime snack & often served with a honey-butter mixture, although they also taste wonderful with chocolate!
The Berbers have been around North Africa for thousands of years & are mentioned as far back as end of the Roman Empire. Nowadays, there are around 25 million people speaking Berber in the region, mainly in Morocco & Algeria. The Berber people are also associated with more rural environments, such as the nomadic Tuaregs who travel the Northern Sahara desert.
Ancient Berber culture is rich & diverse, notably their music & dance. Berber music is especially interesting & it’s styles range from Celtic – with bagpipes & oboes – to Chinese influences, all of which are combined with African rhythms. Probably the most famous Berber music comes from the Master Musicians of Jajouka, a large all-male collective who originate from the Rif Mountains, near Tangiers. They were named as such by beat writers Paul Bowles & William Burroughs during the 50’s, while Brian Jones of the Rolling Stones produced one of their albums in 1967. Their sound is wonderfully trippy & derives from Sufi trance music, which is over 1000 years old. To learn more, check out this excellent article from the Quietus
Now back to those delicious pancakes…..& to make them four decent-sized Beghrirs, you’ll need:
1/2 teacup of fine grain semolina
1/2 teacup of white flour
1/2 teacup of luke warm water
1/2 teacup of milk
1/2 teaspoon of dried yeast
1 teaspoon of baking powder
1 medium egg
A pinch of salt & sugar
1. Simply add all the ingredients in to a bowl, whisk thoroughly & leave for around thirty minutes.
2. Then add a little butter to large, medium-heat frying pan, pour in a quarter of the mixture & almost cook as you would a normal pancake…..the difference being that you don’t flip them. By not flipping, you’ll see a lovely holed texture develop on the top.
Just keep an eye on the base of the Beghrir & once the top appears dry & cooked, then serve. Bon appetite!
Tangiers, to the North, had already gained notoriety by becoming a hotspot for the beat generation, so it was no surprise that the wonders of Marrakesh would eventually attract attention from the western pop scene. By the late 1960’s, Marrakech had become the hip place for London’s hoi polloi, as Yves St Laurent, The Beatles & the notably the Rolling Stones amongst others all swarmed to the city. Keith Richards once said of Morocco – ‘We enjoyed being transported……you could be Sinbad Sailor, One Thousand and One Nights. We loved it’. Yves St Laurent also developed a real love for the city, buying a house & the stunning Majorelle gardens here – these blue parks later becoming the home to his ashes. However, it was John Paul Getty and his wife Talitha who were at the very heart of the circle & this iconic photograph by Patrick Litchfield on their roof, overlooking Marrakesh & the Atlas Mountains, perfectly summarised this glamourous scene.
I’ve just finished The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga, which is an interesting & funny read. It’s the story of Balram Halwal, a poor village boy from the Delhi area, who becomes the driver to ‘The Mongoose’ & his rich family. Balram has a very humorous & insightful perspective on modern Indian society & invites you to India from the eyes of a local. He talks about the craziness of his country, the corruption, the 34,000 gods…..& he does it with large dose of Indian humour.