Merzouga Desert Cooking class

 Merzouga desert is one of the most famous gastronomic places in Morocco. It is known for specific recipes that use a special range of spices that create tasty meals such as Berber flatbreads (Berber pizza), tajines, couscous, and salads… Its inhabitants open their doors to you to explore their daily life and way of life. Our staff has the pleasure to share with you these various activities through stays in the desert to have a traditional culinary experience and discover the secret of the tastes of the prepared dishes. Among these recipes, you can discover:

• Berber pizza: The dough is prepared with natural and organic yeast. After putting the ingredients in the dough. The patties will be cooked in a traditional oven made with mud. It is heated by the palm branches.
• The traditional bread baked in the sand: a hole is dug and consolidated by some stones. After putting the ingredients into the dough it is buried in the sand. The filling is made of spices, vegetables, and meat.
•  Tagine: it is a typical Moroccan dish, it is an opportunity to share with our customers the secret of the unique taste of this dish by discovering the ingredients necessary for its preparation.
• Couscous: Guests can also learn how to roll couscous and the steps of its cooking. They can with an opportunity to prepare cakes on the premises of associations for the promotion of rural women. (the recipe to express the warm welcome to the guests)

1- One Day Culinary Activity at a Local’s Home

In the course of your tours, you can enjoy culinary lessons at the home of a nomadic family in the middle of the desert or in an association for the promotion of women. They will open their doors to you to live a day of their daily life and way of life. You will be free to choose and participate in the preparation of the recipe you like. These meals will be prepared and served in traditional dishes. This opportunity will allow you to learn more about the customs and traditions of the Berber tribes of southeastern Morocco during the discussions that will be initiated after lunch. Among the topics to be discussed:

• weddings,
• crafts (weaving)…

2 – Dromedary excursion with culinary activities

Day 1: After breakfast, you will start with your guide crossing the dunes of Erg Chebbi. Your ride includes stops according to your choice to admire the dune’s landscapes. After 2 hours of travel, you will stop for lunch. The camel driver will prepare bread baked in the sand. This is an opportunity to have a culinary experience of the nomads. In the afternoon, you will make another 2 to 3 hours drive to arrive at the nomads’ home, where you will spend the night. Dinner will be a traditional couscous which signifies the warm welcome of the Berbers. an atmosphere under the stars around a fire ends your day’s stage.

Day 2: You will wake up early today to watch the sunrise over the tops of the dunes. After breakfast, you will take your way to a picnic in the desert for lunch. After a break, you will leave for a luxurious bivouac at the foot of the dunes in the Begaa village (a small settlement around an oasis with a traditional irrigation system). After dinner, a Berber music show will be animated around a fire.

Day 3: After breakfast, you will trek to the village. You will have the opportunity to attend a culinary lesson at the inhabitant’s house about Berber pizza. But, after having made a visit to the oasis with a guide. Women are waiting for you at their homes to let you know how to prepare the pizza starting with the dough and the ingredients until cooking in a traditional oven and of course with your participation in this fact. At the end of the afternoon, you will reach your hotel in Merzouga via your tour transportation.