8 Spice Blends That Are Of African Origin:

Piri Piri

, Ras El Hanout And More

Quick Summary

Spice blends are more than just piri piri and ras el hanout on the African continent, and even if these two are considered, people hardly know their origin, let alone what the spices in the blend might be. From Morocco's souks to Ethiopia's highlands, Egypt's ancient trade routes and Nigeria's suya stalls, the continent has been making and using spices to season its food, and along trade routes through history, some of them have found international fame, while some remain underrated.

Deep Dive

Spice trade routes find their way back to India, which used to be the crown jewel of Europe, and over centuries of trading, some spices made it to the global kitchens like black pepper and chilli peppers. As for the role of the continent of Africa, it sat at the centre of global spice movement. Trans-Saharan caravan routes carried pepper, cinnamon and cloves from Asia into Morocco, Tunisia and Egypt, while the Indian Ocean trade linked the Horn of Africa and the Swahili coast to Arabia and India. 

Portuguese traders added another layer in the 15th and 16th centuries, carrying chilli peppers from the Americas into Mozambique and Angola, where they merged with local ingredients to form entirely new and unique spice blends. The resulting mixing and mingling of various cultures with the local chakled out distinct spice profiles in the various regions of Africa that were exposed to the spice trade. North African spice blends tend to lean towards warm and floral; the Horn of Africa focuses on fermented heat, Egypt has more nutty spice blends and West Africa centres on peanuts and chilli. So, here are some spice blends from the African spice map.

1. Ras El Hanout Featuring Moroccan Spices

This is a North African spice mix, and the name ‘ras el hanout’ is Arabic for ‘head of the shop’, meaning the best a spice merchant has to offer. It's mostly associated with Morocco but is used across the wider Maghreb (northwestern Africa), including Algeria and Tunisia. There's no fixed recipe for this spice blend, and the most basic version might use a dozen spices, while an elaborate blend can have up to 40 or more of them.

• Common spices: cumin, coriander, cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, turmeric, nutmeg, allspice, black pepper; premium versions may add dried rosebuds, grains of paradise or orris root.

• How it's made: whole spices are toasted, then ground and blended in proportions unique to each family or spice seller and no two batches are quite the same.

This Moroccan spice staple flavours tagines, couscous, roasted meats, vegetables and spiced meatballs. The ras el hanout spice mix is rubbed onto meat before slow-cooking or stirred into stews partway through.

2. Harissa Spice Blend

A hot chilli paste from Tunisia, harissa’s story begins with the Columbian Exchange, with chilli peppers likely arriving in Tunisia during the Spanish occupation of Ottoman-era Tunisia in the 1500s, transforming what had been a black-pepper-and-ginger heat tradition into something entirely new.

• Common ingredients: roasted red peppers and Baklouti peppers, garlic, caraway seeds, coriander seeds, cumin, olive oil.

• How it's made: peppers are traditionally sun-dried, then pounded with garlic, spices and oil in a stone mortar called a ‘gosaa’, with the name ‘harissa’ coming from the Arabic harasa, ‘to pound’.

This spice blend can be added to meat and fish stews, spooned over couscous, mixed into the chickpea soup lablabi, or served as a table condiment. Today, Tunisia remains the world's largest exporter of prepared harissa.

3. Piri Piri Spice Blend

Piri piri (also spelt peri-peri) takes its name from the Swahili term for ‘pepper-pepper’. The pepper itself, which is the African bird's-eye chilli, was cultivated from Malagueta peppers that Portuguese traders brought from the Americas, and it took root in the soils of Mozambique and Angola, where the blend as it is known today was developed.

• Common ingredients: African bird's-eye chilli, garlic, and regionally, lemon, paprika or herbs, carried in an oily or acidic base.

• How it's made: chillies are crushed or blended with garlic and oil (or vinegar) into a spoonable, spreadable seasoning rather than a dry powder.

This spice blend is used as a marinade and basting sauce for the piri piri spice blend's best-known dish, piri piri chicken, and for prawns, mussels and grilled meats; this piri piri seasoning later spread through Portugal's trading network to Goa and Brazil, and was popularised globally in the UK by the South African restaurant chain Nando's

4. Berbere Spice Blend

Berbere means ‘hot’ in Amharic, and it's the base spice blend of Ethiopian and Eritrean cooking. Unlike the sambar masala, which tends to be a singular and shelf-stable recipe, berbere spice varies by household, and families often guard their own version and prepare it in large batches to last through the year.

• Common ingredients: dried chilli peppers, garlic, ginger, fenugreek, korarima (Ethiopian cardamom), basil, ajwain, sometimes nigella and rue.

• How it's made: chillies and spices are toasted, then freshly ground, and this step intensifies the aroma compared to pre-ground versions.

This spice blend forms the base of doro wat (chicken stew) and misir wat (spiced red lentils), and a common spice rub for grilled meats.

5. North African Spice Mix Dukkah

Another North African spice mix is dukkah that traces back to ancient Egypt, where nut-and-seed mixtures were reportedly eaten for boosting energy. The name comes from the Arabic word for ‘to pound’, and by at least the 19th century, researchers recorded it as an everyday way Egyptians enhanced their bread.

• Common ingredients: roasted hazelnuts (or pistachios or almonds), sesame seeds, coriander seeds, cumin, salt.

• How it's made: nuts and seeds are toasted separately, then coarsely pounded or ground together with the ground spices, for a textured spice blend that is crunchy.

This is one of the spice blends that is commonly used as a coating for olive oil-dipped bread and can also be sprinkled over salads, yoghurt, hummus and roasted vegetables, or used as a crust for meat and fish.

6. Mitmita Spice Blend

While berbere gets most of the attention outside Ethiopia, mitmita is the region’s other important and widely used spice blend, and the hotter one. It is made with chillies that score higher on the Scoville scale than those used in berbere, with a heat that is more immediate and fiercer.

• Common ingredients: ground African bird's-eye chilli, Ethiopian cardamom, cloves, salt, occasionally cinnamon, cumin or ginger.

• How it's made: chillies and warming spices are dried and finely ground into a vivid orange-red powder.

Mitmita is the classic seasoning for kitfo, Ethiopia's minced raw beef dish, and is also sprinkled over ful medames (fava beans) or served alongside injera as a dip.

7. Nigerian Yaji (Suya) Spice Blend

Yaji, commonly called suya spice, is a West African blend most associated with the Hausa people of northern Nigeria, though there are versions of this spice blend under different names like the chinchinga in Ghana and soya of Cameroon. What sets this one apart from other blends on this list is that its base is ground peanuts.

• Common ingredients: ground roasted peanuts or peanut cake (kuli-kuli), dried chilli and cayenne peppers, ginger, dried onion, garlic, salt, sometimes cloves or bouillon powder.

• How it's made: peanuts are roasted and ground, then combined with dry-toasted spices to form a coarse, nutty seasoning.

Rubbed onto thin-sliced skewered meat (suya) before grilling, then served with extra yaji on the side alongside sliced onion and tomato; it's also used as a dry rub for roasted vegetables and popcorn

8. Sudan's Spice Blend Hararat

Hararat, from the Arabic root for ‘heat’ or ‘warmth’, is used in parts of Sudan and Northeast Africa to describe a spice mix which does not have a universally agreed-upon recipe and is closer in spirit to how garam masala means ‘warm spices’ broadly in South Asian cooking. It reflects Sudan's blend of Arab and sub-Saharan African influences, shaped by centuries of trade along the Nile and the Red Sea.

• Common ingredients: cumin, coriander, cardamom, cinnamon, ginger, black pepper and dried chilli, in proportions that vary by household.

• How it's made: whole spices are toasted and ground fresh, similar to other blends on this list.

This spice blend is often added into mullah, Sudan's family of savoury stews served with asida (sorghum porridge) or kisra (fermented flatbread), and used generously in everyday home cooking.

African Spice Blends At A Glance

Spice Blends From The Heart Of Africa

Beyond peri peri or piri piri seasoning, there are quite a few spice blends that dominate North African spice mixes and feature Moroccan spices in them. The best part about some of these spice blends is that most spices are available and affordable in India, such as chilli, cinnamon, cumin, ginger, garlic and more. So, you can create the spice blends at home and experiment with meats and roasted vegetables and create unique dishes for breakfast, lunch or dinner.