Smoky, sweet and tangy spices bring a deep and aromatic flavour to your cooking. Baharat is one spice mix you’ll want to add to your pantry. Use this all-purpose Middle Eastern spice blend to season meats, chicken and fish, or add a new depth of flavour to your favourite dishes.
Why We Love This
Baharat is a deliciously simple spice mix that you can whip up in under two minutes. If you love cooking, chances are you’ll have all the spices you need in the pantry already. For the freshest experience, you can grind your own whole spices OR use already-ground versions for a quick mix.
Baharat is perfect as an all-purpose seasoning or rub for meats, fish and chicken. You can even add it to soups, stews or casseroles to add extra smokey flavour. Or why not sprinkle over your favourite dips such as hummus?
Since you’re making your own spice blend from scratch, it’s easy to tweak the ingredients to suit your taste!
P.S. If you love making your own homemade spice blends, try our recipes for curry powder, Japanese 7 spice or matcha green tea salt next!
What is Baharat?
‘Baharat’ simply means ‘spices’ in Arabic language. This all-purpose blend / seasoning is most often in Middle Eastern, Turkish and Greek cuisine, and varies slightly from region to region. It’s also known as Lebanese 7 spice.
The special part about this Baharat recipe is not just its tiny list of ingredients. It’s the magic flavour they create when they come together.
Before you even have a taste, those freshly mixed spices will be filling your kitchen with a unique and exotic aroma.
What You’ll Need
If you already have the following spices in powdered/ground form, you’ll be able to whip up this Middle Eastern spice mix in just a few minutes. If not, you can easily grind whole spices in a spice grinder OR use a mortar and pestle.
This recipe for baharat spice mix calls for eight individual spices (yes, 8! Even though it is referred to as Lebanese 7 spice):
- Black pepper
- Cardamom
- Cinnamon
- Cloves – These can be bought whole and ground or buy them as a powder.
- Coriander – You can buy them as coriander seeds and grind them yourself, or look for ground coriander – not fresh!
- Cumin
- Nutmeg
- Smoky paprika – We love the smoky flavour with this paprika, you can also use regular Hungarian Paprika or Hot Paprika for extra spice kick.
If you’re missing any of these spices, most should be available at your local supermarket, Asian or Middle Eastern grocer or online.
Wandercook’s Tips
- Storage – Store your blended baharat in an airtight glass jar out of direct sunlight.
- Use Within 3 Months – Any longer and your blend may start to lose its potency.
FAQs
While baharat is also referred to as Lebanese 7 Spice, it more commonly contains 8 spices. Some of the 7 spice variants use allspice to replace the cinnamon, nutmeg and clove components of the mix.
Baharat is most popularly used alongside chicken, however lamb and beef are also popular.
Here are a few ways you can add an extra flavour to your cooking by using this wickedly aromatic spice:
– Use as a spice rub – for meats, chicken or fish.
– Use as a flavouring – for soups, stock, casseroles, tureens or rice dishes. We recommend trying it in Egyptian Koshary or blending into a batch of Fresh Tomato Pasta Sauce.
– Use as a condiment – sprinkle across pita bread, popcorn or fresh dips such as hummus. Or sprinkle over vegetables such as eggplant before roasting to give an extra depth of flavour.Â
– Use as a marinade – simply mix with olive oil and lime juice for a quick marinade recipe.Â
Both spice mixes share a lot of the same base spices, however there are some notable differences. Garam Masala is more common in Indian cuisine while Baharat is more popular in the Middle East. Garam Masala is a little spicier and contains bay leaves and red chilli powder instead of the paprika in Baharat.
Variations
- For a More Turkish Flavour Profile – Try adding dried mint flakes.
- Tweak to Your Liking – Don’t be afraid to experiment with your own ingredient ratios – this spice blend is easy to adapt to your own tastes.
- Substitutes – You can substitute the cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves with 1 tsp of allspice.
Try these delicious recipes next:
★ Did you make this recipe? Please leave a comment and star rating below!
Ingredients
- 2 tsp smoked paprika
- 2 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp cardamom
- 1/4 tsp cloves
Instructions
- Pop all your aromatic spices (smoked paprika, cumin, black pepper, ground coriander, nutmeg, cinnamon, cardamom and cloves) into a mortar and grind away with your pestle until blended into luscious dark red and brown powder.2 tsp smoked paprika, 2 tsp ground cumin, 1 tsp black pepper, 1 tsp ground coriander, 1/2 tsp nutmeg, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1/4 tsp cardamom, 1/4 tsp cloves
- Alternatively, if you’ve already got your spices ground and ready to go, pop them in a small bowl and mix until well combined.
- Store your gorgeous aromatic Baharat mix in an airtight container in the pantry until ready to use.
Video
Recipe Notes
- Storage – Store your blended baharat in an airtight glass jar out of direct sunlight.
- Use Within 3 Months – Any longer and your blend may start to lose its potency.
- For a More Turkish Flavour Profile – Try adding dried mint flakes.
- Tweak to Your Liking – Don’t be afraid to experiment with your own ingredient ratios – this spice blend is easy to adapt to your own tastes.
- Substitutes – You can substitute the cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves with 1 tsp of allspice.
- Uses –
- Use as a spice rub – for meats, chicken or fish.
- Use as a flavouring – for soups, stock, casseroles, tureens or rice dishes. We recommend trying it in Egyptian Koshary or blending into a batch of Fresh Tomato Pasta Sauce.
- Use as a condiment – sprinkle across pita bread, popcorn or fresh dips such as hummus. Or sprinkle over vegetables such as eggplant before roasting to give an extra depth of flavour.
- Use as a marinade – simply mix with olive oil and lime juice for a quick marinade recipe.
Nutrition
34 Comments
Alina | Cooking Journey Blog
26/07/2019 at 11:22 pmI’ve recently thought I wanted to try a new spice mix with ground meat. Thanks for sharing!
Wandercooks
29/07/2019 at 9:52 amMmm yum! I’m thinking beef patties or hamburgers could be a winner – how about you?
Karen
16/04/2023 at 2:53 amI’m going to give this a try in a Middle Eastern spiced beef bowl
Wandercooks
18/04/2023 at 2:21 pmGreat idea Karen, let us know how it goes!