Ben O'Donoghue's journey starts
in Casablanca with a typical Moroccan
breakfast, after which Ben takes in some local culture
and visits Hassan II Mosque before
lunching at the camel market. Casablanca
is a hip, trendy vibrant young city and Ben discovers
the best new place in town, 'Les Petits Roches'.
On the road northbound, Ben stops off for a roadside
snack of couscous and milk
next to local vineyards. Moving on to the Imperial
City of Fes where Ben gets lost in
the oldest continually inhabited medina and is invited
into an old home where he learns how to cook the soup
that breaks the Ramadan fast, Harira.
Ben visits the infamous restaurant and Maison d'hotel
'La Maison Bleue' where he indulges
in delicious ancient dishes.
Leaving the old imperial city behind and venturing
up through the snow capped Mid-Atlas
to the Sahara, Ben collects a selection
of vegetables at the market in Erfoud
and then bikes off towards the high dunes of the Western
Sahara and lives with a Nomadic family who survive
in a desert.
Onward to the exotic city of Marrakesh
where Ben explores the chicken and olive market and
meets up with the head chef of La Mamounia
and learns how to make a classic Chicken
Tagine. The evenings entertainment
starts in the Place Djemna el Fna
where Ben tastes a fine selection of street foods
scattered amongst snake charmers, fire eaters and
musicians.
South West into the High Atlas, Ben meets a young
Chef from New York whose Berber origins have brought
him to the land of mountain honey, almond nut and
argane tree. Together they cook a delicious Moroccan
pastry with honey and almonds which they take to a
local Berber village. Here they discover argane
oil and amalou prepared
in a traditional way. Ben bids farewell to Chef
Orchid and embarks on the final leg of his
journey, to the Portuguese fishing port of Essaouira.
Here is dabbles in a bit of surfing, explores the
medina and fish markets and meets some local fishermen
and then cooks his final dish for some friends on
the port.
