TABLE OF CONTENTS
Best Algerian Foods
MAIN INGREDIENTS
Garantita is a popular Algerian street food item that is consumed as a snack and prepared as a kind of cake or tart. The dough is made with a combination of chickpea flour, oil, spices, and water. It is then covered with a beaten egg and baked in the oven until it develops a golden-brown color on top.
Garantita is typically served hot, dressed with harissa and cumin. It is believed that the name of this street snack is derived from the Spanish caliantetorta.
MAIN INGREDIENTS
Mahjouba is a traditional flatbread that is one of the most popular street food items in the country. These thick and flaky crepe-like flatbreads are made with semolina, then filled with a combination of tomatoes and caramelized onions. Mahjouba is often paired with harissa sauce on the side, but the condiment is completely optional.
Sfenj are popular Moroccan and Algerian doughnut-like fritters made from sticky unleavened batter, similar to Libyan sfinz and Tunisian bambalouni. The dough is traditionally shaped into rings and deep-fried until it develops a golden, crispy exterior.
The interior should be fluffy, tender, and chewy. These fritters are usually served hot when sold by street vendors, and they can be consumed plain or dusted with icing sugar.
MAIN INGREDIENTS
Maakouda are traditional potato fritters that are popular throughout the Maghreb, especially in Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia. The fritters are usually prepared plain, but they can also be stuffed with meat, tuna, or cheese, although not that often.
They're made with potatoes, parsley, garlic, flour, salt, and pepper. The potatoes are boiled, mashed, and mixed with other ingredients into small disks which are then deep-fried in hot oil until golden brown. Maakouda is traditionally served as an appetizer, a side dish, or an ingredient in a long sandwich roll that's usually sold as street food and served with harissa, coriander, and lemon juice.
Tamina is an ancient Algerian sweet treat consisting of toasted ground semolina, butter, and honey. It is typically decorated with cinnamon or sugared almonds. Traditionally, it is served when celebrating the birth of a child, but it can be prepared any day of the year.
Tamina is usually shared between a few people, as it is served in small plates and consumed with small spoons.
MAIN INGREDIENTS
Merguez is a spicy, flavorful sausage that originates from North Africa, particularly Algeria, Tunisia, and Morocco. It is traditionally made from ground lamb or beef, or a combination of both. Merguez is known for its distinctive red color, which comes from the addition of spices such as paprika, chili pepper, and harissa (a hot chili paste).
Other common seasonings include cumin, garlic, coriander, fennel, and sumac. The sausages are typically stuffed into lamb casings and can be grilled, pan-fried, or used in a variety of dishes, including stews, tagines, and couscous. Merguez is popular in North African cuisine and has also become widely enjoyed in France and other parts of Europe.
MAIN INGREDIENTS
M'semen is a traditional Maghrebi flatbread made with a combination of flour, semolina, sugar, salt, yeast, warm water, oil, and clarified butter. The dough is kneaded until it becomes smooth, and pieces of it are then flattened and shaped into squares.
Once the dough has been folded and shaped, it is cooked on a griddle or fried in a pan until it becomes crispy on the exterior and chewy on the inside. Although m'semen is traditionally consumed on its own as an accompaniment to coffee or tea, it can also be stuffed with various meats and vegetables.
MAIN INGREDIENTS
Rechta is a traditional dish consisting of thin and flat noodles and chicken sauce. The noodles are made with a combination of flour, salt, and water, while the sauce is made with chicken pieces, onions, garlic, oil, chickpeas, ras el hanout, cinnamon, turnips, potatoes, and zucchini.
Once cooked, the rechta noodles are placed into a large dish and topped with the sauce (marga). The dish is especially popular during festive events such as weddings, Eid al Fitr (end of Ramadan), and Ashura.
MAIN INGREDIENTS
Shakshouka is a delicious combination of eggs poached in a spicy tomato sauce. Although it has an unusual name, the dish is straightforward and easy to make. It is usually made in a skillet in which onions, tomatoes, and spices are cooked until they form a delicious tomato sauce.
Eggs are then added directly to the tomato sauce and poached until done. Merguez sausage can also be added to the dish. It is believed that shakshouka originated in Tunisia, but the dish is well-known and commonly eaten throughout North Africa and the Middle East as well.
Tajine zitoune is a traditional dish made with a combination of chicken pieces, olives, onions, carrots, mushrooms, thyme, bay leaves, lemon juice, and saffron or turmeric. The olives are blanched and dried, while at the same time, the chicken is browned with onions and spices.
The meat is cooked in water with vegetables, mushrooms, and olives, and the combination is simmered until tender. Near the end of cooking, flour and lemon juice are mixed in and poured over the chicken. The dish is usually cooked in a tagine, and it is recommended to garnish it with cilantro and serve it hot with saffron rice on the side.
OTHER VARIATIONS OF Tajine
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Best Algerian Food Producers
AWARDS
Olive Japan - Gold
2023
EVO IOOC - Gold Medal
2023, 2022
London IOOC - Gold
2023, 2022
BEST Sarl Établissement Kiared Olive Oils
SARL ARBAOLIVE is an olive oil producer based in Blida, Algeria. The company specializes in the production and processing of high-quality olive oil. They are involved in both the cultivation of olive trees and the extraction of oil, ensuring a controlled and consistent product.
SARL ARBAOLIVE is part of the agriculture and agribusiness sector in the region.
Sarl Huileries Ouzellaguen is an olive oil producer located in Béjaïa, Algeria. The company specializes in the production, bottling, and distribution of olive oil, focusing on maintaining traditional extraction methods. It sources its olives locally from the Béjaïa region, which is known for its high-quality olive groves.
The company markets its olive oil both domestically and internationally.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Best Algerian Food Products
AWARDS
London IOOC - Platinum
2021
AWARDS
London IOOC - Platinum
2021
AWARDS
Olive Japan - Gold
2023
London IOOC - Gold
2023, 2022
ATHENA IOOC - Gold
2023, 2020
AWARDS
EVO IOOC - Gold Medal
2023
EVO IOOC - Best Of Country
2023
AWARDS
EVO IOOC - Gold Medal
2022
AWARDS
OLIVINUS - Medalla de Oro
2022
AWARDS
ATHENA IOOC - Gold
2024
AWARDS
Olive Japan - Gold
2023
AWARDS
London IOOC - Gold
2023
AWARDS
ATHENA IOOC - Gold
2021
TasteAtlas food rankings are based on the ratings of the TasteAtlas audience, with a series of mechanisms that recognize real users and that ignore bot, nationalist or local patriotic ratings, and give additional value to the ratings of users that the system recognizes as knowledgeable. For the “Top 32 Algerian Foods” list until March 20, 2025, 8,000 ratings were recorded, of which 1,699 were recognized by the system as legitimate. TasteAtlas Rankings should not be seen as the final global conclusion about food. Their purpose is to promote excellent local foods, instill pride in traditional dishes, and arouse curiosity about dishes you haven’t tried.