Seasonal cooking
Moroccan Summer Grilling Traditions
Charcoal is the heart of Moroccan grilling, and summer is when it comes into its own. As the long evenings cool, families and friends gather on rooftops, in courtyards, on balconies and at the beach to grill over small clay or metal braziers — brochettes of seasoned lamb and beef, kefta patties, whole sardines on the coast, and lamb chops dusted with cumin and salt. It is sociable, informal and deeply rooted.
- Read
- 7 min
- Season
- Seasonal cooking
- Updated
- 20 July 2026
At a glance
- Charcoal is always the fuel — gas and electric grilling are rare in traditional settings.
- Brochettes (skewered meat) and kefta (spiced minced meat) are the two staples.
- On the coast, whole sardines grilled over charcoal are a summer institution.
- Evening grilling is a social ritual — families gather outdoors as the heat fades.
Brochettes and kefta
The backbone of Moroccan grilling is the brochette — cubes of lamb, beef or chicken threaded onto metal skewers, seasoned with salt, cumin, paprika and a little oil, and grilled fast over white-hot charcoal. The meat should be charred outside and just pink within, and it is eaten with bread, a squeeze of lemon and a dish of cumin-and-salt for dipping.
Kefta — hand-minced beef or lamb mixed with grated onion, parsley, cumin and paprika — is shaped around flat skewers or pressed into patties and grilled until the edges crisp. Both brochettes and kefta are year-round street foods, but in summer they move from the grill-stall to the home terrace.
Coastal grilling: sardines and the catch
On the Atlantic coast — Essaouira, Agadir, Asilah, the port of Casablanca — summer grilling means fish. Whole sardines, gutted but left on the bone, are laid in rows on a wire rack over charcoal and turned once. Seasoned only with coarse salt and eaten with bread, tomato salad and a wedge of lemon, they are among the simplest and best things to eat in Morocco.
- Brochettes: skewered cubes of lamb, beef or chicken with cumin and salt.
- Kefta: spiced minced meat on flat skewers or as patties.
- Sardines: whole, on the bone, grilled over coastal charcoal stalls.
- Lamb chops: simply seasoned with cumin, salt and pepper.
- Merguez: the spicy lamb sausage, grilled until the casing blisters.
The summer evening ritual
Moroccan summer grilling is as much about the occasion as the food. Families gather in the cool of the evening — on a rooftop, in a courtyard, at a park or by the sea — and the small charcoal brazier (majmar) is lit. The cooking is communal and unhurried: someone fans the coals, someone threads the skewers, children run in and out, and the meal stretches long into the night with bread, salads, fruit and mint tea.
For the salads that accompany the grill, see Moroccan summer salads, and for the wider summer table, what to eat in Morocco in summer.
Frequently asked questions
What do Moroccans grill in summer?
Brochettes (skewered lamb, beef or chicken), kefta (spiced minced-meat patties or skewers), lamb chops, merguez sausage and, on the coast, whole sardines. Everything is grilled over charcoal, seasoned simply with cumin, salt, paprika and lemon, and eaten with bread and salads.
What are Moroccan brochettes?
Brochettes are cubes of meat — usually lamb or beef, sometimes chicken or liver — threaded onto metal skewers, seasoned with cumin, salt and paprika, and grilled quickly over hot charcoal. They are one of the most popular street foods and home-cooked summer meals in Morocco.
How are sardines grilled in Morocco?
Whole sardines are gutted but left on the bone, seasoned with coarse salt, laid on a wire rack over charcoal and turned once. They are eaten immediately with bread, a tomato salad and lemon. On the coast in summer, sardine grills are everywhere — cheap, fresh and excellent.