Chef Zohra
Atay b Chiba (Moroccan Wormwood Tea)
The cold-evening cousin of mint tea: gunpowder green tea brewed with chiba, the bitter winter herb Moroccans use when na'na is scarce and the house needs warming.
Culinary Explorer
A cooking platform built around craft, culture, and the stories behind what we eat.
Khoudenjal (خودنجال)
Created by
A Marrakech winter infusion: dried galangal brewed with cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and black pepper until dark and warming, then sweetened and poured hot into small glasses.
Beverages
Moroccan
Comfort Food
Special Occasion
5 min
Active Time
25 min cook•30 min total
Yield6 small glasses
When the cold comes into Marrakech at night, it doesn't ask permission. It slips through the alleys, under the wool djellabas, right into the bones. Then you look for the copper cauldron and the dark drink inside it: khoudenjal, sharp with galangal, sweet enough to soften the throat, hot enough to send you back into the square with courage.
The root is the point. Dried galangal gives the drink its peppery, camphor-like bite, stronger and more medicinal than ginger, and the other spices stand behind it. Don't boil it to death. Simmer it gently, covered, so the roots and bark give what they have without turning harsh. Then let it sit a little. Infusions need patience, not force.
Serve it in small glasses, very hot and sweet, with dates or chebakia if the table has them. This is la cuisine du lien, the cooking of connection, even when the dish is a drink. One glass warms the hands. A second makes room for the person who just arrived.
Khoudenjal belongs especially to Marrakech's cold-weather street-drink culture, where herbalists and vendors have long served spiced infusions from large copper cauldrons in the medina, including around Jemaa el-Fna. Galangal reached North Africa through older Indian Ocean and Red Sea spice routes that fed Moroccan apothecaries and souks from the medieval period onward, though the exact date this Marrakech drink took its present form is not firmly recorded. Like many Moroccan herbal preparations, its blend changes by seller and household, but dried galangal remains the identifying root.
The technique, the tradition, and the story behind every dish.
Discover Culinary ExplorerIngredients
water
Quantity
1.2 liters
dried galangal root (khoudenjal)
Quantity
15g
lightly crushed
cinnamon stick
Quantity
1
fresh ginger
Quantity
8 thin slices
or 1 tsp dried ginger
whole cloves
Quantity
4
black peppercorns
Quantity
4
green cardamom pods (optional)
Quantity
2
lightly crushed
sugar
Quantity
3 tbsp, or to taste
honey (optional)
Quantity
1 tbsp
added off the heat
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| water | 1.2 liters |
| dried galangal root (khoudenjal)lightly crushed | 15g |
| cinnamon stick | 1 |
| fresh gingeror 1 tsp dried ginger | 8 thin slices |
| whole cloves | 4 |
| black peppercorns | 4 |
| green cardamom pods (optional)lightly crushed | 2 |
| sugar | 3 tbsp, or to taste |
| honey (optional)added off the heat | 1 tbsp |
Equipment Needed
- •Small heavy saucepan with lid
- •Pestle or heavy knife for cracking the dried root
- •Fine sieve
- •Small tea glasses
Instructions
- 1
Crush the roots
Put the dried galangal on a board and tap it with a pestle or the side of a heavy knife until the pieces crack. You aren't making powder. You only want to open the root so the water can enter and pull out its peppery warmth.
- 2
Start the infusion
Add the water, galangal, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, peppercorns, and cardamom if using to a small pot. Bring just to a boil, then lower the heat at once. Let it murmur gently, covered, for 20 minutes, until the liquid turns amber-brown and smells sharp, sweet, and woody.
Keep the lid on. The covered pot holds the volatile spice aromas in the drink instead of letting them leave the kitchen. - 3
Rest and sweeten
Turn off the heat and let the infusion sit for 5 minutes. Strain it through a fine sieve, then stir in the sugar while it is still hot. Add honey only off the heat if you want that rounder sweetness.
- 4
Serve hot
Pour into small glasses and taste. It should be dark, sweet, and warming, with the galangal coming first and the cinnamon behind it. If it bites too hard, add a little more hot water. If it tastes thin, return the spices to the pot and let them sit a few minutes more. La balance est dans les yeux, and here also in the throat.
Chef Tips
- •Buy dried galangal from a busy Moroccan attar, an herbalist, where the roots smell alive when cracked. A tired root gives you colored water and no comfort.
- •Every Marrakech vendor has a hand with the blend. Some add more ginger, some more cinnamon, some a little cardamom. Keep the galangal in front, or the drink loses its name.
- •Sweeten after straining so you can judge the strength first. Khoudenjal is usually served sweet, but the sugar should carry the spice, not bury it.
- •Don't confuse galangal with fresh ginger. They are cousins at the table, not the same person.
Advance Preparation
- •You can crush the dried galangal and measure the spices a week ahead, then keep them in a sealed jar.
- •The infusion is best served the day it is made. If needed, strain it and chill for up to 24 hours, then reheat gently without boiling.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nutrition Information
1 serving (about 200g)
Calories
45 calories
Total Fat
0 g
Saturated Fat
0 g
Trans Fat
0 g
Unsaturated Fat
0 g
Cholesterol
0 mg
Sodium
2 mg
Total Carbohydrates
12 g
Dietary Fiber
0 g
Sugars
11 g
Protein
0 g
Where cooking meets culture.
Culinary guides, cultural storytelling, and the editorial depth that makes cooking meaningful.
Discover Culinary ExplorerMore from Moroccan Mint Tea & the Hospitality Table
Browse the full collection
Chef Zohra
Atay (Moroccan Mint Tea)
Atay is Morocco's welcome made liquid: green tea rinsed clean, mint pressed into the pot, sugar dissolved into the whole house, then poured high into small glasses.
Chef Zohra
Café Noir
The plain daily cup of the Moroccan café: short, dark, and unsweetened unless your hand reaches for sugar, served with water and enough time for talk.
Chef Zohra
Citronnade à la Menthe (عصير الليمون بالنعناع)
Whole lemons, mint, sugar, and cold water, blended briefly and strained. This is the summer glass of Moroccan homes and juice counters, tart enough to wake you up.