Rif Einkorn Wheat

For centuries, local communities in Morocco’s northern mountains have been growing a very hardy variety of ancient wheat, Rif einkorn (Triticum monococcum).
This area, known as Jbala, covers most of the western and central Rif Mountains. Remote and hard to reach, it is recognized as a biodiversity hotspot due to its impressive concentration of plant and animal varieties, as well as different cultures.
The einkorn has long been a staple in the local diet, but also has many other uses. In the past, the long, tough stalks were used to roof traditional stone houses (these days, sheets of metal are more often used). Some villages are still known for their skillful crafting of donkey and horse saddles stuffed with einkorn straw.
The cultivation of the variety, which is now primarily grown for family consumption, does not involve the use of weedkillers and fertilizers and irrigation is rarely needed. The seeds are produced by the farmers themselves. The spikes contain very hard, small grains, yellow or hazelnut-colored. The harvest takes place between the end of July and the start of August and is traditionally carried out manually. The women use a scythe to cut the spikes and gather them into bundles. The cuttings left in the field are then collected for use as straw. Nowadays the einkorn can also be harvested mechanically, but this means the straw cannot be recovered. The next step is the removal of the husk, which is such a laborious operation that the einkorn is also known locally as chqalia ( “the pain is for me”). It takes around an hour of work to produce a kilo of seeds.
Rif einkorn is used in various traditional recipes: The grains are cooked in soups, while the flour is used to prepare pasta (m’hamsa), pancakes (baghrir) and a bread with a sweet, nutty flavor. The toasted einkorn is also used as a coffee substitute.