Marak Daganya

Sanaa·Easy·25 min active + 1 hour 5 min resting

Yemeni tomato-and-lamb soup with potato, onion, garlic, cumin, turmeric, and fresh cilantro — gently spiced, brothy, and warming. Eaten as a winter starter, Ramadan iftar opener, or anytime comfort meal with khubz flatbread for dunking.

Marak ('broth' in Arabic) is the Yemeni soup category; daganya refers specifically to the tomato-based lamb version. The dish reflects Yemeni daily eating: a soup-and-bread combination that's economical, warming, and satisfying. Sold at every Yemeni restaurant; made at home for Ramadan iftar and winter dinners.

Sip the broth — deeply red-orange, slightly sour from dried lime, warm with cumin and cinnamon, the lamb fat enriching it. Bite a chunk of lamb — fork-tender, falling apart. Potato adds starchy comfort. Cilantro brightens the heavy broth; lemon at the end cuts through. With torn pieces of khubz dipping in, this is the Yemeni winter warmth.

Browning lamb develops Maillard depth that anchors the broth. Slow simmering with bone-in lamb (preferred) extracts collagen-and-marrow for body. Dried lime added whole infuses its tangy compounds without dispersing too much sourness. Cilantro and lemon at the end provide brightness that long-cooked broth would lose.

Variations

Beef marak uses beef chuck. Chicken marak uses bone-in chicken — faster (30 min). Vegetarian marak uses chickpeas and double potatoes. Spicy marak adds dried chilies.

On the Palate

Where Marak Daganya sits in the Yemeni flavor cloud

Ingredients

Serves 4

1 tsp groundGround Coriander

1 tsp groundTurmeric

1/2 tsp groundCinnamon

How it's made

12 steps · 25 min active + 1 hour 5 min waiting

1
4 min
Cut 500 g lamb shoulder into 3-cm cubes.
2
9 min
In a heavy pot, heat 2 tbsp olive oil. Brown lamb 8 min over high heat.
Watch out
Brown the lamb hard over high heat until a deep crust forms on all sides — this seared color is what gives the broth its backbone, so don't let it stew pale in its own juice.
3
5 min
Add 2 chopped onions + 6 minced garlic cloves + 1 tbsp grated ginger; cook 4 min.
4
2 min
Add spices: 1 tbsp ground cumin + 1 tsp ground coriander + 1 tsp ground turmeric + ½ tsp ground cinnamon + 1 tsp paprika + 1 tsp salt + ½ tsp black pepper. Stir 1 min.
Watch out
Stir the ground spices in the hot fat for just a minute until they smell toasty and fragrant — any longer over dry heat and they scorch bitter.
5
6 min
Add 4 diced tomatoes + 2 tbsp tomato paste. Cook 5 min.
6
5 min
Add 1.5 L water + 1 bay leaf + 2 dried limes (pierced). Bring to a simmer.
Watch out
Pierce the dried limes before they go in so they steep their tang into the broth slowly — the low simmer should barely bubble while the lamb turns fork-tender.
7
47 min
Cover; simmer 45 min until lamb is fork-tender.
8
22 min
Add 2 cubed potatoes (peeled, 2-cm cubes). Cook uncovered 20 min until potatoes are tender.
9
2 min
Stir in juice of 1 lemon + 3 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro.
Watch out
Stir the lemon and cilantro in right at the end — that brightness fades if it cooks, so it goes in off the long simmer, not during it.
10
1 min
Discard whole dried limes and bay leaf.
11
1 min
Taste; adjust salt.
12
3 min
Serve hot in deep bowls with khubz flatbread for dunking.