Dried fruit: all the colors of fakya

Seventeen fruits, seventeen personalities

The family falls into three moods. First, the classics of Moroccan fakya: Spanish dried figs and Unsweetened Turkish dried figs, Unsweetened dried apricots, Unsweetened golden raisins and Unsweetened jumbo raisins. Next come the colorful, sweet-tasting fruits that make a platter shine: Dried mango, Dried papaya, Dried pineapple, Dried kiwi, Dried strawberries and Dried banana. Finally, the most singular ones: Dried mandarins, left whole; Dried grapefruit; Dried ginger in small cubes, sweet then hot; Dried tomatoes; and two tart berries, Unsweetened dried goji berries and Unsweetened dried cranberries.

How to choose them

Look at the label first. Six fruits carry the word “unsweetened” on their label: the apricots, the Turkish figs, the golden and jumbo raisins, the goji berries and the cranberries. For the others, if you watch your sugar, ask us for the ingredients on WhatsApp: we'll answer product by product. Then think about texture: figs and apricots are dense and soft, raisins smaller and tender, mango and papaya supple, almost candied. Finally, choose the origin when it matters to you: our figs come from Spain or Turkey, and their label says so.

On the table and in the kitchen

For tea, set them out in small bowls and play with the colors: the orange of apricots, the green of kiwi, the red of strawberries. On a fakya platter, they slip in between the almonds, cashews and dates, and soften the salted nuts. In the kitchen, figs, apricots and raisins go into sweet and savory tagines, couscous tfaya and homemade bread; mango and cranberries get chopped into yogurt or granola; dried ginger flavors a loaf cake or cookies.

Keeping them soft

Dried fruit dislikes air, heat and above all humidity, which Casablanca, a coastal city, has plenty of. Close the bag after each serving or, better, move the fruit to a tightly closed glass jar, away from light. In hot weather, the refrigerator keeps it supple longer, especially figs and apricots. On figs, a thin, powdery white bloom is often the fruit's own sugar rising to the surface; fuzz, green spots or a musty smell, on the other hand, signal mold, and the fruit should not be eaten. Our guide “Storing nuts and dried fruit” covers all of this.

Frequently asked questions