Azday, Gathering Stories of Food - Barley couscous - Amltot & Ifershayyen

Photo by Bashir Nannis

In the extreme North West of Libya lives the Amazigh community of At Willul. The At Willul have inhabited the area surrounding the city of Zuwara for centuries. Yet, despite their historic roots, much of their history and culture has gone unrecorded. Sadly, this is particularly evidenced by the minimal amount of sources in existence preserving their culinary heritage.  

To ensure the preservation of At Willul dishes, culinary traditions, and mythologies, 15 Amazigh elders were asked to reflect upon these topics. The story you are about to read is one of the traditions they recounted. 

The Amazigh people are distinguished by the multitude of their dishes. Couscous, ‘ⴽⵙⴽⵙⵓ’ is one of the Amazigh staple foods, consisting of small grains made out of wheat. The word Couscous traces its roots to the Tamazight language and it is derived from the phrase meaning ‘small pieces’ or ‘well rounded’. Couscous serves as the base for a variety of dishes, also known as couscous.

Couscous is most commonly prepared with wheat grains, but can also be prepared with barley. Two examples of such couscous are Amltot and Ifershayyen. Barley couscous are considered to be a  lesser quality and are  typically consumed when wheat couscous is no longer available, or by families with less means. Ifershayyen in particular is considered a light meal and can be eaten for dinner.

After the harvest, the barley is washed and spread under the sun. Once dry, the barley grains are crushed using a stone grain mill called Tassert. The flour obtained is sieved at least three times. The fine particles that fall through are Amltot, while the small crushed grains that stay in the sieve are Ifershayyen.

The preparation of Amltot and Ifershayyen is similar to wheat couscous both for the Ibran and cooking the dish. However, Amltot and Ifershayyen must be left to soak  in water before it is steamed.

This story is part of Azday ‘ⴰⵣⴷⴰⵢ ‘ project, an effort to document the culinary heritage of the At Willul. You can find more stories of Amazigh culinary heritage in the Azday booklet.

Azday project is funded by the British Council’s Cultural Protection Fund, in partnership with the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport. The project is conducted in partnership with the At Wellol Movement.