Everyone Loves Argon

Sunday, October 17, 2010
Essaouira, Morocco
Before I started planning my trip to Morocco, I had never heard of Argon Oil, but apparently a lot of other people view it as a miricle product. Argon trees grow in the part of Morocco around Essaouira and the nut of the tree is used to make an oil that is used in cooking and also in cosmetic products. The fruit of the Argon tree is enjoyed by goats who actually climb the thorny trees to eat them. Inside the fruit is a hard seed that is not digested by the goat, but when cracked contains a kernel that yields the oil. It takes three trees to produce enough kernels for one liter of oil.

Our day started with a trip to an Argon co-op where the nuts are harvested and processed . This co-op provides employment for about 40 women who work half day shifts. In order to provide more opportunities, the nuts are not harvested in the traditional way, but are picked by the women, who remove the flesh, crack the outer seed and grind the kernals by hand. The kernals used for cosmetics are roasted before being ground, but the ones used for cooking are ground raw. After watching the women at work we were able to sample some of the products.

Next we visited a village market. The name of the village is Sunday Market, because that it the day that the market is held. Later we saw towns named Tuesday Market and Saturday Market. Around the edge ofthe village were several parking areas--one for donkeys ane carts, and a couple for pack animals. The olive harest is underway so there were lots of olives for sale. We also stopped by the animal auction, but by the time we got there, the auction was over. Animals were being loaded into vehicle, either by their new owner, of if they hadn't been sold, to be transported to the next day's market . Sopmetimes, the trucks had two levels and cattle were raised to the upper level with ropes and pulleys, and several strong men. They were very efficient. We also walked thriough a flea market type area where almost everything was for sale.
The next stop was the butchers area where Ab bought some camel meat for us to try later. I am an avowed carnivore, and I understand how meat reaches my table, but I found this part of the market very disturbing.

Then we visited a local vineyard and winery, which was a refreshing change from the market. We were able to sample a flight of the wines produced as we sat in the tasting room overlooking the vineyard.  I bought a bottle of white wine to share with the wine group at Donna's. Finally, we visited a family in a nearby village, where we had lunch. In addition to the salads and tagines, we also had camel kabobs, which were very tasty if a little chewy.   

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