Maltese vs Moroccan food & cuisine

Maltese food focuses on fresh seafood, seasonal vegetables, olives, capers, citrus, herbs, good bread, and practical meats. The cooking is simple and honest, with flavors shaped directly by the land and sea.

What makes it stand out in a global contex is that you get touches of Sicily, North Africa, and the broader Mediterranean, yet it still feels distinctly local. Dishes are more rustic than refined, built from everyday ingredients, slow cooking, and clever preservation.

Moroccan diet is mostly grain-oriented compared to its Mediterranean neighbors, with high wheat, barley, and maize consumption. Primary plant proteins are fava beans, lentils, and chickpeas; animal proteins are goat, mutton, lamb, chicken, pigeon, beef, and fish on the coast. Milk is found in custards and cheeses, yet it is rarely consumed fresh or as yogurt. Characteristic are lemon pickles, argan oil, cold-pressed, unrefined olive oil, and dried fruits. The use of spice is absolutely crucial.

Bread and pasta are supreme among grain foods in Malta. Ħobz, a crusty loaf available in white or brown varieties, accompanies meals for soaking up olive oil or sauces. Pastizzi — flaky pastries filled with ricotta cheese or mushy peas- are everyday street food. The strong Sicilian culinary heritage is evident in plenty of pastas  –  penne, rigatoni, and macaroni paired with tomato or pesto sauces. Unlike bread and pasta, corn and rice are relatively minor in traditional cooking.

Cereals are an inexpensive, security-providing base for all income levels. Wheat is the most crucial – the average per capita consumption is almost 500 grams daily, three times the global average (156 grams). Wheat is used for breads: classic khobz, yeasted oven-baked rounds, rghifa or mssemen, a griddle-cooked flatbread,  and harcha, a small, circular semolina bread. Wheat also features baghrir pancakes, very popular in North Africa’s streets.

Vegetables play a bigger role in Maltese cooking than many people expect. Simply grilled, roasted, or steamed vegetables are common. Salad is dominated by tomatoes, cucumbers, onions, bell peppers, and capers; olives also find their way into salads for a salty and briny flavor.

Dishes often center around vegetable in minestra (a hearty vegetable soup), kapunata (a cooked vegetable dish with eggplant, tomatoes and capers), bean stews, and vegetable pies.

Vegetables are essential, though quantities consumed are comparatively low. Due to economic disparities, some struggle with the affordability of fresh vegetables.

Cooked salads are popular in Morocco. They feature eggplants, tomatoes, peppers, and carrots, often roasted or stewed and then served at room temperature or chilled. Vegetable pickles from carrots, cucumbers, turnips, cauliflower, and green beans are common.

Maltese cuisine is balanced around traditional meats – beef, pork and poultry consumption is very similar. Rabbit evolved from a historical staple for the poor into a national meat, famously prepared as stuffat tal-fenek (Maltese rabbit stew), a rich, slow-cooked dish with wine, tomatoes, garlic, and herbs.

Lamb is a type of meat that is especially loved. The liver is eaten first, as it is more perishable than other parts. The intestines and other small bits are hung outside to dry for days in the sun and are used later for flavoring.

Other than the usual meats, game, snails, pigeons, and camels are quite popular.

The quality and variety the fish and seafood in Malta is outstanding. People rely on the daily catch, dishes feature seasonal lampuki (mahi-mahi or dorado), octopus, swordfish, and small coastal fish. To flavor, cooks use tomatoes, olives, capers, garlic, herbs and good olive oil.

Fish and seafood are hugely popular along the coast but way less inland. Fish come in tagines, pastillas, and are grilled whole, baked, or poached, in combination with tomatoes, bell peppers, onions, dried fruits, nuts, and chermoula sauce – all a distinctive North African footprint.

Milk consumption numbers bounce around from year to year, but overall consumption stays pretty high. Ricotta appears everywhere, British cheddar is popular along local gbejna, small round cheeses made from sheep’s or goat’s milk. Traditional soups often get enriched with eggs and a chunk of gbejna melting into the broth. For breakfast, people reach for plain yogurt, sometimes drizzled with honey or mixed with fresh fruit.

Egg dishes are pretty frequent, from tomato shakshuka to hard-boiled eggs flavored with cumin as a street snack or saffron-tinted eggs for tagine garnishing. Moroccan shakshouka is spiced with cumin, paprika,  harissa, preserved lemon, and olives, and sometimes includes lamb or merguez sausage.

The numbers tell a pretty clear story: Malta consumes more sugar and sweeteners than almost anywhere else in Europe. A big chunk of that comes from soft drinks. In fact, Malta ranks second in per capita soft drink consumption, which explains a lot about where all that sugar is going.

Moroccan desserts stand out for richness and sweetness, which can be considerably more intense than the typical Western understanding of “sweet”.

This heightened level of sweetness comes from the generous use of honey, sugar, and sweet fruits. It is balanced by nuts, floral waters (orange blossom, rose petals water), cinnamon and saffron.