Bird’s tongue pasta

Warda langues d'oiseau are small rice-shaped pasta, known as orzo in Italy and 'lsan el asfour' in Arabic. Made in Sousse, Tunisia, from 100% durum wheat semolina, they cook in 11 minutes and hold their shape well in broth. The red and green 500 g bag from Warda's soup-pasta range is easy to spot on the shelf.

This shape is found across North African cooking. In Tunisia and Algeria it thickens red chorbas and chicken soups. In eastern Algeria it is the base of tlitli, a festive dish where the pasta is steamed, then coated in a red sauce with chicken and chickpeas. It also works in cold salads and baked dishes.

Why list it

• Versatile pasta known under several names (langue d'oiseau, orzo, lsan el asfour), reaching a wide customer base.
• Strong rotation in winter and during Ramadan, when soup is served daily.
• The tlitli angle speaks to Algerian customers from Constantine and the east, a large community around Paris.
• 24 × 500 g bags per case.

How to use it

Add the pasta dry to the soup near the end of cooking and simmer for about ten minutes; for tlitli, steam it in a couscoussier and then coat it in sauce. On the shelf, place it with Warda mhammes, cheveux d'ange and chorba frik, close to tomato paste and chickpeas.