On Thursday, September 12, 2024, the town of El Jadida will host the Gastronomic Encounters Sète-El Jadida, initiated by the twinning committee and the French town hall. This rapprochement between the two municipalities will also be placed under the banner of the culinary arts, with a focus this year on the preparation of tielle, a Sète specialty made from wheat dough, tomatoes, and octopus. The idea is to «introduce and share Sète's famous regional specialty with the people of El Jadida» through workshops and a culinary competition at the Azemmour Training Center, according to a press release. The «tielliste» chef, Jean-Pierre Conesa, who is also an elected municipal official, will prepare «a real Sète tielle in the presence of ten cooks from the town of El Jadida, who will make a first tielle according to Chef Conesa's recipe and a second tielle revisited according to their personal inspiration, in the Moroccan style», according to the same source. A jury made up of representatives of the Sétoise delegation and the city of El Jadida will award prizes to the best creations. In front of the Municipal Theater, the public will be able to taste these pies celebrating the gastronomy of Sète and El Jadida, with the logistical support of caterer Lahlou Event, under the auspices of the Sète-El Jadida twinning committee, represented by Youssef Zahidi, municipal councilor for El Jadida, and Ludovic Vallée, president of the twinning committee. A delegation from Sète will travel to Morocco from September 11 to 15 to attend the event and a program of meetings, including a round-table discussion with the El Jadida municipality on the theme of «waste treatment». Later, a fantasia ceremony and show will be held in the province of Benslimane, in addition to a meeting for the creation of a women's cooperative for the production of tielles. The program also includes a meeting with chefs from the Mazagan Beach & Golf Resort to examine possible culinary exchanges with chefs from Sète.
