Harissa

I made a Moroccan stew of lamb and prunes last weekend for a small dinner party we had. While looking for recipes for the stew, I came across one for Chunky Onion Harissa on Epicurious. I like the "toothpaste tube" harissa that's common around here but I'd never made my own, so I thought I'd give it a try. I was initially disappointed. I started it the day before the party. The recipe calls for 1/4 cup of tomato paste, 1/2 cup of red wine vinegar, and 1 cup of olive oil (among other things). When I got it all together, it seemed way too oily. Even the flavor was dominated by the olive oil, and it didn't seem spicy enough to me. I decided to let it settle, and I then spooned off as much of the oil as I could.

The next day, it had improved significantly. The overwhelming olive oil flavor had receded and there was more complex spiciness to it. Now it's five days later and I really like the stuff - I even put it on some tamales tonight.

Apart from the tomato paste, vinegar, and oil, I used garlic, red onion, cayenne, a sweet-hot pepper sauce, and chili flakes. I know some of you out there have been making this stuff for a long time. Any thoughts on what might improve this blend or on alternative mixes?

Where do you get the harissa in the tube?

The harissa you speak of is quite different to the one I use.

I make up a thick paste with EVOO, cayenne and cumin (and sometimes coriander) and spread a thin layer on thinsg like pork chops to brighten them up and make them interesting.

You can also use various pureed peppers, and mint is a frequent ingredient as well.

You can get the "red toothpaste" Harissa from Amazon.com, among other places.

I don't need to buy it -- my neighbor cooks North African, including Moroccan, and they feed it to us as appropriate. They spent some time in Tunis and more time in Morocco, and they like to reproduce the foods from North Africa. When Mourad's Moroccan cookbook arrived, I had a good look at it and then gave it to my neighbor, because it probably had too much depth for me, which made it perfect for her.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harissa

Where do you get the harissa in the tube?

I find it here at various places that sell imported foods. There are a couple of brands out there, but I haven't compared enough to know how they differ. My favorite use for the stuff is to squeeze it onto the mayo on a sandwich and mix it up prior to adding whatever else will go on. It gives a really nice kick.


Frank -

Thanks for that.

Trader Joe's has it.

Trader Joe's has it.

Thanks for that. I will look. I like having these flavorful additions around, but ones that are relatively 'simple' and don't have too many added 'chemical' ingredients (like so many of the Indian/Chinese/Asian condiments one finds). This sounds promising.

Trader Joe's has it.

Thanks for that. I will look. I like having these flavorful additions around, but ones that are relatively 'simple' and don't have too many added 'chemical' ingredients (like so many of the Indian/Chinese/Asian condiments one finds). This sounds promising.

I just checked one of the tubes we have. The brand is "DEA". The only slightly sketchy item on the ingredient list is "modified sweetcorn starch". Other than citric acid, everything else is something you'd buy at the grocery store on a routine basis.

I picked up a tube at World Market, if that's close for anyone... don't recall brand but it was made in Tunisia.