Making harissa paste with roasted red chili peppers, garlic, cumin, and coriander is simple and results in a hot, flavorful sauce. This traditional dish is made without vinegar, unlike many others that call for vinegar to preserve food.
| Prep Time: | 15 mins |
| Cook Time: | 1 hr |
| Total Time: | 1 hr 15 mins |
| Servings: | 4 |
| Yield: | 1/2 cup |
Ingredients
- 12 mild to medium hot red chile peppers
- 1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 teaspoon caraway seeds
- ½ teaspoon coarsely ground cumin seeds
- ½ teaspoon coarsely ground coriander
- 3 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, or more as desired
- salt to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
- Remove stems from chile peppers and cut them in half. Remove all or some of the seeds if you want a milder harissa.
- Heat 1 teaspoon olive oil in a small frying pan over medium heat. Add caraway, cumin, and coriander; cook and stir until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
- Toss chile peppers, toasted spices, and garlic with 1/4 cup olive oil in a large baking dish.
- Bake in the preheated oven until chile peppers are very soft but not burned, about 1 hour. Stir a few times to ensure even cooking. Let cool.
- Transfer mixture to a food processor and purée until paste-like but still a little chunky. Season with salt.
- Spoon into a sterilized glass jar and level the top. Add enough olive oil so the surface is covered and the harissa won’t dry out. Seal and refrigerate.
- If you make more harissa than you can eat in 7 to 10 days, the best way to keep it is to freeze it in an ice cube tray, then store the frozen cubes in freezer bags.
Reviews
I discovered harissa at CAVA and this recipe is good! I used spicy peppers I had on hand (hatch and poblano) and dried red chili so mine was more green but very very delicious. My husband loves it on chicken and fish also.