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Here now harissa!

Posted at 2:15 PM on November 17, 2008 by Paulette Thompson (4 Comments)

It's fall. Comfort food is what we need with a bit of spice.
I like to mix harissa in mayonaise for meatloaf sandwiches. I like to put a spoonful in chicken soup. I like it in tomato soup. It's nice in shepherd's pie.

Here's a nice article from the Los Angeles Times on harissa Harissa, mon amour

It provides a recipe and step by step pictures.

So was I dreaming about making harissa? Fortunately my friend Erin B. (also an RPCV Morocco) came to the harissa rescue yesterday at her housewarming. She pulled out her copy of Robert Carrier's A Taste of Morocco: A Culinary Journey With Recipes.

Carrier's Harissa I was the recipe I kept seeing in varying formats:

2 c. hot dried chili peppers (we never learn which kind), soak and keep the water
6 cloves of garlic, peeled
4 tablespoons coarse salt (this seems too much to me)
6 tablespoons coriander seeds
4 tablespoons cumin seeds
8 - 10 tablespoons olive oil

The recipe in Crazy Water, Pickled Lemons by Diana Henry calls for caraway to be added to the mixture.
Casablanca Cuisine: French North African Cooking's harissa was extremely simple. I did not think it would be that flavorful, though.
Paula Wolfert did have the recipe in another book, Mediterranean Cooking. I did not bring it with me today so it was so cool to find that recipe on the' net:

Harissa Hot Chili Paste (Tunisia)

Recipe By : Paula Wolfert Mediterranean Cooking
Serving Size : 1 Preparation Time :0:00


Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
3 ounces mild and hot chilies -- dried
mixture of anchos, New Mexican and -- guajillos
1 clove garlic -- crushed with salt
1/4 teaspoon salt -- for above
1 teaspoon coriander -- ground
1 teaspoon caraway seed -- ground
1 red bell pepper -- roasted
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
olive oil

Stem seed and break up chilies. Place in a bowl and pour over boiling water.
Cover and let stand 30 minutes. Drain; wrap in cheesecloth and press out
excesss moisture. Do the same for the red bell pepper. Grind chilies in food
processor with garlic spices, red bell pepper, and salt. Add enough oil to
make a thick paste. Pack the mixture in a small dry jar; cover the harissa
with a thin layer of oil, close th with a lid and keep refrigerated. Will
keep 2 to 3 weeks in the refrigerator with a thin layer of oil.

Table harissa sauce.

Serve at the table as an accompaniment to meat or fish, the heighten the
flavor of salads, or as an accompaniment to Tunisian couscous: Combine 4
teaspoons harissa paste, 4 yeaspoons water, 2 teaspoon olive opil, and 1 or
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice in a small bowl and blend well makes 1/4 cup.
.........................................................................................................
I can't imagine using cheesecloth in the harissa making process. Carrier's Harissa I doesn't. Nor have any others I have seen.

Now Carrier's Harissa II was what I was sure I had made:
2 fresh red peppers, grilled or roasted. and skinned
1/2 c. hot red chilli or 1 tablespoon dried hot red peppers
2 cloves garlic, peeled
1/2 teaspoon coriander seeds
coarse salt

1. Drain the skinned, rinsed fresh peppers and cut into quarters, discarding stems, but reserving seeds. Chop pepper segments coarsely and add to seeds.
2. Slice hot pepper thinly; if using dried red peppers, soak them in hot water for 1 hour.
3. In a mortar, combine chopped skinned fresh pepper, pepper seeds, garlic, cumin and coriander seeds, and salt to taste. Pound to a smooth paste, adding a little olive oil if desired.
4. Add chopped hot red pepper and continue to pound until well amalgamated into the mixture. Add a little olive oil to give snoothness to the sauce if desired. Spoon into sterilized Mason jars and cover with a layer of olive oil, then seal jars and refrigerate.

I can see adding cilantro. You might want to add mint. What about preserved lemons?
Michael W. has had his preserved lemons for over a year. He will start anew when the next batch of Meyer lemons arrive from his in-laws in Arizona.

Comments (4)

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My link still are not linking.

Posted by P. Thompson | November 17, 2008 3:49 PM

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Yum, Yum......I now know what I am going to do with all those lovely Thai chilies that I got at the farmers market this year (I chopped 8 of them up and sauteed them with potatoes...we had to evacuate the house, every one was coughing and choking from the "heat")...thanks for a nice post.

Best regards, Vera

Posted by vera schabicki | November 17, 2008 5:53 PM

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Hey Vera,
Sounds good.
Here's the link to that wonderful article in the Los Angeles Times.
http://www.latimes.com/features/food/la-fo-saucier26sep26,1,5865067.story?coll=la-headlines-food

Paulette

Posted by P. Thompson | November 18, 2008 3:54 PM

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Hi Paulette, thank you for all the research. I am going to start with the one you make, Carrier's Harrisa II. Once I have a sense of the taste, I may add the caraway or cumin or dried tomatoes or all of the above called for in the other recipes to small batches. And how timely! The last of my sweet red peppers need to be roasted, and I just finished drying the last of the indoor ripened tomatoes. I often put roasted red pepper sauce on my grilled vegetables, and this looks like four or five more varieties that are all good keepers, too.

I have been making Moroccan inspired stews the last two years, mostly because of the use of root vegetables and chickpeas. I just noticed one calls for harissa on the side for those who like additional heat. How perfect.

Thanks again,

Kathy

Posted by Kathy | November 22, 2008 10:08 AM