Best Harissa Paste Recipes

HARISSA PASTE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Remove stems from chili 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 and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir so the spices won't burn.
• Toss chili peppers, spices, 1/4 cup olive oil, and garlic in a baking dish large enough to fit chili peppers in one layer.
• Bake in the preheated oven until chili peppers are very soft but not burned, about 1 hour. Stir a few times to ensure even cooking. Let cool.
• Transfer to a food processor and puree 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.

HARISSA PASTE

Steps:

• Put the coriander, caraway and cumin seeds in a dry frying pan and toast for 1 min. Grind in a pestle and mortar. Soak the guajillo chillies in warm water, then drain and remove the seeds (keep the soaking water). Put the spices and the soaked chillies into a blender with the halved red chillies, the garlic, coriander, lemon juice, olive oil and some salt. Add some chipotle paste to taste if you want a smoky flavour. Blend to a thick paste with a little soaking liquid. Put in a sterilised jar and pour over a little extra olive oil. Will keep chilled for up to two weeks.

SPICE ESSENTIALS: HOMEMADE HARISSA PASTE

Steps:

• 1. PREP/PREPARE
• 2. Gather your Ingredients (mise en place).
• 3. Place the dried chilies into a large bowl, and cover with boiling water.
• 4. Let them sit for 30 - 40 minutes.
• 5. Chef's Tip: As you have already figured out, the chilies are the star of this recipe, so care should be taken to choose the right ones. I use a 50/50 blend of hatch, and ancho chilies; however, you could use hotter or milder chilies to suit your own creative tastes. It is totally up to you.
• 6. Place the caraway, coriander, and cumin seeds into a small pan over medium heat.
• 7. Shake the pan, so that the spices do not burn, and stop when they become fragrant, about 2 - 3 minutes.
• 8. Remove the spices from the pan, and place into a spice or coffee grinder.
• 9. Finely grind the spices.
• 10. Chef's Note: Toasting dry spices is called "blooming," and it greatly enhances the flavor notes of the individual spices.
• 11. Drain the chilies, and reserve the soaking liquid.
• 12. Stem and seed the chilies.
• 13. Add the chilies, dry spices, lemon juice, sun-dried tomatoes, and the baked garlic to a blender or mini-prep.
• 14. Give the blender several 1-second pulses, until all the ingredients are thoroughly blended.
• 15. With the blender or mini-prep set to medium, slowly add the olive oil.
• 16. Chef's Note: If the resulting paste is thicker than desired, add a bit of the reserved soaking water, a teaspoon at a time, until the desired thickness is achieved. But, remember that this is primarily a paste, and not a sauce.
• 17. Stop and adjust the seasoning... Adding a bit more salt, if necessary.
• 18. Add to an air-tight container, and drizzle a bit more olive oil over the top.
• 19. Store in the fridge, tightly sealed, until ready to use.
• 20. PLATE/PRESENT
• 21. Use this versatile paste in soups, stews, or as a spread for a burger... Brush it on a piece of pan-fried fish. Add it to a batch of hummus, or mix some with a bit of extra virgin olive oil, and use it for dipping crusty bread. Enjoy.
• 22. Here is a really yummy recipe for a spicy wing dipping sauce: • 6 tablespoons sweet butter, unsalted • 6 tablespoons harissa sauce • 1 - 2 pinches cayenne pepper • 1/4 cup fresh clover honey Mix all the ingredients together in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Allow to simmer for about 2 minutes, then cool... So yummy.
• 23. Keep the faith, and keep cooking.

SLOW-ROASTED SALMON WITH HARISSA PASTE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 275°. Whisk oil, harissa, and garlic in a medium bowl. Pour half of harissa oil into a 2.5-qt. baking dish and swirl to coat. Thinly slice a lemon half and remove any seeds; scatter slices in dish. Season salmon on all sides with salt and place in dish. Pour remaining harissa oil over salmon, spreading evenly over flesh with a pastry brush or spoon. Roast 15 minutes. Remove from oven and baste fish with harissa oil pooled in dish. Return to oven and continue to roast until flesh flakes apart easily with a spoon but is not quite cooked through, 10-20 minutes longer. Use spoon to break up salmon into irregular pieces. Arrange salmon and lemon slices on a platter. Drizzle with any harissa oil left in dish, squeeze remaining lemon half over, and scatter some herbs around.
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HARISSA PASTE

Steps:

• Roast pepper over the flame of a gas burner, turning with tongs, until blackened and blistered. (Or roast under broiler, turning as needed.) Transfer to a bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let stand 15 minutes. Rub off skin with paper towels, then remove and discard ribs and seeds. Puree pepper with garlic, chili paste, spices, oil, and lemon juice in a blender until smooth. Season with salt and pepper.

HARISSA PASTE

Steps:

• Soak the dried chillis in tepid water to cover until softened, about 45 minutes to 1 hour.
• Drain and remove the stems and seeds.
• Place in a blender or food processor with the garlic, water, and olive oil and process until smooth, stopping occasionally to scrape down the sides.
• Transfer the mixture to a small bowl and stir in the caraway, coriander, and salt.
• Store in a jar and top off, covering the surface of the paste with a layer of olive oil.
• Whenever the paste is used you must always top off with olive oil making sure no paste is exposed to air otherwise it will spoil.
• Variation: To make a hot harisa, use 4 ounces dried guajillo chillis and 1/ 2 ounce dried de Arbol chillis.
• Note: To make salsa al-harisa, that is, harisa sauce, used as an accompaniment to grilled meats, stir together 2 teaspoons harisa, 3 tablespoons olive oil, 2 tablespoons water and 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh parsley leaves.

HARISSA PASTE

Steps:

• Remove seeds and stems from chiles. Cover in boiling water and set aside for 20 minutes to plump and rehydrate. Meanwhile, preheat a small dry skillet over medium-high heat and toast cumin, coriander and caraway seeds for 2 to 3 minutes, until seeds are fragrant and begin to pop. Remove from heat and allow to cool. Transfer seeds to a blender and grind them to a powder. Drain chiles and add to blender with garlic, olive oil and salt. Blend to a smooth paste. Cover and keep in refrigerator for up to 2 months.