Kali: Food Goddess: Chasing Harissa

Sriracha may be the king of chili sauces right now, but harissa is quickly gaining on it. Harissa is a North African hot pepper paste used as condiment, dip and marinade.

It’s a simple thing: roasted peppers (red, serranos, chilis), herbs and spices (garlic, coriander); and oil (vegetable, olive).

It may be bought (jarred, canned, and in tubes), but it is also relatively easy to make your own, whether you have a good Middle Eastern area or a premium market near you.

You can also purchase directly from Amazon: Dea paste from France; Mina Moroccan sauce; Mustapha’s red pepper harissa; and Moulin Mahjoub’s spread in olive oil among others.

Cook and Be Merry did a comparison of some harissa products that you ought to read to give yourself an idea what is available and, perhaps, factors to consider when you shop for a brand.

It is just as easy to make your own, and it may be better because you can regulate how much heat you can handle.

The New York Times has a 15-minute preparation if you want to try it out but have trouble making commitments. The Seattle Times has a more substantial recipe. Saveur has a relatively easy and delicious version with dried Mexican chiles. The blog Food52 has a version that uses a variety of peppers for a more sophisticated, deep flavor.

If you’ve tried it and love it (trust me, you will!), you can try other variations. Bon Appetit has a green harissa. The Kitchen Confidante blog has a fire roasted tomato harissa.

The beauty of the sauce/dip/condiment is that it keeps for weeks, and it may be used in a variety of food preparations: you can flavor soups and stews, you can use it as a spread over breads, you can use it as a marinade for fish, meats, vegetables and grains.

No matter what kind of diet you’ve chosen to torture yourself with to begin the New Year, harissa is a perfect addition to your repertoire.

We are in the midst of a refurbishing project and as soon as we have our new fridge and stove, we want to try out some of the recipes below (I’ve been saving some of these with delectable anticipation).