Homemade Harissa
Harissa is the North African chilli paste that makes the kofta recipe sing, earthy, fragrant, and deeply savoury. It's easy to make at home, and this recipe works with ingredients you can find in any Buenos Aires dietética or supermarket.
Choose your own adventure: the mild version uses roasted red capsicums for a smoky, flavour-packed paste with zero heat, while the hot version adds dried chillies for a proper kick. Both keep for two weeks in the fridge and freeze beautifully in ice cube trays.
How to Make Homemade Harissa
1. Roast the morrones (both versions)
- 1
Put your gas burner on high. Place a morrón rojo directly on the grate over the flame, no oil, no pan, just the pepper on the fire. Use tongs.
- 2
Let it sit until the skin on the bottom is completely black and bubbling, about 2–3 minutes, then rotate a quarter turn. Keep going until the entire surface is charred and black. This takes 10–15 minutes total. It should look burnt, that's correct.
- 3
Transfer the charred morrones to a bowl and cover tightly with plastic wrap or a plate. Leave for 10 minutes. The steam trapped inside loosens the skin from the flesh.
- 4
After 10 minutes, use your fingers to peel off and discard all the charred skin, it will come away easily. Pull out the stem and scrape out the seeds. Don't rinse the flesh under water, any little bit of char left on is flavour. Roughly chop and set aside.
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2. Rehydrate the chillies, hot version only
- 1
If you're making the mild version, skip this section entirely.
- 2
Put 5 dried hot chillies (ají picante seco or chile de árbol) in a small bowl. Pour over enough just-boiled water to cover them. If they float, weigh them down with a small plate.
- 3
Leave to soak for 15 minutes until they are completely soft and pliable.
- 4
Drain and discard the soaking water. Pull off and discard the stems. For less heat: cut them open and shake out the seeds. For maximum heat: leave the seeds in. Set the softened chillies aside.
3. Toast & grind the spices (both versions)
- 1
Measure out the cumin seeds, coriander seeds, and caraway seeds (if using) and put them all into a small dry frying pan, no oil.
- 2
Place the pan over medium heat. Stir constantly with a wooden spoon or shake the pan. After about 60–90 seconds you'll smell a nutty, warm aroma and the seeds will just start to look golden. The moment you smell them, take the pan off the heat, they go from done to burnt in seconds.
- 3
Tip the toasted spices into a mortar and pound with the pestle until you have a rough, sandy powder. No mortar? Put them in a small zip-lock bag and crush with a rolling pin, or use a spice grinder.
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4. Blend everything together
- 1
Put the following into a food processor or blender: the roasted morrón flesh (all of it), the 4 garlic cloves (raw), the ground spices, 1 tablespoon of tomato paste, 3 tablespoons of olive oil, 1 teaspoon of salt, and the juice of half a lemon.
- 2
MILD VERSION: also add 1 teaspoon of sweet smoked paprika (pimentón ahumado dulce) now.
- 3
HOT VERSION: also add the drained, rehydrated chillies and ½ teaspoon of cayenne (if you want extra heat) now.
- 4
Blitz for about 60 seconds until you have a smooth paste. It should be thick, deeply red, and slightly textured, not completely smooth like a sauce. Stop and scrape down the sides halfway through.
- 5
Taste it. Does it need more salt? More lemon for brightness? More cayenne for heat? Adjust and blitz again for 10 seconds.
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5. Jar and store
- 1
Spoon the harissa into a clean glass jar. Use a spoon to smooth the surface completely flat.
- 2
Pour 1–2 tablespoons of olive oil directly over the top to form a thin sealing layer. This keeps air out and the harissa fresh. Every time you scoop some out, smooth the surface and add a little more oil on top.
- 3
Seal the jar and refrigerate. It keeps for up to 2 weeks in the fridge.
- 4
To freeze: spoon into an ice cube tray, freeze solid (about 2 hours), then pop the cubes into a zip-lock bag and store in the freezer for up to 3 months. One cube is enough for a full batch of the kofta recipe.
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How to Serve
This paste is the base for the Spiced Lamb Kofta in Harissa Tomato Sauce, it's what the sauce is built on. Make a batch for the kofta and keep the rest in the fridge: spread it on flatbread, stir it through yogurt, rub it on chicken before roasting, or swirl it into a bowl of soup.
- Spiced Lamb Kofta in Harissa Tomato Sauce, spiced lamb meatballs simmered in a rich harissa and tomato sauce. This is what the harissa is made for.
The Recipe
Prep15 min
Cook35 min
Total50 min
Serves1
DifficultyEasy
Ingredients
for 1 serves
Instructions
Roast morrones directly over a gas flame, turning every 2–3 min until completely charred all over (10–15 min). Put in a bowl, cover with plastic wrap, steam 10 min, then peel, deseed and roughly chop.
HOT VERSION ONLY: Soak dried chillies in just-boiled water for 15 min until soft. Drain, remove stems, and deseed if you want less heat.
Toast cumin, coriander, and caraway in a dry pan over medium heat for 60–90 seconds, stirring constantly, until fragrant. Grind in a mortar or spice grinder.
MILD: Blend morrones, garlic, spices, tomato paste, olive oil, salt, lemon juice, and smoked paprika until a thick paste. HOT: Same but add the rehydrated chillies and cayenne instead of paprika.
Taste and adjust salt, lemon, and heat. Spoon into a jar, smooth the top, and pour over a thin layer of olive oil to seal. Refrigerate up to 2 weeks.
Tips & Notes
If you can't find dried whole chillies for the hot version, 1–2 tsp of ají molido (the regular supermarket ground chilli) or cayenne works well, start with 1 tsp and taste.
Caraway (alcaravea) is what gives harissa that unmistakable North African flavour. It's worth hunting down in a dietética árabe, but the recipe still works without it.
The olive oil layer on top is not optional, it seals the paste from air and keeps it fresh. Top it up every time you scoop some out.
To freeze: spoon into an ice cube tray, freeze solid, then transfer cubes to a zip-lock bag. Lasts 3 months. One cube is the perfect amount for a batch of kofta.
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