Add Oil to Fire!!

Harissa is a fiery red pepper paste and used mainly Tunisia and Moroccan cuisine as well. This chili paste is prepared in a similar manner. I used a mixer of oven roasted sweet chili and dry Kashmiri chilies. The salt and olive oil in it makes sure it stays fresh for a week. You can use it for a number of dishes. I added it to the Moroccan-inspired kofta tagine whose recipe is in the previous post. this is more like an extension of my previous post.

Add it to your hummus to oomph up the flavor or to your gravies for a little kick. Well, it is believed chilies are an aphrodisiac, so I guess a little heat in your valentine’s day dinner won’t hurt.

Harissa inspired chili paste

Course:  spice paste
Cuisine: Moroccan/ Indian
Preparation Time: 10 min
Cooking Time:  5 min
Yield: serves NA

INGREDIENTS

Dried Kashmiri chilies 7-8
Oven roasted sweet red chili 8
Hot water 1 cup
Olive oil
Caraway seeds 1 tsp
Cumin seeds 1 tsp
Coriander seeds 1 tsp

METHOD

1. Soak the dried chilies in a cup of hot water for 1 hour till they soften
2. Dry roast the seeds over a hot pan for a minute
3. Cut the sweet chilies in half
4. Remove the stem and seeds of the chilies
5. Lay them on a tray in a layer and drizzle some olive oil
6. Roast them in a preheated (180 celsius) oven for 10 – 15 min or till they change color
7. Place the two kinds of chilies along the roasted spices in a blender
8. Pour ½ of the soaking liquid and blend to a fine paste
9. Add salt and drizzle over the olive oil
10. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for a week