Move over sriracha and chile paste, harissa is here and ready to challenge for the condiment crown. A fun and flavorful way to spice up your dishes, this versatile flavoring contains a kick of peppers and chiles and is delicious in everything from chicken and burgers to roasted vegetables and hummus. And, bonus: you can make harissa paste at home! Once you’ve made harissa paste from He Needs Food, it’s a snap to make harissa butter, which is fabulous in everything from shellfish to omelets to breads. Cut off the stems off of your Mexican chile peppers, also called arbol chiles, and discard the seeds — unless you are feeling really adventurous and like a lot of heat. Cut off the stems off of your Mexican chile peppers, also called arbol chiles, and discard the seeds — unless you are feeling really adventurous and like a lot of heat. You may want to consider wearing gloves to protect your skin while chopping chilis and avoid rubbing your eyes (don’t ask how we know that!). ALSO TRY: Chicken mignon with harissa butter What is great about harissa paste is you can customize the flavor: add a squeeze of lemon or switch up the chiles. Chipotle or anchos are both great options. The harissa paste becomes even more flavorful if allowed to hold and let the flavors meld and develop over a couple days, so this would be great to make in advance. If you would rather use fresh chiles instead of dried, you’ll need twice as many fresh to get the same flavor as dried chiles. For example, you’d need 20 fresh arbol chiles versus 10 dried chiles. Harissa butter is terrific for sautéing shrimp or lobster, for cooking eggs or in place of regular butter for corn on the cob or breads. Delicious!
Click here to jump straight to the recipe
Prepare red peppers for Harissa paste and harissa butter
Blister over a flame until charred black. Cover and steam to loosen skins, then peel completely.
Clean and chop red peppers
Be sure to remove all seeds and membranes.
Soften dried chiles
Pour boiling water over the chiles and the dried chiltepins; the chiltepins give off a delicious smoky aroma and flavor.
While the water works to soften the peppers, get started on your powder
Toast the cinnamon, cumin and caraway seeds in a small pan until they start releasing their aromatic, shaking the pan or stirring frequently to avoid burning. It will smell divine. Then, grind the toasted spices and smoked paprika flakes in a mortar and pestle or a spice grinder.
Place all ingredients in food processor or blender for Harissa paste and harissa butter
Combine the powder with the chiles and charred red pepper, along with the garlic, salt and olive oil, making a paste out of the ingredients using a stick blender or food processor.
Make harissa butter
Once you’ve made the harissa paste, you can easily make butter by mixing your harissa paste along with ground fennel into whipped butter.
Form butter into log
Shape into a four-inch log and keep rolled in plastic wrap in the refrigerator until you are ready to use it.
Look at all that delicious flavor!
Harissa butter can be used in a variety of recipes
Impressive and really easy to make!
1 red bell pepper, charred* and chopped10 dried arbol chiles6 dried chiltepins1 teaspoon cumin seeds1 teaspoon caraway seeds1 teaspoon powdered cinnamon1 teaspoon smoked paprika flakes2 cloves garlic1 tsp salt1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
Harissa butter
8 ounces unsalted butter softened1 tablespoon fennel seeds, toasted and ground3 tablespoons harissa paste
*Char the red pepper over a flame or under a grill until the skin is blackened all over. Place in a bowl, cover with plastic and allow to sit for 10 minutes. Rub the blackened skin from the pepper and remove the stem, seeds and inner membranes. Avoid washing the pepper under running water as this will wash away the juices. Harissa butter
