Fearless with Flavour #5 - Harissa
My most favourite versatile chilli paste - make your own + fun ways to cook with it
I write this week’s newsletter sitting in a clinic room in Greymouth, West Coast NZ, where I’ve spent the past week working. As I look outside the window the day could not be more beautiful (pic below - how’s that for some real-time content!), and in fact the entire week has been blue skies and sunshine. I always get this weird, tingly feeling inside at this time of year, like butterflies in my stomach but in a good way, an excitedness of sorts. I think it stems back to September being the start of the tennis season growing up, when school holidays would be spent at tournaments where backhands and forehands could knock out the winter blues and the sun and new season energy made you feel good. Looking out the window today, I'm getting that feeling again. It truly feels like the arrival of Spring.
Fortunately spring lasts for a few months, and over the next few newsletters I’ll be sharing some seasonal ideas for how to make the most of the produce at our fingertips during this season - we’re talking asparagus, broad beans, early avos and strawberries. But before launching into the new season, this week I thought I’d revisit my fearless with flavour series for its fifth edition, focused on one of my favourite flavour boosters - Harissa, the North African chilli paste of my dreams.
Harissa, its name derived from the Arabic for ‘to pound or crush’, has different variations across the Maghreb area of Africa, including countries like Morocco and Tunisia - where it has been made added by UNESCO to the country’s Intangible Cultural Heritage. It’s an integral part of food traditions and daily cooking in this part of the world, and over recent decades has become a globally used condiment, transcending from restaurants to the western home kitchen.
Harissa is traditionally prepared by pounding sun-dried chillies and red peppers, usually with garlic, salt, olive oil, and a variety of spices; traditional harissa variations are dependent on the chillies (which vary based on the geographical area that they are grown) and spices used. This week I’m sharing with you my own recipe for Rose Harissa Paste - the addition of ground rose petals or rose water is a common variation of harissa - which comes from my new cookbook Good Vibes. I make no claim for this recipe being completely authentic; I opt for fresh chillies (although you can easily substitute for dried), and it has additions like fennel and lemon juice. But it certainly delivers that harissa punch. If looking for store-bought harissa, you can usually find jars in the International Foods section of your supermarket.
Firehouse rose harissa
Ingredients
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp coriander seeds
1 tsp fennel seeds
3 tbsp olive oil
10 long red chillies, deseeded and finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 red capsicum, cored, deseeded and diced
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
2 tsp rose water
½ tsp sea salt
½ tsp ground chipotle chilli
freshly squeezed juice of ½ lemon
Method
Toast the seeds in a frying pan over medium-high heat for 1–2 minutes, until fragrant and starting to pop. Use a mortar and pestle and grind to a reasonably fine powder. Heat 1 tbsp of the oil in the frying pan over medium heat. Add the chillies, garlic and capsicum and fry for 5 minutes, until the garlic is starting to become golden and the capsicum has softened. Transfer to a bowl and add the spices, remaining olive oil and the remaining ingredients. Using a stick blender (or similar) blitz until a relatively smooth paste is reached, or alternatively pound the ingredients together in a mortar and pestle to form a paste. Transfer to a sterilised airtight jar and refrigerate for up to 2 weeks. Use 1 tbsp of this versatile chilli paste to add a serious kick of flavour and heat.
So how do can we use this magical chilli paste?? I’d encourage you to keep a jar in the fridge, ready to throw into any dish you want to add instant heat and flavour lift. I find 1-2 tbsp is usually about enough, but will depend on the type of chillies used to make the harissa, and their relative heat level. Here’s a couple of quick ideas for using harissa at home:
Stir a spoonful into soups, stews or curries for instant deliciousness.
Add some to your next dressing or marinade to spice it up - it goes particularly well with yoghurt-based ones.
Toss through cooked spaghetti or your favourite pasta, with about 1/4 cup of the pasta cooking water, for a snappy flavour-packed dish. You could even add a splash of cream, yoghurt or knob of butter if you like, for some richness.
Sauté some onion in olive oil, add some garlic and ginger until golden, then add 1-2 tbsp harissa, a can of chopped tomatoes, 1 cup of water, and two cans of drained cannellini or butter beans. Throw in some extra spices if you like, season, bring to the boil, then simmer until reduced to a deliciously thick sauce - a stovetop harissa baked beans of sorts. Serve with yoghurt and flatbreads, or some thick toasted bread. You could also level-up with a couple of poached eggs on top, or bake in the oven with eggs cracked into the centre Shakshuka-style.
Last week, for possibly the first time in my whole life, I had this intense craving for nachos. My boarding school days have left me seriously nacho-ed out (I feel like I’m not alone here, ask anyone who went to boarding school in NZ), but I decided to listen to my gut and have written a plant-based deluxe super-duper nacho recipe to get you all in party mode this week! These Party-time harissa nachos are where it’s at. Super easy and so much better than your ordinary cheesy mince version, the chilli is packed with warming heat and flavour from rose harissa paste, then layered with zingy lime-pickled onion, creamy guac, and a quick plant-based sour cream substitute.
If my deep love for harissa hasn’t been obvious thus far, you only need to pick up a copy of my cookbook Good Vibes, for even more epic ideas for cooking with harissa; recipes like my Harissa roast lamb with minted pomegranate gravy, Warm kale, chickpea & pomegranate salad with harissa yoghurt dressing, Harissa baked beans and more! My website recipe archive also has other harissa-inclusive recipes for you to try.
Embrace the paste!!!!
Much love,
Alby xx
This week’s MOOD BOOSTER:
Silverbeet, potato + harissa filo pie
While I’d usually encourage you to make your own pastry where possible, filo is a step too far. And when I came to the realisation that most store-bought filo pastry is vegan, life got that little bit better. This plant-based pie is filled with the most comforting filling, a combination of mashed potato, harissa, herbs, yoghurt and silverbeet. You could easily sub the silverbeet for other sautéed vegetables in a pinch. Trust me, one slice will never be enough.
serves 6 as a main
Ingredients:
700g agria potatoes, peeled and chopped into 2-3cm chunks
1 tbsp + 1 tsp sea salt
2 tbsp olive oil, plus extra for brushing the filo
1 large brown onion, thinly sliced
6 cloves garlic, finely chopped
800g silverbeet (about 1 medium-large bunch), end trimmed, stems and leaves separated, both finely chopped
200g Greek-style coconut yoghurt (or use regular Greek yoghurt if desired)
1 ½ tbsp rose harissa paste
finely grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
2 tbsp finely chopped oregano leaves, plus extra to serve
2 tbsp finely chopped flat-leaf parsley leaves
2 tsp ground cumin
½ tsp ground allspice
½ tsp cracked black pepper
9 large sheets vegan filo pastry (approx. 40cm x 30cm each)
2 tsp poppy seeds
Method:
Preheat the oven to 170°C fan-forced (or 190°C conventional). Grease and line the bottom and sides of a 23cm round springform cake tin with baking paper.
First make the mash for the filling. Place the chopped potatoes in a large saucepan and cover with cold water. Add 1 tbsp salt and bring to the boil over high heat. Cook for about 10-15 minutes, or until the potatoes are cooked through (a knife should go through each potato easily). Drain the potatoes and return to the pan. Cook over medium heat for 30 seconds, stirring the potatoes to roughen the edges and dry them out a little. Transfer to a large bowl and mash the potatoes with a fork to form a dry and fluffy mash, still with the occasional small chunk of potato for texture.
As the potatoes are cooking, place 2 tbsp olive oil in a large high-sided frying pan over medium heat. Once hot, add the onion and chopped silverbeet stems and sauté for 10 minutes to soften. Add the garlic, chopped silverbeet leaves and remaining 1 tsp salt. Toss through and cook for a further 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the leaves have fully wilted and any liquid has evaporated from the pan. Remove from the heat, spoon the vegetables into a large sieve over a bowl and press with a wooden spoon to squeeze out and strain any excess liquid. Transfer the silverbeet and onion to the mash, stirring through. Set aside for 5 minutes to cool a little.
To finish the filling, in a small bowl, whisk together the yoghurt, harissa, lemon zest, lemon juice, oregano, parsley, cumin, nutmeg and black pepper. Pour the harissa yoghurt mixture into the mash and mix together until evenly combined. Adjust seasoning to taste with a little extra salt if needed.
To construct the pie, fill a ramekin with olive oil for brushing. Drape one sheet of filo over the base of the prepared tin, pushing it down gently to fit and allowing the excess to hang over the sides of the tin. Brush the sheet with a little olive oil, then top with another sheet of filo, rotating the next sheet slightly so the excess hangs at different angles. Brush again with oil and repeat until you have used six sheets of filo, each brushed with oil and layered to form the base and sides of the pie. Spoon the filling into the centre of the pie and spread it out with the back of a spoon to fill the tin. Take another piece of filo, brush with oil, carefully fold in half horizontally and lay this over the filling, tucking in any excess around the filling. Brush with oil and repeat with the last two sheets of filo, brushing with oil, folding and laying on top, angling each folded piece of filo to cover any exposed filling. This will create six layers of filo on top of your pie. Fold the overhanging filo from the base over the top of the pie, scrunching it up a little to create a slightly crumpled border on top. Brush with more oil and sprinkle with poppy seeds. Place the springform tin on an oven tray (to catch any oil that may leak while baking) and bake in the oven for 30 minutes. Briefly remove from the oven and using a tea towel, carefully release the outer ring of the springform tin and lift this off the pie, along with the baking paper around the sides. Return to the oven and bake for a further 20 minutes until the sides are nicely golden. Remove from the oven and leave to cool for 10 minutes before serving with an extra sprinkling of chopped oregano.
Best of the season this fortnight (NZ):
Brassicas (cauliflower, broccoli, Brussels sprouts - the last of these)
Lemons, Oranges
Grapefruit
Leeks
Celery
Silverbeet
Last of the yams
Kitchen music of the moment:
This fortnight has seen me playing loud the latest album from American singer-songwriter Noah Kahan, Stick Season. The album was written during the Covid-19 pandemic, so the lyrics and themes tie into this somewhat, and its folk-esque sound has been right up my alley. Some album highlights for me are the title track and Strawberry Wine - have a listen.
I’ve previously mentioned I’m a fan of Gregory Alan Isakov, whose music could be considered of a similar vibe to Noah Kahan above. He’s just released a new album, Appaloosa Bones, which is also worth a listen if you’re into the male singer-songwriter sound. He’s coming to Wellington, NZ in January 2024 which would definitely be worth a ticket if you’re jamming his music.
Interesting reads:
A win for small supermarket suppliers in NZ - explained in real terms.
Do we need tighter restrictions on food marketing to protect our children’s wellbeing? The WHO thinks so, will Aotearoa step up its game?
More harissa recipe ideas from the best.
Free school lunches have been a topic of NZ political discussion in recent weeks and it looks like they’re staying. Here's some real info on how the programme works and why this is a good thing to promote equity for our children.
For those who love a foodie TV show - binge-worthy or bizarre? Don’t knock it till you watch it.
Harissa and filo is a match made in heaven! How comforting 😍