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What the heck is ... harissa sauce?
  If
you read the Tapino menu on a regular basis (and we certainly hope that
you do!) you will notice the one magical condiment appears quite often
in Chef Porter’s cooking. It is “Harissa” [hah-REE-sah]
sauce. Harissa is a fiery hot sauce from Tunisia. Made with hot chiles,
garlic, cumin, coriander, caraway and olive oil. Some cooks also use mint,
or onions in their harissa. It's the traditional condiment for couscous
and is also used to flavor soups, stews and other dishes. Harissa is from
the Arabic word for "to break into pieces," which refers to
the traditional method of preparation that involves pounding peppers into
a coarse paste. Modern methods using a blender or food processor produce
a Harissa that is more of a sauce. Its current incarnation at Tapino is
in a dressing for the “Heirloom To mato
Confit and Celery Root Croquet”.
Harissa is the most important condiment used in Tunisian cooking, and,
in fact, you need to have this sauce in the refrigerator, ready to use,
before attempting any other Tunisian recipe. It's hard to believe that
so essential a condiment could evolve only after the introduction of the
New World capsicum – Columbus brought chile peppers back to Europe
from the Americas in 1493. This famous hot chili paste is also found in
the cooking of Algeria, Libya, and even in western Sicily. In Tunisia
it would be prepared fresh in a spice shop. There are many variations
of this condiment. Although it's available commercially, it's easy to
prepare and will keep for many weeks in the refrigerator. The simplest
recipe is merely a paste of red chili peppers and salt that is covered
in olive oil and stored. Harissa is sold in tubes by both Tunisian and French producers. The Tunisian one is better.
You can also buy it in cans, jars, tubs, and frozen in little pouches.
It's commonly used as a condiment with couscous, vegetable and meat tagines,
grilled foods, and to flavor soups and egg dishes. Chef Porter uses it
on most  everything
that he thinks needs to be kicked up a notch on the heat scale! The stuff
is easy enough to make from scratch at home. All you need is a pan, a
blender, some common supermarket ingredients, and a bunch of rags to clean
up the mess when you are through.
Here are some recipes that you can try:
Be very careful when handling hot chili peppers, making sure that you
do not put your fingers near your eyes, nose, or mouth. Or … you
will live to regret it. Wash your hands very!, very!, well with soap and
water after handling chili peppers (especially if you are on your
way to the restroom!!! – trust me! I know of which I speak!!)
Homemade Harissa Yield: 1/3 to 1/2 cup
Ingredients:
• 7 pods dried red New Mexican chiles, stems and seeds removed 
• -or- substitute 5 small hot chiles like piquin
• 1 tablespoon ground paprika
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 5 cloves garlic
• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds (or 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin)
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1/2 teaspoon caraway seeds
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint, optional
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Method:
Place the chiles in a bowl, cover with very hot water and steep 15-20
minutes. Drain the chiles and discard the water.
Place all the ingredients, except the oil, in a blender or food processor
and puree until smooth. With the motor running, add the oil in a slow,
steady stream to form a thick sauce.
Tunisian Harissa
Ingredients:
• 7 pods med Dried New Mexican Chiles, Stemmed and seeded
• 5 to 6 pods med Chiles Piquin – fresh - Stemmed and seeded
• 7 cloves Garlic
• 1 tablespoon Cumin -- ground
• 1 teaspoon Caraway Seeds -- ground
• 1 teaspoon Cinnamon -- ground
• 1 teaspoon Coriander -- ground
• 1 teaspoon Mint -- dried, crushed
• 2 tablespoon Olive Oil
• Water as needed
Method:
Heat a heavy pan to very hot... Add the Dried Chiles and toast 1 minute...
Remove from heat and add water to cover in the hot pan... Let sit 45 minutes....
Add all ingredients to a blender and blend on high 2 minutes.. Let sit
2 minutes.. Blend again, adding any water necessary (SLOWLY) to make a
thick paste.
Harissa Sauce – Fresh Chile Version
Ingredients:
• 1 tablespoon coriander seeds
• 1 tablespoon caraway seeds
• 2 teaspoons cumin seeds
• ½ lb. fresh red chilies, roughly chopped
• 1 head garlic, peeled and roughly chopped
• 1 tablespoon dried mint
• 1/2 bunch fresh coriander
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 2 - 3 tablespoons olive oil
Method:
toast the seeds (coriander, caraway and cumin) in a pan until you can
smell the aromas coming from the seeds and being careful not to burn them
(about 2 minutes). Bash them into a fine powder using a mortar and pestle.
Blend all the ingredients together in a food processor. Add enough olive
oil to make a stiff paste. This makes a lot of harissa and it can be stored
for a few months in a glass jar, covered with a film of oil.
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