Harissa Sauce
Harissa Sauce is a thick, spicy sauce with complex flavors that hails from northern Africa. It’s often sold as a paste in a tube for a shot of concentrated flavor, but as a sauce the flavor evens out and the heat doesn’t hit in a one-two punch. Our Harissa Sauce has a pleasant heat, but isn’t overly spicy. Feel free to add some Cayenne Chile Powder if you want to boost the heat without altering the overall taste of this dish. And Ancho Chiles add deep notes of stone fruits and a bit of bitterness. Use one if you'd like to keep the flavor brighter, two if you want to give it a deep oomph. We used two.
Roasting the bell peppers for this sauce starts you off with a sweet and savory base. Remember to trim off the pith along the peppers’ ribs, since they can add bitter notes to your finished sauce. And try and save as much of the liquid that exudes out of the peppers as they cook. This liquid is packed with the essence of the peppers and adds astounding depth and richness.
3 red bell peppers, stemmed, seeded, and cut in half
5 garlic cloves, unpeeled
2-3 Tablespoons olive oil, divided
1-2 whole Ancho Chiles
2 Tablespoons Harissa Spice
1 Tablespoon tomato paste
1 Tablespoon lemon juice, plus more to taste
1 teaspoon Kosher Salt, or to taste
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon Cayenne Chile Powder, if desired
1. Preheat oven to 425°F.
2. Trim and seed bell peppers. Toss pepper and garlic cloves with 1 Tablespoon olive oil. Place garlic cloves in a piece of foil and wrap. Put pepper halves and wrapped garlic on a rimmed baking sheet and place in the oven. Roast for 30-40 minutes, turning once half-way through cook time, until peppers are charred and are completely soft and garlic is fully roasted. Garlic may be ready earlier than peppers, so be ready to remove that from heat sooner.
3. While peppers roast, rehydrate Ancho Chiles. Crack dried chiles open. Remove stem and wipe out seeds and dried pith. Place Anchos in a heat-proof bowl and cover with boiling water for 15-20 minutes, or until completely soft and pliable. Remove from soaking water and let dry. Ancho chile water can be drained to remove any incidental seeds or debris and used for other recipes or frozen for future use.
4. When peppers are roasted, remove them from heat and let them cool down enough to handle. Then strip them of their skins and place peppers in the bowl of a large food processor. Squeeze roasted garlic out of the skin and into the food processor, along with Ancho Chiles, Harissa Spice, tomato paste, lemon juice, and Kosher Salt. Use a rubber spatula to scrape any red pepper liquid into the food processor as well.
5. Blend these together until they form a smooth sauce. Taste and adjust ingredients (lemon juice, salt, olive oil, Cayenne Chile Powder) for heat, flavor, and consistency. Serve.
Makes about two cups of sauce.