How to make harissa paste in less than 30 minutes! Enjoy using this North African spicy red sauce to add heat to dressings, sauces, soups, and more!
Recipe by Minimalist Baker on February 5, 2019
Prep time: PT30M
Total time: PT30M
Rating
4.83 stars (29 reviews)
Keywords
Harissa Paste
Ingredients
10 dried New Mexico chiles ((or other large dried chile with mild-to-medium spiciness))
7 dried chiles de arbol ((increase for more heat, decrease for less heat))
1 Tbsp (heaping) cumin seeds ( (or sub slightly less ground // if using ground, skip the toasting step))
2 tsp coriander seeds ((or sub slightly less ground // if using ground, skip the toasting step))
1 tsp caraway seeds ((not essential, but added to most traditional harissa))
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 ½ tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp sea salt
2 Tbsp lemon juice
1 Tbsp white wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar
1 Tbsp tomato paste ((or sub finely chopped sun-dried tomatoes))
1/4 cup olive oil ((if avoiding oil, sub water or omit))
Categories
Sauce
Cuisine
Gluten-Free
North African-Inspired
Vegan
Steps
Add dried chilies to a mixing bowl or measuring cup and cover with hot water. (We used a mix of mild New Mexico chiles and hot peppers (chiles de arbol). Adjust the ratio to preferred spice level.) Once submerged, cover and steam for 15-20 minutes to rehydrate. Set aside.
In the meantime, add cumin and coriander seeds to a small skillet and toast over medium heat for a few minutes, or until fragrant and they start to pop. Then transfer to a mortar and pestle (if you don't own one, just add to a food processor to mix later), and crush into a fine powder.
Next add caraway seeds, minced garlic, smoked paprika, and salt, and mix. Then add lemon juice and vinegar and mix again until you've achieved a paste. Transfer paste to food processor and add the tomato paste. Set aside.
Once chiles are rehydrated, drain and remove the stems and seeds (I recommend wearing gloves to protect your hands), then add to food processor. At this point, all ingredients (besides olive oil) should be in the food processor.
Blend for 1-2 minutes, scraping down sides as needed until a smooth paste is achieved. Then stream in 1/4 cup olive oil while blending to create a saucier consistency (see photo). (Add more oil (or water) as needed until desired consistency is achieved.)
Taste and adjust flavor as needed, adding more lemon or vinegar for acidity, paprika for smokiness, tomato paste for depth of flavor, or salt to taste. If it's not spicy enough at this point, you can either add more chiles de arbol (rehydrated and seeds removed) or cayenne pepper to taste.
Scoop paste into a jar to store in the refrigerator for up to 1 month. If storing in the freezer, we recommend scooping into an ice cube tray, freezing, and storing in a freezer-safe container up to 2 months. Add cubes directly to warm foods (like stews or cooked sauces). If adding to cold foods (like dressings or dips), let thaw before adding.
Nutitrion
Serving Size: 1 two-Tbsp servings
Calories: 123 kcal
Carbohydrates: 9.8 g
Protein: 1.8 g
Fat: 8.3 g
Saturated Fat: 1 g
Sodium: 266 mg
Sugar: 2.9 g
Unsaturated Fat: 5.9 g
Reviews
Christine Watters on 2025-09-11 (5 stars): This is very useful because I live in a place where it is difficult to buy stuff like this. It was an easy recipe to follow and it has made a nice big batch of hot harissa sauce- mine is more saucy than pasty. Practice mkes perfect however. Thank you for sharing!
Littlebit on 2024-09-08 (4 stars): Basted this on a whole roasted cauliflower from our garden. I skipped all the peppers, sprinkling chili pepper powder (homemade from our pepper plants) over the harissa. I missed roasting the seeds but would do that next time. I would also cut back on the salt and the caraway seed. Very tasty and received a positive review from my sometimes picky eater!
--Littlebit
ASLI on 2024-01-15 (5 stars): Doubled the recipe, then wondered how I'd get through so much harissa but it was so delicious I already need to make another batch :) thank you!
Barbara P on 2023-08-10 (4 stars): Made this with 1.5 roasted and skinned red bell peppers and a few seeded pickled jalapeño slices. Skipped the oil; used a bit of water instead. Tasted a bit harsh at first. I added more lemon juice, more tomato paste, a bit more salt, and about 1.5 teaspoons of brown sugar. These tweaks seemed to help a lot, and it is now certifiably yummy. Thanks!
Steve on 2023-01-22 (5 stars): Doubled the contents(need to make a lot of lamb merguez sausages and buying harissa is far more costly, and it doesn't have the character), but this recipe is absolutely amazing for taste, heat and value. I only adapted it in roasting the caraway,cumin and chopped fresh hot chillies( to bring more of the heat and flavour out)together in a skillet, this is so adaptable to an endless amount of recipes, amazing, without doubt the best paste/sauce recipe I've found in 10yrs.
Steffan on 2022-12-16 (4 stars): I keep it in the cupboard, as it just takes up space in the fridge. It seems to last indefinitely - a few months.
Alfred on 2022-10-16 (5 stars): I made it it was so delicious. Thanks
