Thursday 19 September 2024

Preserved Lemon Harissa

Last year our Tassie friends came up for a visit, and kindly gave us some organic Meyer lemons from their tree.  I turned some of them into preserved (salted) lemons, and there they sat in our fridge since last Winter.  (This was written a few months ago!)  So I decided to turn them into preserved lemon harissa.  'Cos I love to whizz things up in my food processor.  "So satisfying!" as a certain YouTuber (EmmyMade) often says.

I've adapted a basic harissa recipe from Taste.com.au, adding a few extra ingredients, like the preserved lemons, the rose petal powder and honey (and lemon EVoo).  Why not go big? :=)  So here we have it - the Sherry version.  


the result - 2 wee jars of paste

Makes 2 small jars:

ingredients:

2 long red chillies  (looks like I added some dried chilli flakes too)

2 green jalapeños

130g./4.5 oz (approx.) of preserved lemon rinds (no flesh)  see Notes

2-3 garlic cloves, chopped roughly

1/2-1 tsp sea salt flakes  

1/2 tsp ground rose petal powder (or dried rose petals) or a sprinkle of rosewater (maybe 1/8 to 1/4 tsp?)

1 tsp ground coriander

1 tsp ground cummin

3-4 tsp EV olive oil, or 1 tsp lemon-pressed EVoo + 2 regular EVoo

1/2-1 tsp honey (optional)

1 tsp EV olive oil on top of each jar


Method:

Chop up the chillies and jalapeños, removing most (or some) of the seeds (all of 'em if you don't fancy the heat)

Throw the de-seeded little babies into your food processor (a small-ish one if you have it) or grab your mortar and pestle if you're going old-school

Put in the preserved lemon pieces, without the flesh, and the garlic, and blitz away

And add the rest of the ingredients (sans the last amount of EV olive oil)

And blitz!  till as smooth or chunky as you please

Spoon into small jars, top with EV olive oil, and keep in the fridge for a month or 2


Notes:

Use all red chillies, or your choice of chilli - green, whatever :)

Use more or less preserved lemon, as you wish


ingredients gathered

in go the chillies and jalapeños

and the preserved lemon rinds, and garlic

and the rest of the ingredients

spoon into small jars

and keep in the fridge for a month or 2


c. Sherry M.

I used the harissa in a chicken traybake one night.  I had about a kilo/2 lb of skinless chicken thighs, which I tossed in 3 Tbs maple syrup, 3-4 Tbs harissa paste, a huge splash of EVOO, and salt and pepper.  Baked at 185C for about 25 minutes.  Delicious!


and don't forget the veg.!

Mr P. is sick with a cold at the moment, not that he lets that stop him.  He's still working as per ...  I am feeding him up, and giving him lots of vitamins.  I made a preserved lemon hummus yesterday (I'll blog it eventually), and added lots of garlic to help kill the germs (just kidding) - but you never know!

He's convinced that the flu jab helps keep the colds at bay too.  He read recently that we need a second jab each winter!  Crumbs, when does it stop?  I am a pin-cushion already these days.  Wow, those shingles shots were a blast!  I reckon this harissa will kill 'em all too - the germs I mean. 

30 comments:

  1. Interesting!! I've tasted preserved lemons and harissa but never together.. Looks great!!

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  2. Oh you're so clever and creative - this looks and sounds so delish! I love anything with chilli! Can't wait to see the preserved lemon hummus, that sounds right up my eat street!

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    1. thanks muchly sammie. I will have to crack on with the hummus post soon :)

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  3. I love harrisa! Must try this version as soon as I made my own preserved lemons. Made once and had no idea what I should do with them and they ended up in the bin.

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    1. What a shame about your lemons! So good in baked dishes, or Middle Eastern casseroles etc...

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  4. We have been checking to see when the vaccination clinics open this autumn.

    The chicken recipe looks delicious!

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    1. thanks Marie. Endless jabs these days :)

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  5. I am going to steal this idea! Just love the sound of it. And hope Mr. P gets better soon!
    Tandy | Lavender and Lime https://tandysinclair.com

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  6. Sherry, you had me giggling at the pin cushion line; we feel the same way. But I bet those hot spices will keep anything at bay! This recipe is a saver. I would love to read more about how you use it. A year ago, my lemon tree was transplanted from a half-wine barrel to the ground. So far, it has 5 lemons in it, but none of them are ripe yet. I am eagerly waiting for a chance to preserve them.

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    1. You can add it to any dish that needs a bit of heat and tang! Baked dinners, stir-fries ...

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  7. Wow the pugency of this condiment must be unreal! I need to try ASAP, I mean as a marinade for a simple baked chicken it's probably insane :o

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    1. Yes it was very good with chicken!

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  8. I would love to try your lemon harissa Sherry. It sounds like such a unique blast of flavour. Trying to reply from my phone non-anonymously is so hard, not sure why. Great post, and the Shingles vaccine is so worth it. - Pauline (Happy Retirees Kitchen)

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    1. One day Pauline :) Commenting on any blog seems so difficult lately. Everyone has different options - or none!

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  9. Wow what a great idea to combine harissa with preserved lemons. I can see how this would work fabulously with baked chicken. My mouth is watering just thinking about it! Now I need to preserve some lemons...

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    1. Yes it was tasty, and added great flavour to the chicken dish.

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  10. Very creative of you to make this lemon harissa Sherry. And served with your chicken traybake it sounds amazing!

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    1. thank you Neil. It was good with the chook:=)

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  11. Sounds like a lovely and unusual combination of flavors. I must give it a go some time.

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  12. What a tasty idea! I love how you used those lemons. Your harissa looks delicious!

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  13. I was wondering what you might do with the harissa, so thanks for the tray bake!

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    1. yes it added great flavour to the chicken dish.

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  14. This sounds delicious and a great use for preserved lemons. I use so many preserved lemons that I made 3 large jars last winter. I only have one left. I’ll make extra this winter so I can give this a try! David (C&L)

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  15. What a delightful way to use those organic Meyer lemons! Your recipe sounds incredible and bursting with flavor. I love how you've adapted the traditional harissa by adding such unique ingredients like rose petal powder and honey, it really elevates the dish!

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