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5.0 from 9 votes

Harissa Powder Recipe (North African spice blend)

Harissa powder is a fragrant and fiery spice mix. Use it as a dry rub, a seasoning for soups, dips and roasts, or sprinkle it over finished dishes for a spicy flavour boost.Makes about ¾ cup of harissa spice.

Prep Time
5 mins
Cook Time
5 mins
Total Time
8 mins
Servings: 12 tablespoons
Course: Condiments
Cuisine: Middle Eastern , Moroccan , North African

Ingredients

  • 7 dried guajillo chillies*
  • 3 dried chipotle peppers*
  • 1 tablespoon caraway seeds
  • 2 teaspoons cumin seeds
  • 2 teaspoons coriander seeds
  • 1 tablespoon sweet paprika
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt

Instructions

    Cup of Yum
  1. Remove the stems from your dried chillies and shake out the seeds. Or leave the seeds in for extra hot harissa spice (I leave some, but not all, of the seeds). Roughly chop or break apart the chillies.
  2. Heat a dry skillet over medium-high heat. Toast the dried chillies, whole caraway, cumin, and coriander seeds for 2 to 3 minutes until fragrant, shaking the pan or stirring with a wooden spoon.
  3. Transfer the toasted spices and chillies to a plate to cool down. Then add the cooled spices and chillies to a spice grinder. Blitz into a powder.
  4. Add the paprika, garlic powder and salt. Blitz again to mix thoroughly.
  5. Transfer your harissa powder to a clean airtight container. The spice blend will keep in a dry, dark cupboard for up to 6 months.

Notes

  • Play around with the dried chillies. I love the combination of fruity, mild guajillo chiles with smoky chipotle. Find more dried chile options to use for harissa powder.
  • If you don't have a spice grinder, try medium hot chilli flakes (like Aleppo pepper) and pre-ground spices. This harissa powder substitute recipe uses ground spices and hits all the harissa spice flavour spots.
  • Substitute the dried chillies with half a cup (roughly 50 grams) of red pepper flakes.