Harissa is a widely used North African & Middle Eastern spice blend, but this homemade Harissa Substitute is the next best thing! You can use this recipe as an alternative for harissa paste or harissa powder. One of my favorite ways to use this harissa paste substitute is to spice up Cilbir (Turkish eggs recipe).
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In recent years, harissa has become a popular seasoning around the world, and, as you may have noticed, you can even find it in many grocery stores. But ever since I made my first spice mix for corned beef seasoning, I prefer to make my own spices, including this harissa substitute, because it allows for more control in terms of flavor, and you know exactly what's going into it.
In fact, this alternative for harissa paste recipe is, in my humble opinion, even better than the one I used to purchase. I prefer having control over what ingredients are in my harissa paste alternative. You can do the same!
For instance, if you prefer a milder harissa, you can omit the cayenne pepper and use less crushed red pepper in your harissa substitute. The beauty of making your own spice mixes and condiments like this alternative for harissa is that you can decide what goes in there and what doesn't!
Jump to:
🧐 What is Harissa?
Harissa is a smoky, earthy, spicy seasoning used in cuisines around the Middle East and North Africa (not to be confused with Hareesa, an Assyrian dish made with chicken and barley).
Harissa originated in Tunisia around the 16th century after red chili peppers were introduced to Tunisian cuisine by traders from Spain and Portugal, who brought them back from the Americas.
While harissa is a staple in Tunisia, its popularity has spread far and wide, especially in the Middle East and other North African countries like Morocco and Algeria.
There is also a lesser-known green harissa variety that I love equally.
😍 Why You'll Love This Recipe
- This harissa substitute can be whipped up in a matter of minutes!
- If you live in an area where harissa is hard to come by, making this harissa substitute is a great alternative.
- Harissa can be enjoyed in the form of a paste or as a powdered seasoning. This recipe will show you how to make it both ways!
- There are many ways to tweak this substitute for harissa, but my aim was to use only common and accessible ingredients that can be found at your average grocery store.
- Unlike store-bought harissa, this homemade substitute for harissa has no added fillers and is more potent than the store-bought stuff.
- Dilute the harissa substitute with water, vinegar, or lemon juice to give it a sauce-like consistency, then drizzle over anything you'd serve with hot sauce.
🔖 Ingredients & Substitutions
- Chili Powder & Red Pepper Flakes: I like to use both, but you can use one or the other if you prefer. You can also use Aleppo peppers, gochu-garu, chipotle powder, or ancho chilies.
- Smoked Paprika: The earthiness of smoked paprika really gives this harissa substitute its harissa-like flavor, but you could use sweet or hot paprika if that's all you have.
- Fennel Seeds: You can use whole or ground fennel seeds, but you can substitute them with caraway seeds. You can also leave them out.
- Cayenne Pepper: I like my harissa substitute hot, so I always add cayenne pepper, but if you prefer mild, just leave it out or add less.
- Garlic Powder: You could use freshly minced garlic, but I recommend using garlic powder unless you intend to make the harissa paste substitute.
- Sumac: You can also add a pinch of citric acid to your harissa spice mix. If you plan on making an alternative to harissa paste, you can use a little white vinegar or lemon juice instead.
- Parsley Flakes: You can also use dried mint or oregano.
🌶️ How To Make A Homemade Harissa Substitute
Step 1: Combine chili powder, red pepper flakes, sumac powder, smoked paprika, parsley flakes, garlic powder, ground coriander, fennel seeds, cumin, cayenne, and salt. Mix until consistent.
Pro Tip: If you prefer a smoother consistency, use a mortar and pestle or a spice grinder to grind the mixture before adding tomato paste and oil.
Step 2 (optional): To make this spice blend into an alternative to harissa paste, add olive oil and tomato paste and stir until a smooth paste is achieved.
Pro Tip: For an even smoother, more sauce-like consistency, mix in 2 tablespoons of water.
🔥 Additional Harissa Alternatives
- Salsa Macha is a unique Mexican salsa that is spicy, nutty, and loaded with umami flavor!
- Berbere is an Ethiopian spice mixture used similarly to harissa, sometimes as a seasoning and sometimes as a paste. Check out this recipe for how to make berbere.
- Gochujang paste is a staple in Korean cooking and is used to make this bibimbap sauce. It also makes a great harissa paste substitute due to its similar texture and complex spicy flavor.
- Gochugaru is a Korean chili powder used to make gochujang and is a good substitute for powdered harissa, especially when combined with the other ingredients in this recipe!
- Sambal oelek is a simple chili paste made with chillies, vinegar, and salt and is a staple in Indonesian cuisine.
- Roasted red peppers can work if you want a non-spicy alternative for harissa paste.
- Sriracha sauce is made from chili peppers and has a garlicky, slightly fermented flavor. Plus, you can use it to make Sriracha Aioli.
- Chili crisp is a Chinese chili oil/hot sauce made with peppers, nuts, garlic, onions, and more.
- Even though Adobo sauce, which is what canned chipotle peppers are often soaked in, is very different from harissa paste, it does offer an earthy spiciness that could work, depending on the recipe.
- Red curry paste isn't my favorite alternative for harissa paste because of the drastically different flavor, but I suppose you could use it if you're just looking for a similar texture and a bit of heat.
🍽️ Serving Suggestions
The possible ways to use this harissa substitute, either as a paste or a seasoning, are just about endless! Here are a few ideas to get you started:
Mix it into some mayonnaise or homemade yogurt to make a delicious spicy condiment for French fries, sandwiches, smoked burgers, avocado toast, this potato chop recipe, and more. Use it as a marinade or rub for elk backstrap, smoked lamb shank, sumac chicken, and other meats.
Why not sprinkle it over couscous, vegetables, or anything you want to add a little kick to? Or use it to add a bit of heat to soups and stews. You can also serve it as a spread as part of an easy charcuterie board.
But that's not all! Swirl it into this Lebanese hummus and enjoy with sourdough discard crackers, red bell peppers, or baked pita chips. Mix harissa paste with rose water and/or rose petals to make rose harissa.
🤷🏻♀️ Recipe FAQs
Because curry paste differs so drastically from harissa in terms of flavor, it isn't the ideal harissa paste substitute, even though they look very similar. A better harissa substitute would be gochujang paste, salsa macha, chili crisp, sambal oelek, or even blended roasted red peppers.
Yes, harissa is gluten-free, although you should confirm when buying it from the store, as certain manufacturers may include fillers that are not gluten-free.
👩🏻🍳 Pro Tips
- Store the powdered harissa substitute in an airtight container in the pantry for up to a year.
- The harissa paste substitute can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 1-2 weeks.
- The nutrition facts in the recipe card are for the harissa paste substitute. In other words, if you make the spice mix, omitting the tomato sauce and olive oil, the nutrition will be different than what's listed.
- You can grind the spices with a mortar and pestle, coffee grinder, or a small food processor if you want your seasoning to have a finer grain.
- If you find the texture of the harissa paste substitute too coarse, you can blend it in a small food processor or a blender until you achieve the preferred consistency.
🧂More Middle Eastern Spice Recipes
If you enjoy this harissa paste substitute, check out these other Middle Eastern spice blends!
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📖 Recipe
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Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Combine chili powder, red pepper flakes, sumac powder, smoked paprika, parsley flakes, garlic powder, ground coriander, fennel seeds, cumin, cayenne, and salt. Mix until consistent.
- To make this spice blend into an alternative to harissa paste, add olive oil and tomato paste and stir until a smooth paste is achieved.
Stephanie B says
Great substitute for store bought harissa. I would rather make homemade and this was very tasty!
Hilda Sterner says
Thanks, Stephanie, we appreciate the review!