Poached Garlic & Green Peppercorn HARISSA

Any master list or top 5 roster of the best and most enduring HOT sauces in all of human history, certainly notes the mighty North African Harissa.  In its basic form, it's a clean and simple preparation, dried chiles reconstituted in hot water, then ground to a paste w/ fresh garlic, extra virgin olive oil and sea salt.  With origins in Tunisia, Algeria & Liberia, there are many variations out there.  Naturally it's made and used in the south of France as well.  A wide variety of recipes abound and quite frankly all are worth a try in our opinion.  This version was inspired by a particularly succulent crop of late summer freshly picked garlic from South Coast Farms in San Juan Capistrano.  Steeping them in boiling water allowed the skins to slip off easily.  Using fresh garlic makes for a particularly flavorful harissa, but it does take a bit of time to skin the cloves.  Here's the set up.

Look how plump, slightly golden and beautiful they look, lightly poached in boiling water and sea salt.  

Poached Garlic & Green Peppercorn Harissa

In a medium saucepan w/ a lid, mix together

Amount	Measure	Ingredient	Prep Method
2	Cups	Dry red chilies	Arbol, bird, Japanese
1	3.5 oz Can	Green peppercorns	Rinsed and drained
6	Cups	Brewed Genmai Tea	Or green tea, veg broth or water
½	Cup	Dry vermouth
¼	Cup	Champagne vinegar

Let sit overnight.  Then bring to a boil over high heat, covered.  Remove from heat and let cool to room temp.  Several hours. 

Meanwhile, in a glass bowl or measuring cup combine

1 ½	Cups	Whole garlic cloves	Unpeeled
½	Teaspoon	Salt
2	Cups	Boiling water

Let sit until the water cools, then peel the garlic.  Reserve the water to use if needed

2	Cups	Evoo
½	Cup	Paprika
¾	Cup	Sumac
1	Heaping Tabelspoon	Sea salt

 

Stir together the chili mix, the lightly poached and peeled garlic and the evoo spice mix.  Vitamix in batches until smooth.  You’ll likely use most or all of the reserved garlic water too.  Use that to adjust the consistency to your liking. 

Ok, let's hit the Vitamix!

Every harissa lover knows that this uber versatile HOT sauce makes every food group zestier & fuller of flavor.  We've cooked up a storm of options for y'all to savor

Some like it HOT for breakfast

And brunch

Classic HOT breakfast and brunch w/ a basil & ricotta omelet, 

roasted taters & lots of harissa to fire up those eggs

Hearty seed bread w/ caper crema, harissa & avocado.  The earthy buckwheat gluten free seed bread holds its own w/ the harissa fire.  Epic Seed Bread

Roasted portobello & tarragon caramelized onion sliders w/ harissa rouille.

Keep this delicious harissa handy, it freezes well, and when you're in the kitchen, finishing a dish and wondering what it needs to take it right up on over the top, well, the answer is clear :: Poached Garlic & Green Peppercorn HARISSA ::

Eating Healthy & Delicious is a Win Win Win Situation!

Eat, Live & Party Well

Blog post by Chef Mark Cleveland

Avanti is the longstanding leader in organic, sustainable, local, flavorful cuisine in Orange County, CA.

Meaning 'forward' in Italian, Avanti Natural is a culinary philosophy that integrates the best of traditional European and Asian healthful eating with the latest nutritional information for optimum health.

Our successful restaurant Avanti Café was located on 17^th St in Costa Mesa from 2005 through 2014.  Follow us on social media to see what is new and in store for Avanti in our culinary futures.

At Avanti Natural, we believe that you don't have to sacrifice taste to eat healthy; you can Eat Well & Live Well

We are Whole Foods Experts  It’s time to take Avanti Natural to restaurant menus & kitchens everywhere.

Post photos of your versions of Avanti Natural recipes on our Facebook, Twitter and Instagram pages.  We’re excited to see and share your culinary creativity!

www.avantinatural.com

Facebook  https://www.facebook.com/pages/Avanti-Cafe/166822256677277?ref=hl

Twitter  https://twitter.com/AvantiNatural

Pinterest  http://www.pinterest.com/avantinatural/boards/

Instagram http://instagram.com/avantinatural