Rose harissa, a brick red spice paste mellowed by a touch of rose, will become your favorite kitchen condiment. And if you have Ottolenghi's SIMPLE cookbook, now you can find one of his must-have ingredients - rose harissa.
Fry coriander, cumin, caraway in 1 teaspoon olive oil over medium-high heat until fragrant, about 10 seconds. Remove spices and reserve oil.
Grind spices with rose petals with a mortar and pestle or in a spice grinder. Add smoked paprika.
Heat reserved olive oil and 1 tablespoon olive oil in the same skillet until very hot. Add shallot, garlic and Serrano or Fresno chilis and hydrated chili de arbol. Saute until golden.
Place sauteed mixture, remaining olive oil, spices, tomato paste, lemon juice, rose water, pinch of sugar and salt in a blender or food processor. Process until smooth. Add additional salt and rose water, if needed.
Store in the refrigerator in a glass jar with a layer of olive oil poured over the top, if desired.
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Notes
As mentioned above, prepare all of your ingredients before proceeding with the recipe. It will make this harissa come together so easily.
As with almost any spice blend or spice paste, feel free to try different levels of heat, more of one ingredient, less of another. Some variations are already included, like alternative peppers, but feel free to play with other elements as well. My rule of thumb - follow the recipe the first time, then play as much as you want!
A coffee grinder that you've dedicated to be a spice grinder is a great tool. But as you can see in the pictures, I used a basic mortar and pestle with great success.