Desperately Seeking Tunisian Harissa in a Tube!!

[jarona]

Alrighty! I was fortunate enough to pick up a tube of Tunisian Harissa last month in Cannes. We had an apartment there and I was doing a lot of cooking. As such, the best ingredient/condiment I came across was this brightly colored tube of Tunisian Harissa. It was dirt cheap and added great spicey flavor and a kick to many of the dishes I made. I was even luckier to bring some home. However, I used it all up. Now I'm researching where I can get some of this. Trader Joe's is a no go. Whole Foods is a no go. Sur la Table. Unh unh. I'm stuck.
Anyone out there in the Philly area familiar to what I seek? If so, can you lead me to this.
I'm bummed!
Thanks in advance if you can help!

[jarona]

Got my harissa at Spice Corner this past Saturday. Came home with three tubes and will be definitely going back.
Also..omg--I was so happy, I saw those flat peaches--I think they are called saucer or donought peaches--they are soooooooooo great--anyway bought a load of 'em! Yum!
Thank you!

[barryg]

Green Aisle Grocery started stocking this again. La Cabanon harissa in a tube. It's this one:
http://www.amazon.com/Harissa-Sauce-T...

[middleagedfoodie]

I think I've purchased it at Jonathon's Best, located outside the Chestnut Hill Farmers' Market and in Reading Terminal or it might have been DiBruno's CC.

[FrancisdeR]

The one and only time I bought some in Phila was at The Spice Shop on 9th St. I know they closed, but if they have reopened, or if the same lady reopened somewhere under a different name, you may have a lead.

[barryg]

Spice Corner, it reopened a while ago. Never looked for for the tube harissa there but I will now--I got hooked when Green Aisle Grocery was carrying it but they stopped a while ago, saying they couldn't source it anymore. IIRC it had Tunisian writing on it but was made in France.

You can get good harissa in little cans from Bitar's, but the tube is way more convenient.

[jarona]

Thank you so much! I just got off the phone with Spice Corner and asked if they did, in fact carry harissa in the tube. Yes. Cannot wait for Saturday morning!

[ChiliDude]

Take a look at the ingredient list of this product.

Harissa Sauce in Tube (Le Cabanon) 150g ingredient list...

http://parthenonfoods.com/harissa-sau...

Ingredients: Hot Chili 68 percent, tomato puree 20 percent, onions, salt, transformed potato starch, coriander, garlic, cumin, vegetable oil, chilli oleoresin.
Product of France.

[sharonlouk]

It's not in a tube, and not Tunisian, but Whole Foods does sell harissa by Cava. It's with the fresh dips. Cava is a restaurant in Maryland/DC, so I was a bit surprised to see it here in the Whole Foods in Plymouth. I haven't bought the prepared stuff, but I've had it in the restaurant and it's pretty darned tasty.

[Axalady]

Sometimes all it takes is a simple internet search-

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_nos...

[ChiliDude]

Holy cow! That's amazoning...I mean amazing. (Pun intended). It's more fun making it yourself if you have the right ingredients.

[Bob Loblaw]

the 2 places i've bought harissa in philly were williams sonoma, which was good stuff, although (surprise!) pretty fancy, unlike the sort of stuff that's most common in France. i also found some in a little bodega-esque store on girard, a block or so west of the El.
I'm told that harissa is not that hard to make, but my one try was not particularly successful.

[jarona]

Thanks so much for the heads up. It kills me to go to WS because I know I'll pay twenty times what I paid in France--but thems the breaks! I've seen homemade harissa recipes and I'm not even going there!

[ChiliDude]

Harissa making is not as daunting as you may think. Some recipes have too many ingredients. I've had the Williams-Sonoma stuff and it was much too tame for me. That may be because I can tolerate more incendiary chiles than most people.

Moroccan Harissa Paste

Ingredients

3 roasted red bell peppers
2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp. each: cayenne pepper**, ground cumin, ground caraway*, ground coriander
1 tsp. Kosher salt
2 cloves garlic

* A coffee grinder works well for grinding caraway seeds.

Directions

Remove stems and seeds from fresh red bell peppers before roasting under the broiler. Slice the bells in half and crush them flat. Place the flattened peppers on non-stick aluminum foil skin side up and place under the broiler, char them until the skin is charred black. Place the charred peppers in a plastic container with a cover for about 10 minutes and allow the steam produced to help loosen the skin so it can be peeled off under running water before being pureed. Purée all ingredients until smooth. (Increase cayenne pepper for a spicier harissa.)

This harissa should keep well in glass jar with a tight fitting cap and refrigerated.

**Note: I use steamed homegrown fresh chiles instead of ground cayenne pepper.

[Chefpaulo]

I make my own as well. The only oddity for me in CD's recipe is the caraway which I've always associated with Scandinavian and eastern European cuisine. Otherwise, very similar to my accompaniment to chicken and cous cous, and better than any tin-infused squirtable.
CP