Omek Houria

We felt compelled to share this recipe because it always reminds us of our mother and it is one of the very traditional Tunisian dishes she made for Emma Balter from The Houston Chronicle which led to many people requesting the recipe! Omek Houria is technically a salad and is in our opinion best eaten with some sort of meat-based dish. The harissa and minced garlic are supposed to come through intensely in this dish as it is added freshly at the end, therefore if the harissa ain’t good, the Omek Houria won’t be…. This, as usual, is our mother’s recipe:

Ingredients:

Carrots, cut and cleaned, 1lb

True-to-origins harissa paste (mild or spicy), 1-2 tbsp

Extra Virgin Olive Oil (2-3 tbsp or more to taste)

Garlic, minced, 3-4 cloves

Coriander, 1-2 tsp

Caraway, 1/2-1 tsp

Salt to taste

Egg, boiled and cut into 4 pieces

Olives, washed 

Step 1. Place the washed and cut carrots into a double steam pot after water is added to it, the heat is on, and the boil has started. Cover and allow at least 20 minutes of cooking time.  

Step 2. After 20 minutes, check how done the carrot pieces are by inserting a fork into one of the pieces. It should go through with ease but it should not be too mushy. 

Step 3. Once the cooking of the carrots is complete, carefully transfer the carrots and begin mashing them. I used a fork here but you can certainly blend them with a mashing tool or a food processor. 

Step 4. Add the harissa paste, minced garlic, extra virgin olive oil, coriander, caraway, salt and continue mashing until all the ingredients are well homogenized into the carrot mash and that you achieve a consistency and texture that is desirable. You can mimic the consistency level we have achieved for this Omek Houria we made. 

 

Step 5. Enjoy!