Muhammara dip – an amazing Syrian or Middle Eastern recipe with roasted peppers, walnuts and pomegranate molasses.
We all know about hoummus, but the muhammara dip is at least just as good as hoummous, if not even better. It is one of my favorite dips or bread spreads, something I have made countless time during the last 3 years or so, I cannot believe I have not posted the recipe until now.
SYRIAN MUHAMMARA DIP
But today is indeed a good day to post the recipe for Muhammara. Today is the World Refugee Day and what better occasion to post a genuine Syrian recipe.
According to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees the total number of refugees worldwide exceeds 50 million for the first time since World War 2, largely due to the Syrian civil war. (Wikipedia)
Since the beginning of the Syrian Civil War in 2011, UN reports 13.5 million Syrian requiring humanitarian assistance, more than 6 million of them are displaced within Syria and about 5 million have left the country seeking asylum somewhere else.
Many of them have found refuge in the countries neighboring Syria, most of them in Turkey, but many have come to Germany as well. Even our little villages around here, host quite a few Syrian families and I am happy to say that many German people have done their best to help these families, especially at the beginning, when they had started to arrive, about 3 years ago.
And one way the Syrian families had of showing their appreciation was through their food. And what amazing food!!! These Syrian Stuffed Vine Leaves have become a regular in our house, they are so good I could eat them every week (if they weren't so time consuming to make), the Muhammara, which is one of my favorite bread spreads, the Syrian chicken recipe I have been making dozens of times already, Mulukhiyah with chicken and rice, ka'ak with Nigella and sesame seeds and so on.
I really should post more of Nesrin's (our Syrian friend) recipes, each one of them I got to taste was exquisite.
WHAT IS MUHAMMARA?
Muhammara is a pepper dip, a rather hot one, originally from Aleppo, Syria. It is made with Aleppo peppers, walnuts and breadcrumbs and it is spiced with garlic and pomegranate molasses. Muhammara can be eaten as a dip, as a bread spread or as a sauce for grilled meats or kebabs.
HOW TO MAKE MUHAMMARA?
Roast the red peppers.:
- I recommend roasting the peppers yourself, it is easy and it goes pretty quickly. You could make the muhammara with roasted peppers from a jar, if you want this to go really fast, but... muhammara made with freshly roasted peppers is so much better.
- I know that from experience, I have made it once with roasted peppers from a jar and although it was OK, it was not nearly as delicious as it is with homemade roasted peppers.
- To roast the peppers, place them on a baking tray lined with baking paper and roast them at 200 degrees Celsius/ 400 degrees Fahrenheit for about 35-45 minutes (depending on size) or until they are soft and the skin is blackened and blistered.
- For a quicker version, quarter and deseed the peppers and cook them under the grill of your oven. Keep an eye on them, about 5 to 10 minutes should be enough for the pepper pieces to become blackened and blistered.
- Remove the baking tray from the oven or from under the grill and immediately place a piece of cling film/plastic wrap directly over the peppers. This way peeling the peppers will become very easy. Leave the peppers like that until cool enough to handle, then remove the skin.
Make the muhammara dip:
In the meantime toast the walnuts and remove the crust of the bread. Give the bread pieces to the food processor and process until you obtain breadcrumbs. Add the walnuts, peppers, garlic clove, pomegranate molasses, spices to the food processor and process until smooth. Slowly pour in the olive oil while the motor is running.
Adjust the seasoning with salt and drizzle with some olive oil before serving. You can also sprinkle the muhammara with some fresh thyme leaves and some sumac, but that is optional.
And just in case you cannot find Aleppo pepper flakes to season the muhammara, you could substitute them with a mixture of sweet paprika and cayenne pepper.
HOW TO SERVE MUHAMMARA?
The muhammara dip can be served as a dip for vegetables or pita chips for instance, as a bread spread on flatbread or regular bread or as a sauce for kebabs or grilled meats. I have even had spaghetti with muhammara, they were delicious.
I hope you like this Syrian recipe for Muhammara. Maybe you could make it today on the World Refugee Day and maybe share it with your friends and neighbors. And if you would like to read more about the traditional way of eating in Syria, have a look at this article from preemtivelove.org – Eat Like Syria for World Refugee Day.
Muhammara Dip - Roasted Peppers and Walnuts
Ingredients
- 3 red bell peppers
- 60 g/ 2.2 oz/ ¾ cup fresh whole wheat breadcrumbs about 1 slice
- 95 g/ 3.3 oz/ ¾ cup chopped walnuts
- 1 garlic clove
- 1 tablespoon Aleppo pepper flakes See note
- 2 tablespoons pomegranate molasses
- 55 g/ 2 oz/ ¼ cup tomato paste
- 60 ml/ 2 fl.oz/ ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil + extra to drizzle
- salt
- some sumac and fresh thyme for garnish optional
Instructions
Roast the peppers:
- Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius/ 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a baking tray with baking paper. Place the red bell peppers on the tray and bake for 35-45 minutes (depending on their size and on your oven) or until they are soft and the skin is blackened and blistered.
- For a quicker version, quarter and deseed the peppers and cook them under the grill of your oven. Keep an eye on them, about 5 to 10 minutes should be enough for the pepper pieces to become blackened and blistered.
- Remove the baking tray from the oven or from under the grill and immediately place a piece of cling film/plastic wrap directly over the peppers. This way peeling the peppers will become very easy. Leave the peppers like that until cool enough to handle, then remove the skin.
Toast the walnuts:
- In the meantime toast the walnuts in a pan without the addition of any fat. Stand by and shake the pan very often, taking care that the walnuts do not burn. This can happen quickly if you don't pay attention. When the walnuts are roasted, immediately transfer them to a plate.
Muhammara dip:
- Remove the crust of the bread. Place the bread pieces in the food processor and process until you obtain rough breadcrumbs. Add almost all the walnuts (leave a few aside for the garnish), peppers, garlic clove, pomegranate molasses, tomato paste, and spices and process until smooth. Slowly pour in the olive oil while the motor is running.
- Adjust the seasoning with salt, drizzle the muhammara with some olive oil and sprinkle with the remaining walnuts before serving. You can also sprinkle the muhammara with some fresh thyme leaves and some sumac, but that is optional.
Sissi says
What a lovely dip, Adina! And such a nice change from hummus too. I still remember the vine leaf rolls you've posted. I love all the ingredients and I'm sure I'd love it (especially if I added some chillies to make it hot!).
Anca says
I looked at pomegranate molasses last time I've been to the International Shop, but I had no idea what to do with it, so didn't buy it. Now I wish I did, because this looks amazing and I would love to try it.
Adina says
I use it mostly for this muhammara myself, I make it quite often. The pomegranate molasses is really good, slightly sour and aromatic and I should definitely find more ways to integrate it in my cooking.