Harissa / Keshkeg
Հարիսա·(hah-ree-sah)
Grandmothers' Hands (Sunday Suppers & Weekend Projects)
The smell of chicken and wheat simmering on the stove all Sunday afternoon meant one thing: Grandma was making Harissa. A deeply savory, profoundly comforting porridge, it is the undisputed soul food of Armenia. Traditionally, it demands hours of stovetop babysitting and arm-aching stirring to achieve its signature whipped texture. But this isn't a museum piece; it's a living tradition. For the modern first-generation cook juggling the demands of a Tuesday, a slow cooker beautifully mimics the gentle heat of the ancient clay tonir, while an immersion blender does the heavy lifting of the wooden spoon. The result is a bowl of warm, buttery, cumin-scented resilience you can actually pull off on a weeknight.
Before you start
Soak the grains overnight.
Place the rinsed wheat or barley in a large bowl, cover with cold water, and let it soak overnight to soften the starches. Drain before using.
Ingredients
- peeled whole wheat or pearl barley2 cup
- bone-in skinless chicken thighs2 lb
- chicken broth8 cup
- kosher salt2 tsp
- unsalted butter4 tbsp
- ground cumin1 tbsp
- Aleppo pepper1 tsp
Method
- 01
Combine the grains, chicken, broth, and salt in a slow cooker.
Set it to low for 8 hours. The ambient heat replicates the ancient underground tonir, gently melting the ingredients together over the course of the day without scorching the bottom of the pot.
- 02
Shred the chicken directly in the pot.
Uncover the slow cooker and use two forks to pull the tender meat off the bones. Carefully remove and discard all the bones.
- 03
Whip the porridge into a creamy emulsion.
Here is where you cheat time. Instead of beating it against the side of the pot for an hour with a wooden spoon, pulse an immersion blender in short bursts until it reaches a thick, homogenous, stretchy texture. Do not over-blend it into a soup.
- 04
Brown the butter.
In a small skillet over medium heat, melt the butter until it foams, turns a nutty brown color, and smells heavenly.
- 05
Serve hot with spiced brown butter.
Ladle the hot Harissa into shallow bowls and create a small well in the center with the back of your spoon. Pour a generous spoonful of browned butter into the well, and instruct your guests to finish it with a heavy pinch of cumin and a dash of Aleppo pepper.
Notes
Sourcing the grains.
Authentic Harissa is made with dzedzadz—skinless, hulled whole wheat. If you can't find it at a local Middle Eastern market, pearl barley is the absolute best supermarket substitute and will gelatinize identically under slow heat.
From Cook Armenian in America.