Muhammara (Syrian Roasted Red Pepper and Walnut Dip)

About This Recipe

Muhammara is one of Syria's great contributions to the mezze table — a rich, complex dip made from roasted red peppers, walnuts, Aleppo pepper, pomegranate molasses, and olive oil. It's simultaneously nutty, smoky, sweet, and tangy, with a gentle heat from Aleppo pepper (pul biber) that builds gradually. Unlike hummus, which requires advance planning (soaking chickpeas), muhammara comes together in 15 minutes with jarred roasted peppers and has a flavour complexity that makes it the star of any mezze spread. It originates in Aleppo, Syria's historically most cosmopolitan and culinarily celebrated city — also the origin of the famed Aleppo pepper that gives the dip its distinctive mild, fruity heat.

Ingredients

Serves 6

• 400 groasted red peppers from a jar, drained (or 4 fresh peppers, roasted and peeled)
• 100 gwalnuts, toasted
• 2 tbsppomegranate molasses
• 2 tbspextra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tbspAleppo pepper (pul biber) or mild chilli flakes
• 1 tbspfresh lemon juice
• 2 clovesgarlic
• 1 tspground cumin
• 40 gfresh breadcrumbs or 2 tbsp fine semolina(for texture and body)
• 0.5 tspsalt
• To serve
• 1 tbspolive oil, to drizzle
• 1 tbspwalnut pieces, roughly chopped
• 1 tspAleppo pepper flakes
• warm flatbread or crudités

Instructions

1. 1

   Toast the walnuts

   Toast walnuts in a dry pan over medium heat for 3–4 minutes until fragrant and lightly coloured. Cool completely.

2. 2

   Blend

   Add roasted peppers, cooled walnuts, pomegranate molasses, olive oil, Aleppo pepper, lemon juice, garlic, cumin, breadcrumbs, and salt to a food processor. Pulse until combined but still slightly textured — muhammara should have body, not be a smooth purée.

3. 3

   Taste and adjust

   Taste: it should be rich, smoky, slightly sweet from pomegranate molasses, gently spicy, and tangy. Adjust: more pomegranate molasses for sweetness, more lemon for brightness, more Aleppo pepper for heat.

4. 4

   Serve

   Spread onto a shallow plate, drizzle with olive oil, scatter chopped walnuts and Aleppo pepper. Serve with warm flatbread (pita, lavash) or vegetable crudités.

Variations

• •

  Add 1 tbsp tomato paste for a deeper, richer flavour.

• •

  Muhammara with grilled peppers: use fresh peppers charred under a grill until blackened, then peeled — the smokiness is more pronounced than jarred.

• •

  Serve as a sauce over grilled chicken or fish, thinned slightly with olive oil.

Storage

Keeps refrigerated for 5 days. Bring to room temperature before serving. Stir well as it can separate slightly.

Frequently Asked Questions