Taktouka
Taktouka is a Moroccan cooked salad of green peppers and tomatoes, close kin to the cooked salads served across North Africa as a first course or a side to share. The usual version leans on olive oil. It does not need it, because the flavor is really built on two techniques: charring the peppers black for smoke, and cooking the tomatoes all the way down in their own juice until they turn jammy and concentrated. Cumin and paprika warm it, herbs and lemon lift it at the end, and it holds in the fridge long enough to make ahead.
Ingredients
- 3 Bell peppers, green
- 4 Fresh tomatoes, cored and chopped
- 3 cloves Garlic, minced
- 1 tsp Cumin seed, ground
- 1 tsp Sweet paprika
- 3 tbsp Flat-leaf parsley, chopped
- 3 tbsp Cilantro, chopped
- 1/2 Lemons, juiced
Method
- Char the whole peppers under a hot broiler, turning them, until the skins blacken and blister all over, 10 to 12 minutes. Blistering the skin over direct heat is where the smoky flavor comes from, the note that roasting in oil usually adds.
- Move the peppers to a bowl and cover it tightly for 10 minutes. The trapped steam loosens the skins so they slip off with your fingers. Peel, seed, and cut the flesh into strips.
- Meanwhile, cook the tomatoes with the garlic, cumin, and paprika in a dry pan over medium heat. The tomatoes give up their water immediately, so they braise in their own juice. Cook until thick and jammy, about 12 minutes.
- Fold in the pepper strips and cook together for 10 minutes more, until the mixture is thick enough to hold its shape on a spoon rather than spread into a puddle.
- Off the heat, stir in the parsley, cilantro, and lemon juice. Serve warm or at room temperature, scooped up as a salad or a side. It keeps for days in the fridge and only tastes better on the second.
Nutrition
Estimated per serving: 70 calories, 3 g protein, 4 g fiber, 25 mg sodium. Computed from USDA FoodData Central reference values for the main ingredients. This is an approximation, not a laboratory measurement. How these are computed.
Cost per serving is estimated from US national-average retail prices for cheap staple forms, using BLS dried-bean prices and USDA produce prices. Prices vary by store and season, so treat it as a guide, not a receipt. How this is computed.
