Chili pastes are all the rage these days with the Asian varieties like sriracha taking the biscuit for most people. And I can’t disagree, sriracha has depth of flavor rather than just pure heat and makes the best. chicken. wings. ever. But stepping a bit further west to the Middle East, the condiments stashed at the back of Jerusalem are full of interest and intrigue and there’s more plenty of spice for chili lovers too.
If you’re looking for something fresh to lift a dish that might otherwise be heavy or rich, pilpelchuma might not be the answer. It’s deep, smoky and full of spice: cumin, smoked paprika, and loaded with garlic. Zhoug on the other hand is packed with fresh, zesty herbs: cilantro and parsley, and has floral notes from cardamom and cloves. Pilpelchuma uses dried red chillies, adding to the deep earthy flavor. Zhoug uses green chillies, packed with heat, acidity and freshness.
Determining the heat factor is entirely up to you. I chose to use one chili without the seeds and one with, but it still came out as hot as Hades. Unlike the pilpelchuma, I think zhoug might be better suited to a mild punch of heat which doesn’t then overpower the floral, fresh layers of flavor that float through from the herbs and spices.
I followed the recipe in the book letter for letter, but here is a recipe from Blue Kale Road that is pretty similar, barring the extraordinary amounts of garlic. Later in the week I’ll be trying this out in a new recipe from Jerusalem, so stay tuned! But if you’re interested in learning more about this ingredient or about the cookbook in general, check out Tasting Jerusalem (on Twitter with #tastingjrslm, Facebook, Google Plus and Pinterest) as well as the Tasting Jerusalem boss lady Beth Lee’s wonderful blog OMG Yummy!
Bon appetit!
The spell predicter just turned zhoug into shout. Very apt for such a fiery sauce. Very popular in Yemen.
Nice comparison Pami between the pilpelchuma and the zhoug. I loved it in the lamb and cannellini soup and also on flatbread with yogurt sauce. Want to try the sabih!
Looks like the sabih will have to wait until tomorrow night, shakshuka tonight! I will put a dollop of zhoug on the shakshuka though because I can’t wait to use it!
Well done. This looks amazing. I’m not opposed to this awesome chili paste movement!
Born and raised in Jerusalem myself, this brings memories. 🙂
It was brought to Israel with Yemenite Jews and it is popular not only as a condiment but in many dishes as well. I add it to vegetable salads, fish, chicken or beef patties and in tomato sauce.
I look forward to finding some outside-the-box uses for it. Thanks for the suggestions!
Oooh! this looks like it is fiery hot. And i loove such hot chili paste. Cant wait to see your upcoming post and see how and where you are gonna use this. 🙂
It’s pretty fiery, maybe too much so for my delicate-mouthed husband. There might have to be lots of yogurt involved…