Harissa substitutes
Out of harissa? Here are the best substitutes — what to reach for, why it works, and how much to use. Sambal oelek + cumin and caraway is the top pick.
- 01Sambal oelek + cumin and carawaybest pick
Adds harissa's signature North African spicing to a plain chile paste.
1 tbsp sambal + 1/4 tsp each spice
- 02Chili garlic sauce + cumin
Garlic and chile are already there; cumin bridges the gap.
1:1 plus a pinch
- 03Gochujang + cumin
Fermented depth and heat; sweeter than harissa, so ease off other sugar.
use ~3/4
- 04Red pepper flakes + olive oil + garlic + cumin
A quick from-scratch paste with the same components.
to taste
Cooking with harissa?
Paste your recipe into Mise — we'll find every ingredient as a real product you can buy, and swap the ones you can't, like harissa, for the closest match in stock.
Turn a recipe into a basket →How we choose these
These are tested kitchen substitutes, chosen for matching flavor, texture, and role — with ratios so the swap actually works. Taste as you go; substitutes shift intensity, not just flavor.
Flavor data: Epicure (Radzikowski & Chen, 2026), arXiv:2605.22391, CC-BY-4.0.
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