Armenia
Photo: Ketone16, CC BY-SA 4.0, croppedHarissa
հարիսա
/hɑɾiˈsɑ/hah-ree-SAH
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- Taste
- SavoryRich
- Made with
- Wheat & flourChicken
History
Harissa, in Armenia, is a thick porridge of wheat and chicken or lamb, cooked slowly for many hours and beaten until smooth. It is not related to the North African chilli paste of the same name. Armenians link it to the Musa Dagh resistance of 1915, when villagers in Ottoman Syria held off deportation for weeks and shared harissa; the dish is still cooked in their memory each September in Musaler. Older tradition also links it to Saint Gregory the Illuminator, who is said to have fed the poor with it. It is cooked in large pots for church festivals and for Easter.
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