Matbucha is traditionally made in the Maghreb, Morocco, but it became a very popular mezze salad in Israel. You can find it right next to the hummus when you buy a pita falafel in Tel Aviv. It’s a spicy dip made with tomatoes, peppers, garlic, paprika, oil, fresh hot peppers and extra spices like cayenne and paprika powder.
My first encounter with matbucha was when Omri’s family flew to Lisbon and brought us containers full of Israeli food. When his mom Yaffa made me taste her home made matbucha I was hooked. It’s spicy but not too much (depending how much peppers you use) and adds the perfect spicy flavor to your meals.
Matbucha is often used as a base for shakshuka, a dip with couscous and as a sauce for challah with schnitzels. But when we have matbucha we use it with everything. It is also really good as a simple dip with fresh challah or to add to your pizza sauce.
Classic Moroccan Matbucha
Ingredients
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- 6-8 garlic cloves
- 10 small spicy green peppers amount depends on how spicy you like it
- 2 or 3 cans of tomatoes or use fresh tomatoes or a mix of both
- 1 tsp paprika powder
- 1 tsp spicy paprika (cayenne)
- 1 tsp sugar
- salt and pepper
- 1 tablet vegetable broth
- 2 paprika
Instructions
- Start with cutting the tomatoes, paprika and peppers really fine. Cut the garlic in two pieces.
- Add the oil to a saucepan and let it heat a little bit. Add the garlic, hot peppers and spices and mix it up. Let it heat for 2 minutes.
- Add all the rest of the ingredients together. Let it stove for about 3 hours on low heat covered with a lid. Form time to time give it a little mix with a spoon.
- Let it cool down before you transfer it to a pot or container.
Notes
- You can keep matbucha in the fridge for 1 week or freeze it.
- Matbucha is a perfect add to sauces and a good base for shakshuka. It’s also really good as a dip with just a piece of challah, bread or pita.
