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Terracotta bowl of spaghetti in brick-red Tunisian harissa sauce with flaked tuna, parsley, and olive oil

Dinner recipe

Tunisian Harissa Pasta: Spicy Chili Spaghetti with Tuna

A weeknight spaghetti with harissa, tomato, and tuna: the spicy chili pasta Tunisian kitchens cook as ordinary food, not a national-dish stunt.

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Tunisian harissa pasta (makrouna bel harissa): spaghetti tossed with chili paste, tuna, and parsley.

Developed by the Recipe Desk. This original editorial recipe uses measured ingredients, explicit timing and yield, allergen notes, storage guidance, and step-by-step visual cues. Use the stated doneness and texture cues because ingredients, ovens, and kitchen equipment vary.

Recipe card

Tunisian Harissa Pasta

A weeknight spaghetti with harissa, tomato, and tuna: the spicy chili pasta Tunisian kitchens cook as ordinary food, not a national-dish stunt.

Prep
10 min
Cook
20 min
Yield
4 servings
Difficulty
Easy

Ingredients

  • 400 g spaghetti or other dried long pasta
  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 small onion, finely chopped
  • 3 garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 tbsp tomato paste
  • 1 to 2 tbsp harissa paste
  • 200 g canned tuna in olive oil, drained
  • 120 ml pasta cooking water
  • 1 tbsp lemon juice
  • Fine salt
  • Chopped parsley, to serve

Method

  1. Spaghetti boiling in salted water beside a cup of reserved starchy pasta water
    Step 1: Boil spaghetti and reserve pasta water for the harissa sauce.
    1

    Boil the pasta

    Cook the pasta in well-salted water until just shy of al dente. Reserve 120 ml of the cooking water, then drain.

  2. Harissa and tomato paste sizzling with onion and garlic in olive oil
    Step 2: Toast harissa, tomato paste, garlic, and onion in olive oil.
    2

    Build the harissa base

    Warm the olive oil over medium heat. Cook the onion until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, tomato paste, and harissa; stir for 1 minute until the paste smells toasted and brick-red.

  3. Starchy pasta water poured into brick-red harissa sauce with flaked tuna
    Step 3: Loosen the harissa sauce with pasta water and fold in tuna.
    3

    Loosen the sauce

    Add the reserved pasta water and stir until the sauce looks glossy. Fold in the tuna so it flakes into the sauce without turning to mush.

  4. Spaghetti tossed in harissa sauce with lemon juice and chopped parsley
    Step 4: Toss spaghetti with harissa sauce, lemon, and parsley.
    4

    Toss and finish

    Add the pasta and toss over low heat until coated, 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in lemon juice, taste for salt, and finish with parsley.

Notes

  • Start with 1 tablespoon of harissa and add more after tasting. Commercial jars vary widely in heat and salt.
  • This is a Tunisian home pasta with harissa, not a claim that Tunisia has one official national pasta.
  • Chickpeas can replace tuna if you want a pantry vegetarian version.

Storage

Refrigerate leftovers for up to 2 days. Reheat with a spoonful of water so the harissa sauce loosens.

Allergens

Gluten, Fish

Why this dish belongs here

The history behind the method

Tunisia adopted dried pasta through Mediterranean trade and Italian presence; harissa — a chili paste tied to Tunisian pantries after New World chiles reached the Maghreb — is what makes this bowl “cabai pedas” in Indonesian search language. The heat is the condiment history, not a 2026 fusion garnish.

Explore the ingredients

Harissa historyChili Pepper historyPasta historyOlive Oil history

Trend and context sources

  1. [1]Flavor Forecast 2026 — McCormick
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Written by The Foods That Shaped Us Research Desk

The Foods That Shaped Us Research Desk is the publication byline for collaboratively maintained food-history articles, Case Files, Trend Desk analysis, and original Recipe Desk development. Historical work is grounded in cited sources. Recipes use measured formulations and receive an editorial consistency, safety-note, and image-provenance review before release.

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