Matbucha (Moroccan Tomato and Pepper Dip)
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Aperçu
Matbucha is roasted peppers and tomatoes cooked down slowly with garlic and paprika into a thick, dark, jammy dip. It is Moroccan Jewish in origin and is now eaten across Israel and the wider Middle East as a mezze staple. The name says what it is: matbucha means cooked salad in Arabic, which describes both the dish and the crucial technique. This is not a fresh salsa but something reduced by half over an hour or more, until the water has cooked out and the peppers and tomatoes have concentrated into something closer to a preserve. Rushing that stage gives you a thin tomato sauce, which is a different and lesser thing. Its journey is worth recording. Matbucha travelled from Morocco to Israel with Jewish immigrants in the mid-twentieth century, and it is now so established there that it is sold in every supermarket. In Morocco it is served as part of a mezze spread; in Israel it is understood as an appetizer. Same dish, slightly different place at the table. Red peppers rather than green is not incidental. The source notes that green peppers turn bitter in matbucha, which is correct, red peppers are ripe and sweet and reduce into something quite different. It freezes well, which is why the recipe makes three jars.
Note de Patrimoine AFN
Matbucha is a cooked salad of tomatoes and roasted peppers with garlic and paprika, originating with the Jewish communities of Morocco and carried to Israel by immigrants in the twentieth century. The name means cooked salad in Arabic, and it is served as a mezze or appetizer.
Ingrédients
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Préparation
- 1
Cut the peppers into medium-large pieces.
- 2
Put the peppers and garlic into a food processor and chop until they are almost a purée.
- 3
Warm the olive oil in a deep skillet. Put in the pepper and garlic purée and cook over high heat, uncovered, for 7 to 10 minutes, turning it often so it does not catch. Lower the heat if it starts to burn, how quickly depends on how juicy the peppers are.
- 4
Mix in the paprika, salt, Aleppo pepper if using, and the crushed tomatoes.
- 5
Lower the heat to medium-low, cover with the lid slightly ajar so steam can escape, and cook for 30 to 60 minutes, until reduced by half. Turn it every 10 minutes and watch that it does not stick.
- 6
Let it cool a little, then transfer to glass jars with lids, this quantity fills about three, roughly a cup each. Do not fill to the very top.
- 7
Refrigerate one jar for immediate use and freeze the rest for up to a year. Defrost at room temperature, then keep refrigerated and use within 5 to 7 days.
- 8
A layer of olive oil poured over the top helps it keep longer, and always use a clean spoon when serving from the jar.
Notes de l’Africook
Notes personnelles de Nympha Nzeribe- Reduce it by half. This is the whole difference between matbucha and a thin tomato sauce, and it takes the full hour.
- Use red peppers, not green. Green peppers turn bitter as they cook down; red are ripe and reduce into something sweet.
- Leave the lid ajar. The steam has to escape or the mixture will not reduce.
- Turn it every ten minutes. It catches on the base readily once it starts thickening.
- It freezes well for up to a year, which is why the recipe makes three jars rather than one.
- Always serve with a clean spoon and keep a layer of olive oil on top. It keeps considerably longer that way.
Questions fréquentes
What does matbucha mean?
Cooked salad, in Arabic, which describes the dish precisely. It is not a fresh salsa but something slowly reduced over an hour or more until the water has cooked out and the peppers and tomatoes have concentrated into a thick, jammy consistency closer to a preserve than a sauce. The name is a useful reminder of what the technique is meant to achieve, and of why rushing it does not work.
Where is matbucha from?
It originated with the Jewish communities of Morocco and travelled to Israel with immigrants in the mid-twentieth century, where it became so established that it is now sold in every supermarket. In Morocco it is served as part of a mezze spread; in Israel it is understood as an appetizer. It is one of many North African Jewish dishes that became mainstream Israeli food through that migration.
Why red peppers rather than green?
Because green peppers turn bitter when cooked down at length, which is the last thing this dish needs given how long it reduces. Red bell peppers are simply ripe green ones, and ripening converts much of their sharpness into sugar, cooked slowly they concentrate into something sweet and rich. The source makes this point explicitly and it is worth heeding.
How long does it keep?
About a week in the fridge, and up to a year frozen, which is why the recipe deliberately makes about three jars' worth. Defrost at room temperature and then keep it refrigerated and eat within five to seven days. Pouring a layer of olive oil over the surface helps preserve it, and using a clean utensil each time you serve from the jar prevents introducing bacteria.
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