I have always wanted to make this dish. Taktouka (pronounced tak-too-ka) is one of those dishes that just begs for a companion like linguine, or any other pasta you like. This Moroccan Taktouka Linguine is as easy to make as it is fun to say Taktouka.
Try it. Taktouka Taktouka Taktouka Taktouka Taktouka .
How to Make Taktouka ?
What is Taktouka ? Like I have said before, I really don’t know what the name means. In Arabic, the word Taktouka in itself is meaningless. If you like, you can read this older recipe post. It’s a post on how to make Taktouka, the classic way.
Ingredients you will need:
Tomatoes: I like to use freshly diced tomatoes and tomato paste. If you don’t have fresh tomatoes, you can use canned diced tomatoes. Try to stick to the salt-free version to avoid having too much sodium in your sauce.
Flavor Base: Minced onions, garlic and veggie broth are a must for this dish. As far as spices go, I like to use paprika (for color), cumin (for flavor), cardamom (to freshen up the sauce), chili flakes (for heat) and turmeric (for health benefits).
Roasted Peppers : This the heart and soul of Taktouka. Before you do anything, you need to grab 2 Bell Peppers and roast them in your oven (@450) until they look like this. Make sure you flip them halfway through.
Taktouka is a tomato sauce based dish. To make said sauce, you need to start with some fresh tomatoes, tomato paste, veggie broth, onions, garlic olive oil and spices. The first step is to warm the olive oil in skillet, add in the minced onion, cook until translucent. Add in your diced tomatoes, garlic, tomato paste, broth and spices (cumin, paprika, turmeric, chili flakes and cardamom).
Cook your sauce for 12-15 minutes or until the sauce begins to thicken. Taste your sauce and add some salt if needed.
Once your peppers are cooled down, cut them into medium sized strips and add to the sauce.
At this stage, you should add your cooked pasta to the skillet, stir and simmer for 1-2 minutes. You want the pasta to absorb the extra sauce and soak in some of the flavor that is swimming on top of your sauce.
To serve, you can garnish your pasta with some fresh basil leaves, black pepper and a little drizzle of olive oil.
Taktouka Linguine
Easy Roasted Red Pepper Pasta served with fresh basil and light drizzle of olive oil
Ingredients
- 450 grams linguine
- 2 sweet red bell peppers
Tomato Sauce
- 2 cups diced tomatoes
- olive oil
- 1 onion
- 2 garlic cloves
- 1/2 cup broth (vegetable or chicken)
Spice Blend
- 1/2 tsp ground cumin
- 1/2 tsp chili flakes
- 1/2 tsp ground turmeric
- 1/4 tsp ground cardamom
Instructions
Wash and dry red peppers (2) & preheat oven to 400F.
Line baking tray with aluminum foil, brush with olive oil and cook red peppers for 30 minutes on the middle tray of a preheated oven. Bake until the red peppers are slightly burnt (see photo for reference).
Start cooking your tomato sauce & set a large pot of salted water to boil.
Once the peppers are ready, set aside to cool until the sauce & pasta are ready.
Tomato Sauce
Chop onions & mince garlic.
Blend tomatoes.
Prepare spice blend.
Heat olive oil in a pan on medium-low.
Saute onions for 5-7 minutes (past the point of translucency to having caramelized edges).
Add garlic, crushed tomatoes (lightly blended), spice blend, & broth.
Simmer on medium-low for 12-15 minutes, or until the sauce thickens. Half-way through the cooking of the sauce, start cooking your linguini. Remember that sauce can wait but pasta waits for no one.
Add roughly chopped red peppers (skin on) to the tomato sauce.
Add salt & pepper to taste.
Strain cooked linguini and add to sauce. Stir gently and let simmer for another minute. Serve with fresh basil and a light drizzle of olive oil. enjoy
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