I love to marinate shrimp in it...harissa, a little olive oil, fresh ginger and garlic.

I also received a gift of Harissa for Christmas. It's usually mixed with olive oil and water to a paste, then the paste is kept refrigerated with a top layer of oil. I like to mix a little of the paste with mayo for sandwiches. I've also sprinkled it dry into eggs and into coating for fried chicken. The brand I have is from World Spice Seattle, and here is the description from the website:

"Harissa originated in Tunisia but today is popular throughout N. Africa and has begun to enter the American culinary lexicon. Used liberally as an all purpose condiment it graces the North African table as a bottle of Tabasco might in this country. You can use it in it's powdered form but we suggest you add just enough hot water to form a paste and then whisk in some best quality olive oil until the desired consistency is achieved. Perfect with grilled chicken or lamb and couscous. A staff favorite at the spice shop we use it in everything from barley stew to spiced nuts. Contains toasted cumin, coriander and caraway with guajillo chiles, smoked paprika and garlic."

The harissa paste we have here is VERY hot. When used with a couscous, you take a little of the meat and veg sauce, and mix a little paste in which you sprinkle on your food to spice it up.

Ditto on Islay's comment: this stuff is HOT. I like it, but I'm a chile head anyway. The brand I've found most often is the one at the link; it comes in a tube and you just squeeze out whatever you want. Just an inch is plenty to make a bowl of couscous or soup really zingy.

Harissa is also easy to make at home; it's essentially just a red chili paste with some garlic and maybe a few spices--but mostly it's just red chilies. Google 'harissa recipe' and you'll find lots of recipes.

Here is a link that might be useful: harissa

Wow I am so glad I asked. I had no idea it was a paste. I was expecting it to be like a salsa when I opened the can. Very interesting. Marigene I love the shrimp idea. I think that'll be on the menu this weekend with Islay's couscous! Thanks again yall.

The Harissa my friend sent me is not as hot as her homemade version. I think she didn't want to part with her recipe, LOL. I like it a bit hotter, but I have plenty of dried pepper powder to add to it.

It's not hard to make, and it is yummy in Moroccan dishes.

Here is a really good one from Joyce Goldstein, Saffron Shores: Jewish Cooking of the Southern Mediterranean.

Imperial Couscous

1 c dried chickpeas, soaked in cold water overnight [I use 1 can, drained]
2 lb. stewing beef or lamb cut into 2 inch pieces, and/or 1 chicken cut into serving portions, and/or meatballs
2 large onions, chopped
2 t salt
2 t freshly ground black pepper
2 t ground ginger
1/2 t saffron threads, crushed and steeped in 1/4 c hot water or broth
1/4 c olive oil
water or meat or poultry broth as needed
6 large or 12 small carrots, peeled and cut into 1 1/2 inch chunks
3 large or 6 small turnips, peeled and quartered or cut into 1 1/2 inch pieces
1 pound pumpkin squash, peeled and cut into 1 1/2 to 2 inch chunks
3 tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and chopped
6 small zucchini, cut into 2 inch lengths
1/2 gold raisins
4 cooked quince (optional, or you could use apples)
1/2 c almonds, toasted (optional)
couscous for serving
honey to taste (optional)
harissa to taste

[If using dried chickpeas] Drain and rinse chickpeas. Put in a soup pot and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer, cover, and cook until tender, 45-60 minutes. Drain and let cool.

In a soup pot, combine the meat, onions, salt, pepper, ginger, saffron infusion, and oil. Turn the meat and vegetables in the oil to coat, then add water or broth to cover. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer, cover, and cook meat for 1 hour and chicken or meatballs for 30 minutes. Add the chickpeas and all the vegetables except the zucchini. Cook for 30 minutes, then add the zucchini, raisins, and the quince and almonds, if using. Cover and cook until all the vegetables and meats are tender.

Pile couscous on a platter. Surround with meat and vegetables, or make a well in the center and put them in. Taste pan juices and adjust seasoning. Add a bit of honey if you want. Reserve 1 cup of the juices and spoon the rest over the meat and vegetables. Mix harissa (finally we got to the harissa!) with the reserved juices and pass alongside.

Oh, I haven't seen Joyce Goldstein's name in a long time! She was the chef-owner at Square One in San Francisco decades ago and it was one of my favorite places for lunch. She was a terrific cook and really amazing lady.

A friend invited us to dinner and made Tom Colicchio's short ribs recipe - he browns the ribs, then marinates them in red wine and seasonings, then stews them. She modified the recipe somewhat, saying the ribs took twice as long to cook as the recipe indicates, but she also added a dollop of harissa (we get it around here in jars, there's a lot of Mediterranean groceries in the Bay Area): it was absolutely fabulous!

Here, they always add Ras El Hanout to a couscous. I love the uncertain description here!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ras_el_hanout
and serve a couscous with the chopped skin of pickled lemons.

The product you were sent sounds different from the harissa I've used. Harissa is usually mainly chilis with a bit of spice. If carrots and beets are on the ingredients list, what you have will probably be milder than the usual harissa. Like other chili pastes, harissa can be used as a recipe ingredient or as a condiment to add at the table to amp up the heat for those who like their food really hot.