The crimson mezze of roasted red peppers, walnuts, and pomegranate molasses — smoky, sweet, and gently fierce.

Where does Muhammara come from?

Muhammara is a Syrian dish from Damascus, Syria.

Can Muhammara be made vegan, gluten-free, or dairy-free?

Yes. This Muhammara recipe includes ingredient substitutions to make it vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, or egg-free — including several of those at once, such as gluten-free and dairy-free together.

How long does Muhammara take to make?

About 35 minutes total (20 minutes prep, 15 minutes cooking), serving 6.

Muhammara — a Damascus, Syria recipe

Name: Muhammara
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 35 min
Yield: 6 servings
Cuisine: Syrian
Ingredients: 4 red bell peppers; 1 cup walnuts, toasted; 1/2 cup breadcrumbs; 2 tbsp, plus a drizzle pomegranate molasses; 2 tsp Aleppo pepper; 1 tsp cumin; 1 clove garlic; 1/4 cup olive oil; 1/2 lemon; plenty warm flatbread, to serve

Asia → 🇸🇾 Syria → Damascus

Muhammara

Syrian · easy · serves 6

prep 20 min · cook 15 min

~68 cal · 2g protein · 13g carbs · 1g fat (estimated, per serving)

🍽️

Red pepper-walnut dip drizzled with pomegranate molasses

🇸🇾 Damascus

Muhammara means "reddened," and it earned its place on every Levantine mezze table centuries ago. Aleppo claims its birth, Damascus perfected its table manners — always with warm bread, always disappearing first.

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Make it yours

Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.

🥕 Vegetarian

🌱 Vegan

🌾 Gluten-Free

🥛 Dairy-Free

🥜 Nut-Free

🥚 Egg-Free

Ingredients

Serves 6 —

•

4 red bell peppers

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1 cup walnuts, toasted

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1/2 cup breadcrumbs

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2 tbsp, plus a drizzle pomegranate molasses

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2 tsp Aleppo pepper

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1 tsp cumin

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1 clove garlic

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1/4 cup olive oil

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1/2 lemon

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plenty warm flatbread, to serve

Instructions

1

Char the peppers over a flame or under the broiler until black all over. Steam in a covered bowl, then peel and seed.

2

Pulse the walnuts to a coarse rubble — texture is the point; this is not hummus.

3

Add peppers, breadcrumbs, molasses, Aleppo pepper, cumin, garlic, and lemon; pulse to a thick, nubbly paste.

4

Stream in the olive oil; season. Rest an hour if you can — it deepens.

5

Plate in swirls, drizzle molasses and oil, and serve with warm bread. Watch it vanish first.

Damascene mezze tradition.

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🌏 While it simmers — know your destination

📍

Damascus. One of the oldest cities on Earth, still setting the mezze table.

🗺️

Syria. Aleppo and Damascus — pantries of the ancient world.

🌍

Asia. From street-cart woks to slow monastery kitchens.

The story behind this dish is up top — worth a read while the pot works.

👩‍🍳

Richard Moore & Kelsey Tucker

Recipes cooked, tested, and researched by the creators of Spin the Globe. How we build our recipes →