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Slata Mechouia (Tunisian Grilled Pepper Salad)
Green peppers, chilies, tomatoes, onion and garlic charred over a flame, peeled and chopped fine with caraway and olive oil, then crowned with tuna, egg and olives.
Tunisian · easy · serves 4
prep 25 min · cook 25 min · plus 10 min hands-off time
~410 cal · 22g protein · 46g carbs · 15g fat · 6g fiber · 10g sugars · 3g sat fat (estimated, per serving)
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Slata mechouia means grilled salad, and it is one of the most common first courses in Tunisia, especially in summer, when peppers and tomatoes are at their best. It is less a salad of pieces than a coarse, smoky relish, scooped up with torn bread at the start of the meal.
The vegetables are charred whole over an open flame or charcoal until the skins blacken and the flesh slumps, then left covered so the steam loosens the skins. Everything is peeled, seeded and chopped together, by knife or by pounding, and seasoned with ground caraway, the signature spice of Tunisian cooking, along with salt and good olive oil. Tunisians like it hot, so a few fiery green chilies go on the fire with the milder peppers.
On top go the classic garnishes: flaked tuna in olive oil, quartered hard-boiled eggs and black olives, turning a bowl of grilled vegetables into something closer to a light meal. It is served cool or at room temperature with baguette or homemade bread.
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Make it yours
✓ Naturally dairy-, nut- and pork-free. No swaps needed.
Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.
🥕 Vegetarian
🌱 Vegan
🌾 Gluten-Free
🥛 Dairy-Free
🥜 Nut-Free
🥚 Egg-Free
🐖 Pork-Free
Dietary labels are a cooking guide, not allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish; we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, read the label on every product you use, and note that a kitchen can cross-contaminate in ways a recipe cannot control.
Ingredients
US
Metric
Serves 4
- 4 long green peppers (or green bell peppers), Anaheim or poblano also work
- 2 to 3 hot green chilies, to taste
- 3 medium ripe tomatoes
- 1 medium onion, unpeeled
- 3 cloves garlic, unpeeled
- 1/2 tsp ground caraway, or tabel, the Tunisian caraway and coriander blend
- 1 tsp salt
- 3 tbsp olive oil, plus more to finish
- 1 can (about 150 g) canned tuna, drained, ideally packed in olive oil
- 2 hard-boiled eggs, quartered
- a handful black olives
- 1 baguette or Tunisian bread, to serve
Instructions
- 1Grill the peppers, chilies, tomatoes, onion and garlic whole over a charcoal fire, a gas flame or under a very hot oven grill, turning often, for 15 to 20 minutes until blackened and soft. The garlic and chilies are ready first, so lift them off as they soften.✎ Chef’s noteTake the peppers and onion further than looks right. The smoky char is the whole flavour of the dish.
- 2Put everything straight into a bowl, cover tightly and leave for 10 minutes so the steam loosens the skins.
- 3Peel the peppers, chilies, tomatoes, onion and garlic, and pull out the pepper stems and seeds and the tomato seeds. Do not rinse them, or you wash away the smoke.
- 4Chop everything together on a board until it is finely chopped, about the size of peas, or pound it briefly in a mortar. Mix in the caraway, salt and olive oil and taste for salt and heat.
- 5Spread on a plate, drizzle with more olive oil and top with the tuna, eggs and olives. Serve at room temperature with bread for scooping.
Tunisian home tradition.
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🌏 While it simmers, know your destination
📍
Tunis. Lablabi is the medina's working breakfast, eaten early and standing: chickpeas in a cumin broth ladled over torn day-old bread and finished at the counter with harissa, olive oil, capers, lemon, crushed garlic and a soft egg broken over the top. Brik's history is murkier than it looks, since the word comes from the Turkish borek and Libyan Jewish cooks claim the technique too.
🗺️
Tunisia. Harissa is not a condiment on the side but the base of the pot, and UNESCO inscribed the knowledge, skills and practices around it in 2022. Sun-dried chillies are pounded with garlic, caraway and coriander, and the paste goes into couscous broth, into stews, and straight onto bread with olive oil and tuna.
🌍
Africa. The structure repeats across most of the continent: one starch and one sauce. A grain or root is cooked stiff, torn or rolled by hand, and used to carry a stew of leaves, groundnut, okra or fish, usually from a shared bowl and with the right hand. UNESCO listings have followed that logic, inscribing couscous in 2020 as a shared Maghreb tradition and Ivorian attieke in 2024.
The story behind this dish is up top, worth a read while the pot works.
More from Tunisia
Shakshuka bel HarissaEggs poached directly in a fiery, harissa-laced pepper and tomato sauce, eaten from the pan with bread.
LablabiChickpeas in garlicky cumin broth ladled over torn bread, hit with harissa, lemon, and a soft egg, Tunisia’s working breakfast.
Couscous bel HoutTunisian fish couscous: steamed semolina under a spicy tomato broth of fish and vegetables.
Browse all Tunisia recipes →
Good to know
You’ll need: Oven, Grill or barbecue, Steamer, Mortar and pestle.
Storing it: Best assembled just before serving. Prep the components ahead and dress at the last moment so it stays crisp.
Make it a Tunisia meal
Thé aux PignonsDrink
MakroudhDessert
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Cuisine
Diet
Frequently asked questions
What is Slata Mechouia (Tunisian Grilled Pepper Salad)?
Green peppers, chilies, tomatoes, onion and garlic charred over a flame, peeled and chopped fine with caraway and olive oil, then crowned with tuna, egg and olives.
Where does Slata Mechouia (Tunisian Grilled Pepper Salad) come from?
Slata Mechouia (Tunisian Grilled Pepper Salad) is a Tunisian dish from Tunis, Tunisia.
Can Slata Mechouia (Tunisian Grilled Pepper Salad) be made vegan, gluten-free, or dairy-free?
This Slata Mechouia (Tunisian Grilled Pepper Salad) recipe includes substitution suggestions for vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, egg-free, and pork-free versions. Treat the substitutions as a starting guide rather than a guarantee, and see the allergen note below.
Is Slata Mechouia (Tunisian Grilled Pepper Salad) safe for people with food allergies?
Our dietary labels and substitutions are a cooking guide, not medical or allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we still count coconut as a tree nut to be cautious, although the FDA stopped listing it as one in 2025), fish, and shellfish, but we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, always read the label on every product you use, and remember a home or commercial kitchen can cross-contaminate ingredients in ways a recipe cannot control.
How long does Slata Mechouia (Tunisian Grilled Pepper Salad) take to make?
About 1 h in all: 25 minutes prep and 25 minutes cooking, plus 10 min of hands-off waiting the method needs, serving 4.
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