Sticky Harissa Courgette Flatbreads (Zucchini)

These Sticky Harissa Courgette Flatbreads are truly incredible. With just seven ingredients, you’ll create a dish that’s bursting with flavour and texture. The combination of sticky, caramelised harissa courgettes, rich garlic yoghurt, and warm, fluffy flatbreads makes for a perfect quick lunch or light dinner. It’s the kind of recipe that feels indulgent yet remains incredibly simple to prepare.

Table of Contents

• Ingredient Breakdown
• The Magic of Roasting Courgettes
• What is Harissa?
• Harissa and Honey: A Match Made in Heaven
• Choosing The Right Flatbread
• Make It Your Own: Variations and Tips

Ingredient Breakdown

• Courgettes: Courgettes, also known as zucchini, are the perfect base for this recipe. Their mild flavour and firm texture make them ideal for roasting. When roasted, courgettes develop a lovely sweetness and a slightly crisp exterior, providing a wonderful contrast to the sticky harissa glaze.
• Greek Yoghurt: Greek yoghurt serves as the creamy, tangy base for the garlic yoghurt. It’s thick and rich, and provides a cooling contrast to the heat of the harissa. Plus, it adds a lovely creaminess that balances the dish perfectly.
• Garlic: You mix two cloves of minced garlic into the yoghurt, creating a punchy, aromatic spread. The raw garlic provides a sharpness that cuts through the richness of the other ingredients, adding another layer of flavour to the Sticky Harissa Courgette Flatbreads.
• Honey (or Maple Syrup/Agave Nectar): Honey brings stickiness to the harissa glaze, adding sweetness that balances the heat from the harissa paste. If you prefer, you can substitute honey with maple syrup or agave nectar for a different kind of sweetness. The result is a beautifully balanced glaze that clings to the roasted courgettes.
• Rose Harissa Paste: Harissa is a North African chilli paste that’s incredibly flavourful. The rose harissa used here includes floral notes, which add a subtle complexity to the dish. It brings heat, depth, and a touch of smokiness to the courgettes, making them incredibly moreish.
• Flatbreads: The foundation of the dish, these fluffy flatbreads are the perfect vessel for the sticky harissa courgettes and garlicky yoghurt. They’re soft, chewy, and warm, providing a comforting base that brings everything together.
• Fresh Flat-Leaf Parsley (Optional): For a fresh, herbaceous note, a sprinkle of finely chopped flat-leaf parsley is the perfect garnish. It adds a pop of colour and a light, refreshing flavour that contrasts nicely with the rich, sticky courgettes.

The Magic of Roasting Courgettes

Courgettes often get a bad rap, and it’s easy to see why. When cooked wrong, they can be super bland and watery. The culprit is their high moisture content, which, when not properly managed, can lead to a soggy, flavourless result. However, roasting courgettes at a high temperature changes everything.

Roasting is a game-changer for courgettes. When exposed to the intense heat of the oven, their moisture evaporates, allowing the natural sugars in the vegetable to concentrate. This process caramelises the courgettes, turning them from watery and dull to sweet, smoky, and deeply flavourful. The high temperature also encourages the edges to crisp up, adding a satisfying textural contrast to the soft interior.

For this Sticky Harissa Courgette Flatbreads recipe, you roast the courgettes twice. The first roasting dries them out slightly and starts the caramelisation process. The second roasting, after they’ve been coated in the harissa and honey mixture, intensifies the flavours even further. The result is a sticky, almost jammy consistency that clings to the courgettes and bursts with flavour in every bite.

What is Harissa?

Harissa is a North African chilli paste that’s a staple in Tunisian, Moroccan, and Algerian cooking. It’s made from roasted red peppers, chillies, garlic, and a variety of spices like cumin, coriander, and caraway. Some versions also include rose petals, which add a subtle floral note to the otherwise spicy and smoky paste.

In this Sticky Harissa Courgette Flatbreads recipe, harissa plays a dual role. First, it brings heat, which is balanced by the sweetness of the honey or maple syrup. This combination creates a sticky glaze that coats the roasted courgettes beautifully. Second, the complexity of the harissa – its layers of spice, smoke, and subtle sweetness – elevates the dish, turning simple roasted vegetables into something truly special.

Harissa has gained popularity outside of North Africa for its versatility. You can use it as a marinade, a sauce, or even just a condiment on the side. In this recipe, it’s the key to transforming humble courgettes into a flavour-packed centrepiece. If you’re UK based, I highly recommend Belazu’s rose harissa paste – it’s my favourite!

Harissa and Honey: A Match Made in Heaven

Honey and harissa might seem like an unusual pairing, but together, they create a flavour combination that’s truly special. Harissa, with its complex blend of smoky, spicy, and earthy notes, brings depth and warmth to dishes. On its own, it has an intense heat and robust savoury profile that can sometimes overwhelm the palate.

This is where honey comes in. The sweetness of honey acts as the perfect counterbalance to harissa’s bold flavours. It softens the heat without diminishing it, allowing the subtle spices and smokiness to shine through. The natural sugars in honey also help to caramelise ingredients when cooked, adding a beautiful glaze and a hint of stickiness that makes every bite irresistible.

This combination of sweet and spicy creates a harmonious blend that elevates the flavour of whatever dish it’s added to, making harissa and honey a match made in heaven for everything from roasted vegetables to grilled meats.

Choosing The Right Flatbread

Not all flatbreads are created equal, and the one you pick can make a big difference in texture and flavour. You’ll want something that’s soft and fluffy yet sturdy enough to hold the toppings without falling apart. Fresh, high-quality flatbreads are ideal – think along the lines of Greek, Turkish or Middle Eastern flatbreads. They have a lovely chew and a slightly charred exterior that adds an extra layer of flavour to the dish. Avoid bog standard pitta breads, which can often be too thin or dry. Also, if you can, warm the flatbreads slightly before assembling – this not only makes them more pliable but also enhances their flavour, making each bite as delicious as possible.

There are plenty of delicious flatbreads in shops but if you fancy making your own, try my fluffy yeast Flatbreads or my cheat’s Quick and Easy Flatbreads.

Make It Your Own: Variations and Tips

One of the great things about this Sticky Harissa Courgette Flatbreads recipe is its versatility. Here are a few ideas to customise it to your liking:

• Add Protein: If you want to make this dish more substantial, consider adding grilled chicken, lamb. For a vegetarian or vegan option, you can add halloumi or chickpeas respectively. The protein will add an extra layer of flavour and make the dish even more filling.
• Switch Up the Vegetables: While courgettes work wonderfully in this recipe, you can easily swap them out for other vegetables like aubergines, bell peppers, or mushrooms. Just be sure to adjust the roasting time accordingly.
• Play with the Spice Level: If you’re sensitive to heat, you can reduce the amount of harissa in the glaze or use a milder chilli paste. Conversely, if you love spice, consider adding a pinch of cayenne pepper or a few chilli flakes to the harissa mixture for an extra kick.
• Experiment with Garnishes: Fresh parsley is a great garnish, but you can also experiment with other herbs like coriander or mint. A sprinkle of toasted nuts or seeds, like pine nuts or sesame seeds, would add a nice crunch.

These Sticky Harissa Courgette Flatbreads are proof that you don’t need a long list of ingredients to create a dish that’s full of flavour. With just seven ingredients and a few simple steps, you can create a meal that’s as delicious as it is impressive. Whether you’re making them for a quick lunch, a light dinner, or a special occasion, these flatbreads are sure to satisfy.