Borderline Pickles with Hot Harissa

Name: Borderline Pickles with Hot Harissa
Ingredients: 1 cucumber; 2 carrots; 1 red onion; 200 ml white vinegar; 200 ml water; 2 tbsp sugar; 1.5 tbsp salt; 2 tsp coriander seeds; 1 tsp mustard seeds; 1 bay leaf; 3 tbsp harissa; 3 tbsp olive oil

Based on:

At the border crossing between Morocco and the Spanish exclave Ceuta, the atmosphere remains tense. Because various calls are circulating on social media to once again cross the border en masse…

TypeSide dish

DateAugust 15, 2026

Sharp pickles in harissa oil: tension on your plate, just like at the border.

A side dish of pickled vegetables in a sharp harissa oil, inspired by the tension at the Ceuta border. The sour and spicy flavors pull against each other, echoing the migration paradox in the news.

Ingredients

1 cucumber
2 carrots
1 red onion
200 ml white vinegar
200 ml water
2 tbsp sugar
1.5 tbsp salt
2 tsp coriander seeds
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 bay leaf
3 tbsp harissa
3 tbsp olive oil

Method

Slice the cucumber, carrots, and red onion into thin strips.
Bring vinegar, water, sugar, salt, coriander seeds, mustard seeds, and bay leaf to a boil.
Place the vegetables in a clean jar and pour the hot liquid over them. Let cool and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
Mix harissa with olive oil into a spicy sauce.
Just before serving, pour the harissa oil over the pickles.
Serve cold as a sharp side dish with main courses.

Serving notes

Serve in a narrow line across the plate, like an imaginary border.
Offer extra harissa for the brave.