This Libyan Lusa recipe combines dried tomatoes, dried onions, tomato paste, red chilies, garlic and olive oil into a rich, concentrated dip with deep savory flavor and plenty of heat. Caraway and turmeric add warmth, while the generous amount of olive oil gives the finished mixture its glossy, spreadable texture.

Watch how to make Lusa

Ingredients

For the Lusa

• 1 1/2 cups (360 ml) olive oil
• 70 g (about 2.5 oz) dried onions
• 280 g (about 10 oz) dried tomatoes
• 2 cups (about 480 ml / 17 fl oz) tomato paste
• 200 g (about 7 oz) red chilies
• 3 garlic cloves
• 1/2 tsp turmeric
• 1/4 tsp caraway seeds
• Salt, to taste

Instructions

Fry the dried vegetables

Heat the olive oil in a large pan over medium heat.

Add the dried onions and fry, stirring constantly, until lightly browned. Remove them from the oil and set aside.

Using the same oil, fry the dried tomatoes for a couple of minutes, then remove them and set them aside as well.

Cook the tomato paste

Add the tomato paste to the same pan and stir it well into the olive oil.

Reduce the heat to low and cook gently for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally and watching carefully so the tomato paste does not catch on the bottom.

Prepare and cook the chilies

While the tomato paste is cooking, remove the seeds from the red chilies, slice them, then pulse them in a food processor until finely chopped.

Add the chopped chilies to the pan and simmer with the tomato paste until most of the moisture from the chilies has cooked off.

Blend the onion and tomato mixture

Add the fried dried tomatoes, fried dried onions and garlic to a food processor and blend until they form a paste.

Finish the Lusa

Once most of the moisture from the chilies has evaporated, add the blended onion, tomato and garlic mixture to the pan and stir well to combine.

Season with the turmeric, caraway seeds and salt to taste.

If the mixture feels too thick, add a little more olive oil and stir until the Lusa reaches a rich, spreadable consistency. Serve as desired.

Recipe notes

Dried onions

If you cannot find dried onions, you can make your own from fresh onions using a dehydrator or an oven.

Dried tomatoes

Packaged or canned dried tomatoes work well, but you can also dry your own tomatoes in the sun or with a dehydrator.

Adjust the heat

Traditionally, Lusa is made with hot red chilies, but you can use a mix of hot and sweet red chilies to control the heat level.

Learn more about Lusa

Want to know more about the dish itself? Explore the origins, food culture, variations and story behind Lusa.