Fish Tagine with Apricot and Green Vegetable Couscous

Ingredients

Whiting fillets

Fish or chicken stock

Medium Couscous —230 g

Ras-el-hanout spice mix

Olive oil

Tomato Puree

Coriander

Honey

Saffron

Ginger

Red chilli

1 onion

2 cloves of garlic

Cherry tomatoes

Ground & Flaked Almonds

1 orange—zest grated and juice

10 dried apricots

1 red pepper

Green Beans

Broccoli

 

 

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Method

1. Heat the fish stock or chicken stock and add the saffron, leave to infuse.

 

2. Heat the olive oil in a large heavy bottomed saucepan and cook the onion until soft and translucent. Now add the garlic, ginger and chilli and cook for two minutes.

 

3. Add the Ras-el-hanout and tomato purée cook for a further two minutes. When you can smell all the fragrances from the spice mix, add the cherry tomatoes, ground almonds, orange zest, orange juice, honey and the saffron infused stock. Simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes or until the sauce has thickened slightly.

 

4. Add the fish to the pan and cover with a lid and simmer until the fish is just cooked, which will take between 2 and 5 minutes depending on the size and thickness of the fish chunks and the variety of fish used.

 

5. Blanch (cook in boiling water for 2 minutes) the beans, broccoli and red pepper. Drain and run under cold water to stop the cooking process. Drain again.

 

6. Weigh out the grains of couscous in a large heatproof bowl and pour over the boiling water. Cover the bowl with tin foil or a plate and leave to stand until the water has been completely absorbed.

 

7. Add the blanched vegetables and the chopped apricots to the couscous. Add salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste. Stir well.

 

8. To serve, transfer the fish tagine to a tagine dish if you have one and garnish with any or all of the following: chopped fresh coriander leaves, sliced chillies and toasted flaked almonds. Serve the couscous as an accompaniment.

 

This recipe can also be done in a slow cooker and left to simmer for longer.