This stunning and flavor-packed fish is a staple Shabbat appetizer among Sephardi Jews.
We recently developed a spice blend called Chraime, feel free to use 2 tablespoons Jamie Geller Chraime in place of the turmeric and paprika to mix with the olive oil.
The Best Moroccan Fish
Servings
3 Servings
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 cloves garlic chopped
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 red pepper cut into strips
- 1 green chili pepper chopped small (keep the seeds for more spice)
- 5 whole cloves of garlic
- 1 cup water
- 3 fish fillets tilapia, grouper, salmon, or your favorite fish
- ⅓ cup olive oil
- 2 tablespoons sweet paprika
- ½ teaspoon turmeric
- Juice of ½ lemon
- ½ lemon sliced
- ½ cup chopped parsley and/or cilantro
- More parsley and cilantro for garnishing
Instructions
- Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil to a pot, add the chopped garlic and fry on medium heat until the garlic turns golden.
- Add the tomato paste, sugar, salt and pepper. Stir.
- Add the red pepper and the spicy green chili pepper. If you want it to be very spicy, add the seeds. Without the seeds, it will only have a slight kick. Stir and fry for 2 more minutes.
- Add the whole garlic cloves and the water. Stir to scrape up the delicious caramelized flavor from the bottom of the pot.
- Cover and cook on medium heat for 15 minutes.
- In a mixing bowl, add ⅓ cup olive oil, turmeric and paprika. Mix. Dip the fish fillets into the mixture and coat on all sides. Add the fish to the pot, then pour the rest of the mixture into the pot.
- Squeeze the juice of ½ lemon, then place the slices of the rest of the lemon on top of the fish. Sprinkle with parsley or cilantro.
- Cover and cook on medium heat for 10 minutes.
- Garnish with fresh parsley or cilantro and serve hot with a scoop of the sauce.
I am not sure, but think the skin won’t work well
Can you use the frozen tilapia you find at the super that has the skin on the bottom for this recipe?
it was super tasty!
This recipe does not call for onions. You can substitute the tomato paste for fresh tomatoes or diced canned tomatoes.
I have made this recipe many times for many different people and they all loved it. It is great. I use a can of diced tomatoes or fresh tomatoes instead of the tomato paste.
This is not a traditional recipe. In Morocco they never have onion and garlic in the same recipe. And it’s not made with tomato paste either.