Central Market’s fish tagine with preserved lemon and green olives

This delightful fish curry is light enough for warmer weather. You can use barramundi, monkfish, King George whiting or red snapper. A few prawns wouldn't hurt either.

• serves

  4

• prep

  20 minutes

• cook

  35 minutes

• difficulty

  Easy

Ingredients

• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1 white onion, thinly sliced
• 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• ½ bunch coriander, stalks roughly chopped and leaves reserved for garnish
• ½ bunch parsley, stalks and leaves roughly chopped
• ½ large red capsicum, sliced into diamond-shaped pieces
• ½ bulb fennel, sliced
• 2-3 large celery stalks, peeled and finely sliced
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp ground paprika
• 1 tsp ground cayenne pepper
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 3 tomatoes, chopped
• 1 preserved lemon, pith discarded, peel roughly chopped
• 1 cup green olives
• 1 litre white fish or vegetable stock
• 1 kg skinless fish fillets (try a mix of barramundi, monkfish, King George whiting and red snapper)
• Steamed couscous, to serve

Instructions

1. Heat the oil in a large, heavy-based saucepan over medium-low heat. Add the onion, garlic, coriander and parsley stalks, capsicum, fennel and celery. Cook, stirring occasionally for 6-8 minutes or until softened, but not coloured. Create a space in the centre of the pan, add the spices and cook for 1-2 minutes before stirring into the softened vegetables. Add the tomatoes, preserved lemon, olives and stock. Cover and simmer for 15 minutes or until tender and aromatic.

2. Cut the fish fillets into bite-sized pieces. Once the vegetables have cooked down, gently stir in the fish, reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer gently for 6 - 8 minutes or until the fish is just cooked through. Scatter with the parsley and coriander sprigs and serve with the steamed couscous.

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Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.