Fish tagine

The Egyptian tagine is much like the better-known Moroccan tajine, the conical-topped clay cooking pot that cooks spicy stews to perfection. This seafood recipe uses barramundi instead of the traditional Nile perch, but the squid and prawns are authentic, being fruits of Egypt’s Mediterranean coastline and its famous river.

• serves

  4

• prep

  30 minutes

• cook

  1 hour

• difficulty

  Mid

Ingredients

• 1 barramundi fillet, cut into 2 cm pieces
• 1 squid tube, sliced
• 250 g green prawns, shelled and deveined

Marinade

• ½ tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp crushed garlic
• ½ lime (or lemon), juiced
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• ½ cup roughly chopped coriander
• salt and pepper

Sauce

• 1 red capsicum, roasted and peeled
• 3 tomatoes, chopped
• 1 cup chopped celery
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 red onion, sliced
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• small handful of coriander leaves
• salt and pepper

Marinating time 4 hours

Instructions

Place the barramundi, squid and prawns in a mixing bowl and add the marinade ingredients. Mix well and marinate for 4 hours.

To make the sauce, use a hand-held blender or food processor to blend the capsicum (including its seeds) with the tomato, celery and cumin. Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan over high heat and fry the red onion until soft. Add the blended sauce and bring to a high simmer. Stir in the tomato paste, coriander and salt and pepper to taste.

Preheat the oven to 180°C. Cover the base of the tagine with some of the sauce, add the seafood, then cover with the remaining sauce. Place the tagine on the stove over medium heat for a few minutes to start the cooking process. Transfer to the oven and cook for 40–45 minutes.

Serve with fresh bread, couscous or rice.

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.