Tunisian fish stew (mosli)

Justine Schofield's friend Pedro Damergi shared this Tunisian tagine-style fish stew with her in the Everyday Gourmet kitchen.

Tunisian fish stew (mosli) Credit: Everyday Gourmet with Justine Schofield

• serves

  2-3

• prep

  10 minutes

• cook

  55 minutes

• difficulty

  Easy

Ingredients

• 2 large mackerel cutlets
• 3 potatoes, sliced
• 2-3 fresh tomatoes, sliced
• 2 red capsicums, deseeded and sliced
• 1 tbsp cumin
• 1 tbsp ground coriander
• 1 tbsp smoked paprika
• Salt and pepper
• 2 tbsp + ⅓ cup extra virgin olive oil, divided
• 3 shallots, sliced
• 6 cloves garlic, finely sliced
• 2 bay leaves
• ½ tsp turmeric
• 1 cup (250 ml) fish stock
• 1 lemon, sliced
• Bread or cooked couscous, to serve, optional

Green sauce

• 10 blanched or green almonds
• 1 cup mixed coriander and parsley leaf
• 1 garlic clove
• ½ anchovy
• ½ tsp baby capers
• Small piece preserved lemon
• Extra virgin olive oil
• ½ tsp cumin
• Salt and pepper

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C.
2. Season the fish, the potato, and the capsicum and tomato (ideally in three separate bowls) with some of the cumin, coriander, paprika, salt and pepper and keep aside.
3. On medium heat in a large casserole dish or tagine, start a sofrito of shallot, garlic and bay leaf in a few tablespoons of olive oil and cook until soft (about five minutes). Then add the rest of the cumin, coriander, and paprika, plus the turmeric and stir. Deglaze with some of the fish stock.
4. Place the potato, then the capsicum and tomato (reserving a few pieces), nicely on top of the sofrito then place the fish. Add the remaining capsicum and tomato, and the sliced lemon on top. Pour the remaining fish stock gently into the side of the pan. Season with salt and pepper then drizzle over the ⅓ cup of olive oil. Cover and bake in the oven for 30 minutes, then uncovered for another 15 minutes.
5. When ready to serve, to make the sauce, place the almonds, herbs, garlic cloves, anchovy, capers and preserved lemon into a pestle and mortar, and bash it all together, grinding it until it’s a paste. Alternatively, use a food processor to blend until finely chopped.
6. Add olive oil (enough to make a loose salsa) and cumin and mix together with salt and pepper to taste.
7. Serve stew with sauce, plus crunchy baguette or a side of couscous, if desired.

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.