Moroccan fish tagine
A whole fish marinated in a bright, spiced chermoula, then layered into a tagine with potato, tomato, and onion, topped with lemon and chile, and simmered until everything comes together into one dish. Classic Moroccan fish tagine, traditionally made with sea bream or another firm white fish, built almost entirely from pantry spices and whatever vegetables are at hand.
Ingredients
Instructions
In a deep dish, marinate the fish with half the cumin, a few lemon slices, the paprika, and the cilantro. Cover and refrigerate for about 12 hours.
Fry the sliced onions in 2 tablespoons of the olive oil until softened and golden.
Set a tagine over medium heat with the remaining tablespoon of olive oil. Line the base with half the lemon slices, then half the potato slices, the remaining cumin, a layer of tomato, and half the fried onion. Season with salt and pepper, then lay the marinated fish on top.
Cover the fish with another layer of potato, onion, and tomato. Sprinkle with the cilantro and chopped chile, then finish with the remaining lemon slices on top.
Pour in the water and bring to a boil over high heat. Lower the heat, cover with the tagine's lid, and simmer for about 15 minutes, until the fish is cooked through.
Bring the tagine straight to the table and serve.
Notes
Any firm, thick white fish works here if sea bream isn't available — meagre, sea bass, and whiting are all traditional substitutes in Morocco. The long marinating time matters more than it looks: 12 hours lets the chermoula actually penetrate the fish rather than just coating the surface. Pre-boiling the potatoes before layering them keeps the overall cooking time short, since the tagine itself only needs about 15 minutes once assembled.
Variations
Carrots are a common addition to the vegetable layers, sliced thin alongside the potato. A pinch of ground ginger and turmeric in the marinade, alongside the cumin and paprika, is also traditional and adds a warmer color and flavor to the sauce. For a milder dish, leave the chile out entirely or seed it before chopping.
Source
Fish tagine is a staple of Morocco's coastal cooking, where chermoula — the herb-and-spice marinade of cilantro, garlic, cumin, and paprika that also flavors grilled fish and seafood across the country — does most of the work. Building the dish in layers, with the fish nestled between beds of potato, tomato, and onion, lets the vegetables absorb the marinade's flavor as everything cooks down together in the tagine's enclosed heat. In the north of Morocco, a similar flat clay vessel called a tagra is sometimes used for fish tagines in place of the conical tagine.