Chermoula fish from Morocco
The flavours are stunning !!
Although you might come across variations for Chermoula, the end results are very
similar in taste.
The classic Chermoula recipe below is quick and easy to prepare and uses
fresh coriander. Use only the coriander leaves and small stems, the large stems should be discarded.
Makes enough marinade for a 2kg of fish
Chermoula sauce ingredients
1 large bunch coriander, finely chopped (or ground coriander if you can’t have fresh coriander)
1 large bunch of parsley finely chopped
5 cloves garlic pressed or finely chopped
2 tablespoons sweet paprika
1 teaspoon of smoke paprika
2 tablespoons cumin
1 tablespoon ginger (optional)
½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
¼ teaspoon saffron threads, crumbled (optional)
3 tablespoons olive oil
Juice of 1 small lemon
Preparation
Mix all ingredients together in a bowl. The Chermoula is now ready to use.
When marinating fish you might want to add a little more oil or water to thin the marinade so it’s easier to distribute over the fish.
Ingredients:
2kg fish
2/3 carrot cut into thin sticks
2/3 large potatoes, cut into thin slices
3 or 4 tomatoes, cut into thin slices
2 capsicums one red, one green, sliced into rings
1 teaspoon ginger (optional)
½ teaspoon turmeric (optional)
A pinch of saffron threads
1 preserved lemon, quartered or one fresh lemon cut into thin slices
Handful of red olives (optional)
Salt and Pepper
Method for the fish Chermoula :
Ahead of time :
Reserve half of the Chermoula sauce and mix the remaining half with the fish.
Cover the fish, refrigerate it and allow to marinate at least two hours or overnight.
At time :
- Pour the olive oil into a tagine or oven proof dish and distribute all the vegetables to form a bed for the fish.
- Distribute the reserved Chermoula sauce over the vegetables.
- Add the fish and its marinade to the center.
- Garnish with the lemon.
- Heat the oven to 200 degrees for about 1h or until the fish and potatoes are cooked.
If you have a fillet or a small fish, count 30 minutes of cooking time per kg of fish,or 15minutes for 500g of fish
In this case you have to pre-cook the vegetables mixed with the sauce at least 20 to 30minutes before adding the fish on the top of the vegetables bed.
The Chermoula sauce can be used for chicken as well.
The Chermoula sauce can be stored in the fridge in an airtight container, (pour a thin layer of olive oil on the top and seal)