Oven baked fish with Moroccan chermoula and celeriac root

27/10/20204passionfood

Prep time: 20 minutes

Cook time: 55 minutes

Serves: Serve 4 :

I love this dish, one of my favorite weekday meals plus It’s very healthy, full of flavours and the best part is you can make it in very little time. 

It takes 5 minutes to make the Chermoula, the classic marinade widely used in North Africa. Made with fresh herbs (coriander and parsley),  garlic, and spices. In Morocco this sauce is traditionally used to marinate the fish, but it can be used for poultry and vegetables as well as fish. It goes very well with everything, it’s a magic blend that makes everything tastes delicious. 

Today I’m sharing with you a simple and easy version of the classic Moroccan fish tagine. 

Usually this dish is prepared with a whole fish (generally sea bass or sea bream) marinated in a chermoula, then it’s layered with a classic vegetables as potatoes, carrots, tomatoes and bell peppers. 

And like most of the times I changed it. First because I like to include the unpopular vegetables, like celeriac root, I just love it, I can eat it cooked or raw. 

And instead of a whole fish I used a sea bream butterfly fillets, I found it more pretty, the cooking time is shorter and the most important we don’t have to deal with the bones.
I added fresh ginger, lime zest and juice to the chermoula which gives to my fish lots of vibrant, fresh and delicious flavors. Added some colourful cherries tomatoes I find it so pretty as we say “we eat with the eyes first”. 

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Oven baked fish with Moroccan chermoula and celeriac root

  • Prep time: 20 minutes
  • Cook time: 55 minutes
  • Total time: 1 hour 15 minutes
  • Serves: Serve 4 :

One of the classics of Moroccan cuisine, which you can make with the fish of your choice. Very simple to make and full of flavor, thanks to Chermoula, this marinade very known in North Africa, made from fresh herbs and spices.

Ingredients

  • 2 sea bream , medium (ask your fishmonger to butterfly your fish)
  • 1 celeriac root , medium knob
  • 200 ml water, boiling
  • 4 bay leaves
  • 1 cm fresh ginger, finely grated
  • 1 Tbsp lime zest
  • 2 Tbsp lime juice
  • 50 g olives, Kalamata

For the chermoula :

  • 3 Tbsp coriander , finely chopped
  • 3 Tbsp parsley , finely chopped
  • 5 Tbsp olive oil
  • 2 cloves of garlic , finely grated
  • 1 tsp cumin, powder
  • 1 tsp paprika
  • 1/4 tsp turmeric , powder
  • salt and black pepper

For the tomatoes :

  • 100 g cherries tomatoes , cut in half
  • pinch of cumin , powder
  • 1/8 tsp saffron
  • 1 Tbsp olive oil
  • salt and black pepper

Assembly :

  • 1 Tbsp fresh parsley , coarsely chopped
  • 1/2 lime, finely sliced

Method

  • 1)

    Start by making the chermoula. In a bowl, combine all the ingredients for the chermoula, set aside.
    Then prepare the celeriac root.  Wash, peel the celeriac root and cut it into 4, then cut into slices 0.5cm thick.  Place the celeriac slices in an ovenproof dish, pour half the chermoula over the celeriac root, mix to cover all the slices of this sauce, then add 200ml of boiling water.

    Cover with baking paper, and bake in a preheated oven at 180C for 40 minutes.

    After  20 minutes, flip the celeriac slices over with the spatula, place them back in the oven until they are done. You need to make sure that the slices have become tender. If they are not cooked yet, extend the cooking time and make sure there is enough water to cook the celeriac slices.

  • 2)

    10 minutes before the celeriac has finished cooking, coat the sea bream butterfly fillets with the rest of the chermoula to which you will add the fresh ginger, lime juice and zest.
    Leave to marinate for 10 minutes maximum 15, otherwise the lemon will cook the fish before going to the oven and in this case you will have a dry and overcooked fish.

  • 3)

    In a bowl put the cherry tomatoes cut in half, the olives and add 1 Tbsp of olive oil, a pinch of cumin powder, 1/8 tsp of saffron, salt and pepper.  Mix and set aside.

  • 4)

    Once the celeriac slices are cooked and tender, place the sea bream butterfly fillets on top with all the chermoula, the bay leaves, the cherry tomatoes and their marinade, the olives and very thin slices of lime.

    Cook uncovered for 10 to 15 minutes.

  • 5)

    Once cooked, garnish with coarsely chopped fresh parsley, and serve hot or warm with good homemade bread.
    You can also serve this dish with a green salad or zaalouk.

    Enjoy !!

Tricks & Tips :

  • Instead of sea bream you can use sea bass, sardines or mackerel.
  • You can also add other vegetables like carrots or potatoes.
  • If you are using a whole fish, consider adapting the cooking time according to the weight of the fish chosen.

Nutrition

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