Monkfish Tagine Moroccan Style (Lotte à la Marocaine)

Ingredients

• For the chermoula marinade and sauce
• 800 g monkfish tail, grey membrane (pellicule) removed entirely; cut into sections
• 1 bunch fresh flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
• 1 bunch fresh coriander, finely chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, crushed to a paste
• 2 tsp ground cumin
• 2 tsp sweet paprika
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• 60 ml olive oil, Olea europaea; extra-virgin
• 30 ml lemon juice, freshly squeezed
• For the braising sauce
• 400 g ripe tomatoes, Solanum lycopersicum; peeled and roughly chopped
• 2 medium onions, Allium cepa; finely sliced
• 1 generous pinch saffron threads, Crocus sativus; steeped in 60 ml warm water
• 60 ml olive oil, Olea europaea; for the sauce base
• 1 preserved lemon, rinsed; flesh discarded, skin sliced into strips
• 100 g Moroccan olives, pitted or unpitted, green or violet
• To serve
• 400 g couscous, plain, steamed or prepared by the absorption method

Method

1. 1
   Remove the grey membrane from the monkfish tail sections completely, working a finger or the tip of a small knife under the pellicule and peeling it away in strips, so that no barrier remains to prevent the chermoula from reaching the flesh directly. Trim any residual connective tissue until every surface of the fish is clean and bare.
2. 2
   Combine the chopped parsley, coriander, garlic paste, cumin, paprika, ground coriander, olive oil, and lemon juice in a bowl to form the green chermoula, then reserve half for the braising sauce. Coat the monkfish sections thoroughly in the remaining half and leave to marinate for 90 minutes at room temperature, so the spiced oil penetrates the dense interior rather than sitting only at the surface — at 90 minutes you will see a deep golden-green stain driven well into the flesh, not merely pooling on it.
3. 3
   Heat a dry heavy pan until very hot, then sear the marinated monkfish sections for 2 minutes per side without moving them, so the surface seizes and forms a crust that will hold the sections together through the long braise ahead. The edge should be golden and fragrant with a Maillard-browned crust, not steamed or pallid.
4. 4
   In the base of the tagine, warm the second measure of olive oil over a medium flame, add the sliced onions, and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and translucent — about 10 minutes. Add the chopped tomatoes and the reserved chermoula, stir to combine, then pour in the saffron with its steeping liquid and allow the sauce to reach a full, steady simmer before proceeding, so the fish enters a hot, already-flavoured liquid and begins cooking immediately rather than stewing in a gradually warming pool that draws moisture out without returning flavour.
5. 5
   Press the thickest section at 25 minutes: it should yield firmly but cleanly, separating along its natural fibre lines without resistance; if it pushes back, continue for the remaining 5 minutes and test again.
6. 6
   Serve directly from the tagine over plain couscous. The sauce should be rich and slightly syrupy, its body built by the gelatine released from the monkfish bone during the braise, which thickens the liquid far more than sea bass or sardine preparations would.