Couscous with Fish, Tomatoes, and Quinces
Tunisia is famous for fish couscous. This uncommon one is elegant and aromatic, with the mingled scents of saffron and quince. Have the fish cleaned and left whole. It is usually steamed in a separate steamer, but it is better to bake it in foil in the oven, which is a way of steaming it.
Ingredients
serves 6
For the Grain
Step 1
Prepare the grain as described in “An Easy Way of Preparing Quick-Cooking Couscous in the Oven” (page 376), using the quantities given in the ingredients list above, and olive oil instead of vegetable oil.
Step 2
Cut the quinces in half and trim off the darkened ends. This fruit is very hard, so use a large strong knife to press down on them. Put them in a pan, cover with water, and simmer about 20 minutes, until just tender. Strain and keep the cooking water. Cut into quarters and remove the cores and pips.
Step 3
In a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons oil, put in the tomatoes and add the sugar, salt, pepper, and saffron. Cook until the tomatoes soften and fall apart. Put in the quinces and add 2 ladles of the quince water. Simmer until the quinces are very tender. This is the sauce.
Step 4
Brush a large sheet of foil (or 2 if you are cooking 2 fish) generously with oil. Place the fish in the middle and sprinkle lightly with salt. Wrap in a baggy parcel, twisting the foil edges together to seal it. Bake at 450°F. The cooking time depends on the size of the fish. Test for doneness for a large fish after about 30 minutes, for smaller ones after 20 minutes. Cut down to the backbone at the thickest part and check that the flesh flakes and has turned white and opaque right through.
Step 5
Serve the couscous in a large round dish. Put the fish in the middle and the sauce around it.
