Let me just tell you, this comforting, flavor-packed Moroccan fish recipe will change your fish dinner game forever! A simple braised cod recipe in a saucy chickpea, tomato and bell pepper medley with aromatics and warm Moroccan spices including Ras El Hanout. If you haven't tried it, you need to grab some Ras El Hanout ASAP!
You can serve this fish with 15-minute couscous or your favorite crusty bread. I also like it over this rice. For starters, try Baba Ganoush and a big fresh salad like this simple Mediterranean tomato and cucumber salad.
To me, this Morrocan fish recipe is the kind of homey fish stew that you eat with close friends and family. Delicious. Saucy. And wonderfully messy!
You'd better be prepared with some homemade challah bread or your favorite crusty bread to sop up all the goodness!
My Jewish friends tell me that Moroccan fish may be served on Friday night for Shabbat dinner or even at Rosh Hashanah. It's that special!
I've done some research and found several variations of this Morrocan fish recipe. Some recipes call for baking, while others call for stove-top cooking. Some use a lot of paprika, and others are more heavy on the hot chili or cumin. Some include chickpeas, and others don't. And the fish choice may also vary from recipe to recipe.
But all the Moroccan fish recipes I reviewed gave off the same vibe: warmth and comfort! And that's what I went with in my own easy version here.
Don't worry, like my Moroccan Fish Kofta, this version incorporates amazing Moroccan flavors without being too spicy! Best part? It takes little prep and cooks in about 30 minutes!
Ingredients for this Moroccan-Style Cod Recipe
This is basically a braised cod recipe with a big Moroccan twist! My cod fillet pieces were thin enough, so braising stove-top seemed to be the perfect option for a juicy delicious fish. And, as you can see in the photos, I added some chickpeas to make for a heartier fish dinner. Why not throw in a bit of plant-based protein to stretch the meal and make the perfect bed for our fish?!
So let's review the full list of ingredients for this Moroccan fish recipe:
- For the base or saucy part of this fish recipe: extra virgin olive oil, garlic, tomato paste (adds great depth), chopped tomatoes, red bell peppers, water (for the saucy part), and chickpeas (canned chickpeas or already boiled is what you're looking for here.)
- For the Fish: I chose cod fillet. You can change the fish option according to what you have--grouper, sea bass, or halibut will work (I don't typically use tilapia though). The important thing is that the fish fillets are thin enough to cook quickly (mine were about ½ inch in thickness).
-Moroccan Flavor Makers: this is where all the Moroccan warmth comes through! I went for something a little bit different. I did not rely too much on paprika, and I did not add any heavy amount of hot chili. For the star spice, I used Ras El Hanout--a wonderful blend of cinnamon, turmeric, cloves, allspice, cardamom, ginger, mace, nutmeg, and a touch of cayenne. And I did add a bit of paprika and cumin as well.
How to Make this Moroccan Cod Fillet Recipe
This Moroccan fish recipe is fairly easy to make. Like I said earlier, it's a braised cod fillet recipe, so you'll be working stove-top and all you need is a braiser (something like this) or a deep pan with a lid. There are two components or two main steps here:
1) Prepare the saucy chickpea and tomato mixture. In this step, we start by cooking some garlic in extra virgin olive oil.
We build from there by adding tomato paste, diced tomatoes, and bell peppers. And after we get those cooking a bit, we add in chickpeas, water, and fresh cilantro. Season things up and add a bit of Ras EL Hanout (our star spice mixture!) Then, simmer, baby. Simmer!
2) Season and cook the fish in the prepared mixture. So, while the chickpea, tomato, and bell pepper mixture is simmering nicely, we hit the fish fillets up with salt and pepper and coat with a trio of spices: Ras El Hanout, cumin and paprika. It helps to drizzle a bit of quality extra virgin olive oil and give the fish a toss to make sure it's well-coated with the spices.
By the way, if you live in the USA, you can find spices including Ras El Hanout, and our olive oils and more at our Online Shop.
How do I know if my fish is cooked?
If you don't make fish often, you might wonder, "how do I know if my fish is cooked and ready?"
In this recipe, I used cod fillets that are about ½ inch in thickness. They should take 10 to 15 minutes to cook in the saucy chickpea and tomato mixture (the cook time might vary, depending on how thick your fish fillets are.)
When fish is ready, it will become opaque in color and will easily flake. Take a fork to the thickest part of the fish at a 45-degree angle, gently twist the fork and pull some of the fish up. It should easily flake. Under-cooked fish will still look a bit grey and will resist flaking. If that's the case, let it cook a bit more but watch carefully so that you don't end up overcooking your cod.
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BEST Moroccan Fish Recipe
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: serves 6
Description
This delicious Moroccan fish recipe takes the fish dinner game to a new level of delicious! Braised cod recipe in a saucy chickpea, tomato, and bell pepper medley and lots of warm Moroccan flavors from Ras El Hanout, paprika and cumin.
Ingredients
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil (I used Private Reserve EVOO)
- 8 garlic cloves, divided (4 minced cloves and 4 sliced)
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 2 medium tomatoes, diced
- 1 red pepper, cored, sliced
- 1 15-oz can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 1 ½ cup water
- Large handful fresh cilantro (about 1 cup fresh cilantro)
- Kosher salt and black pepper
- 1 ½ tsp Ras El Hanout, divided
- 1 ½ lb cod fillet pieces (about ½ inch in thickness)
- ¾ tsp paprika
- ½ tsp cumin
- Juice of ½ lemon
- ½ lemon, sliced into thin rounds
Instructions
- In a large pan with cover, heat 2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil (I used Private Reserve) over medium heat until shimmering but not smoking.
- Add minced garlic and cook very briefly, tossing regularly, until fragrant. Add tomato paste, diced tomato, and bell peppers. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes over medium heat, tossing frequently.
- Now, add chickpeas, water, cilantro, and sliced garlic. Season with kosher salt and pepper. Stir in ½ teaspoon Ras El Hanout spice mixture. Raise heat, if needed, and bring to a boil. Lower heat. Cover part-way and let simmer for about 20 minutes. (Check occasionally and add a little water if needed.)
- Meanwhile, in a small mixing bowl, combine remaining Ras El Hanout with cumin and paprika. Season the fish with kosher salt and pepper and the spice mixture on both sides. Add a generous drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. Work the fish to make sure it's well coated with the spices and the olive oil.
- When ready, add the season fish to the pan, and make sure to nestle the fish pieces into the saucy chickpea and tomato mixture. Ladle a bit of the sauce on top of the fish. Add lemon juice and lemon slices. Cook another 10 to 15 minutes over medium-low until the fish is fully cooked and flaky. Garnish with more fresh cilantro.
- Serve immediately with your favorite crusty bread, grain, or rice.
Notes
- Find our Private Reserve EVOO and spices including Ras El Hanout, cumin and paprika at our ONLINE SHOP!
- How do you know when fish is ready? When fish is ready, it will become opaque in color and will easily flake. Take a fork to the thickest part of the fish at a 45-degree angle, gently twist the fork and pull some of the fish up. It should easily flake. Under-cooked fish will still look a bit grey and will resist flaking. If that's the case, let it cook a bit more but watch carefully so that you don't end up overcooking your cod.
- How to Store Leftovers? Keep leftovers in a tight-lid glass container in the fridge for up to 2 days.
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 30 mins
- Cuisine: Moroccan
Hi Suzy,
Could this be made in a tagine? If so, how would I modify the recipe?
Thanks!
love your recipe very easy snd delish
thanks Anns
I liked it. I made it with cauliflower instead of chickpeas, but nevertheless it came out very well. My family like it very much. Thank You for the recipe.
Thanks for sharing your variation, Marina! Glad you enjoyed it!
It would be helpful if you also list the measurements of the spices since every day grocery stores don’t have this obscure spice that’s called for in this recipe. I will just have to guess
Hello, Ria. I'm not sure I understand your comment. All of the spice measurements are listed. If you hit the "To Recipe" button at the top of the post, you will be taken to the recipe card with all of that specific information.
Rahls El Hanout is a blend available in Wal Mart, Whole Foods, Kroger and Publix. I've found it in all four places. as well as available on line thru Amazon.
Suzy
Lovely spicy fish dish, it made a refreshing change.
Made it with cod and chickpea and definitely a hit with me and my missus. Trying it again tonight but with Salmon, I’m sure it will be at least as good.
Many thanks
Glynn. UK.
Thank you, Glynn!
Amazing dish Suzy ,could you tell me please what the name is of this this is thank you .
Hi, Mark! This is my Moroccan Fish recipe. So glad you enjoyed it!
I made this today & it turned out great! I added some shrimp with the fish & I served it with couscous. I am looking forward to the next recipe I will make for my family.
So glad you enjoyed this one, Stephanie!
Made this for dinner tonight! Absolutely delicious! I probably went heavier on the spices, but it was so very flavorful. Definitely will make again
So glad you enjoyed it 🙂
Loved this recipe! Flavors were so spicy. I used thawed frozen cod from Trader Joe's and it was fabulous. I think shrimp would work well too. Just cooked lightly.
Thanks, Kay!
Looking forward to trying this recipe very soon. Bought some of your spices and the quality is excellent. The number of carbs in the nutrition facts looks too high? Maybe closer to 15 grams of carbs and 2 grams of fiber? Have really liked all your recipes so far! Thank you.
Hi, Rick. I'm so glad you are enjoying the spices you ordered! Thank you so much! Regarding the carb count here, please note we use a very basic nutritional calculator. It really just gives us a best estimate for each recipe's nutritional information.
Everyone loved this recipe, even my "picky-about-fish" son! The flavors were wonderful and the only adjustment I made was to add a single green chili to the mix while the fish simmered to add a bit of heat as well. I used grouper and served this over brown basmati rice with a side of baba ganoush with pita chips.
I would also consider making this as a vegetarian meal by substituting greens or another vegetable (cauliflower?) instead of the fish - either way, this recipe is a keeper!
Thanks for sharing, Lynn! So glad your family enjoyed it!
All I can say is “wow! What flavor!”. I picked up some Gulf Coast flounder filets today, and jumped on your blog to see what I could find...was not disappointed! I ran out of Ras Al Hanout...so had to take a moment to make some fresh (had all the spices...just had to grind them. I didn’t know why I bought mace...until today 🤣).
I served this over your Lebanese rice (my new go-to rice dish).
I made your preserved lemons earlier in the year...and was wondering what to use them in. Found it...substituted a half of a preserved lemon for the lemon in the recipe, and reduced the salt earlier in the recipe. It turned out wonderful!
Once again...THANK YOU for a beautiful meal...made fresh. Your recipies are the first place I head to on the Interwebz.
Respect and joy,
Jeff in Houston
Hi, Jeff! I love hearing this! Thanks you so much for taking the time to share.
Enjoyed this different (and healthy) way to prepare fish. Used haddock instead of cod and Italian parsley instead of cilantro and it was delicious. I especially liked the spices used in the dish. The dish was full of flavor and color. Definitely a keeper.
I made this with tilapia because that’s what I had and it was absolutely delicious. My stew was a bit soupy but really flavorful, I loved every spoon of it!
Will this work with tilapia? I don't cook a lot.
Hi, Ellen! Tilapia will work in a pinch :).
Loved this recipe! 🙂
Awesome! Thanks, Heather!
We absolutely loved this recipe. I used cod, about the thickness suggested, and it cooked in half the time. So instead of portion pieces of fish it was more like a stew, because the fish just flaked apart into smaller pieces. So I guess we had Moroccan fish stew, but it tasted fabulous anyhow. I wonder if this recipe would work better with a firmer fish like swordfish.
So glad you enjoyed it, Myrna! I have not tried this recipe with swordfish but would be eager to hear if you do
This was a more involved and messier recipe than I usually do for our thrice weekly fish meals but we did like it very much. I’d like to share on substitution. I didn’t have the Ras El Hanout blend so I found a recommendation to use Garam Masala with some cayenne added. I don’t know how perfect a substitution this was but the result was pretty darn good.
Thanks for sharing that, Ellen! So glad you enjoyed the recipe!
This recipe is north african it is the same with any meat just the cook time changes ...... The meat changes with availability. We make with lamb mainly but chicken fish and beef are also used.
Thank you for sharing, Mo!
I always use salmon. Comes out perfect and doesn't fall apart.