Easy and simple wholesome recipe with a traditional Saudi Arabian twist. Today’s recipe is indeed kabsa but with baked fish . so easy to make yet full of deep delicious flavors. Perfect for lent season or for any delicious healthy meal of your liking.
Servings 3
Ingredients
For the kabsa veggies: * see notes
2tbspneutral vegetable oilI use rapeseed oil
1 ½tbspkabsa spice mix
½tbspcurry powder
½tspturmeric powder
½cupmixed nuts or nut of your choicealmonds, cashew, pine nuts
¼cupraisins
2big onionsdiced
2tbspfresh gingershredded
1carrotshredded
1tbsptomato paste
2big tomatoesdiced (or blended)*
1bay leave
1dry lemonloumi optional
1cinnamon stick
2cardamom pods
½cupvegetable brothand more water if needed
Salt to taste
For the fish:
600gof white fish filletI used seabass in this recipe
2tbspKabsa spice mix to season the fish
2tbspneutral vegetable oilI used rapeseed oil
Salt for seasoning
1tbsplemon juice
1tbsppomegranate molasses
Instructions
Start with the fish fillet:
Remove the fish from fridge and tap both sides dry with clean paper towel, sprinkle some salt and kabsa spices and rub on the fish fillet, flip and do the same to the other side.
Warm the oil in skillet on medium-high heat. Carefully lay the fish in the skillet. Cook for 3 minutes than flip and cook for extra 3 minutes on the other side. Remove from the skillet and lay in a baking dish, set aside. Preheat your oven on 180 C° while you prepare the sauce.
For the kabsa veggies: see notes
Preheat oil in skillet on medium-high heat. Add the kabsa spices along with the curry and turmeric powder, cook it for 2 minutes until you can smell the aromas of the spices.
Add the nuts and raisins and stir for 3 minutes until nuts are golden brown. Add the onion and cook through till tender and start to caramelize. Add the ginger and stir for a minute. Add the carrots and mix. Cook for 3 more minutes. Add the tomato paste and mix till all the veggies are coated. Add the diced tomatoes and mix it through. Now add all the remaining aromas (bay leave, cinnamon stick, cardamom pods, loumi). add the broth and mix it all through. Bring to boil, lower the heat and simmer for 12 minutes until the liquid reduce and it is more like a paste not watery sauce. If you feel that it is drying out quickly you can add little bit more water and continue to simmer until you have this thick ketchup sauce kind of texture. Turn of the heat. If you are cooking a big batch you may remove what you need to freeze here. (see notes)
For baking:
Pour the sauce over the cooked fish in the baking dish and spread it until all the fish fillets are covered with the kabsa sauce. Cover with some aluminum foil and bake for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes remove the foil, mix the lemon juice with the pomegranate molasses and drizzle over the fish and bake for an extra 10 minutes.
Remove from oven let it rest for 10 minutes before serving.
Serve with some turmeric basmati rice aside and enjoy!
Notes
About the kabsa veggies: first thing if you are doing these veggies only for this recipe stick to the quantities mentioned but if you are cooking a big batch to freeze like I do make double or triple this batch and store in freezer for later use. For the kabsa veggies also once you are done cooking your fish in this recipe , make sure to cook the veggies in different sillet if you are going to store them for later use. But if you are only cooking small quantities only for this recipe you can proceed and cook the veggies in the same pan you cooked the fish in, it will be more flavorful.
For tomato: you can use fresh diced tomato, or you can also use canned tomtato , chopped or strained.
For storing: I always prefer to enjoy fish recipes fresh after cooking, but if you need to meal prep this recipe you can. I recommend eating it in the next 48 hours maximum. Store in fridge in airtight containers to keep it fresh. And it is very easy to meal prep this recipe fresh also. Just prepare your veggies kabsa stew in advance and store in fridge for 4 days or freezer for 3 months. Whenever you are ready to cook. Just cook your fillet, top it with the veggies sauce and bake!