Prawn Tagine with Buttered Couscous - Chef Recipe by David Herbert

Ingredients

2 Tbs olive oil
2 onions, roughly chopped
2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
2 tsp grated ginger
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground turmeric
1/2 tsp dried chilli flakes
1-2 tsp crushed or ground sumac
1 x 400 g tin crushed tomatoes
1/2 tsp granulated sugar
2 bulbs fennel, trimmed and thinly sliced
24 medium raw prawns, peeled and deveined, heads removed
1 Tbs roughly chopped coriander
1 Tbs roughly chopped flat-leaf parsley

Buttered couscous:

1 3/4 cups (350 g) couscous
400 ml boiling stock or water

Method

Heat the oil in a large frying pan over medium heat and cook the onion for
3–4 minutes or until softened.

Add the garlic, ginger, cumin, turmeric, chilli and sumac and cook for a further 2 minutes.

Add the tomatoes, sugar and fennel and cook, stirring occasionally for 10 minutes or until the fennel has softened. The recipe can be made ahead to this stage.

To make the buttered couscous:

Put the couscous in a large heatproof bowl and pour over the boiling stock or water.
Cover with a tea towel or plastic film and leave to soak for 5 minutes.

Uncover the couscous and fluff it up with a fork.

Heat the butter and oil in a microwave or small saucepan over low heat until the butter has melted, then pour over the couscous, stirring to coat the grains. Season to taste with salt.

Meanwhile, add the prawns to the fennel mixture and cook, stirring, for about 5 minutes or until cooked through.

Scatter over the coriander and parsley and serve with the buttered couscous.

Equipment

Measuring cups
Measuring spoons
Frying pan
Large heatproof bowl
Small saucepan

Credits: Recipes from the book David Herbert’s Best Home Cooking by David Herbert with photography by Brent Parker Jones, published by Lantern, RRP $39.99.

Photo Credits: Recipes from the book David Herbert’s Best Home Cooking by David Herbert with photography by Brent Parker Jones, published by Lantern, RRP $39.99.