Libyan Maslouka

👨‍🍳 Method

For the Fried Fish

1. 1
   Pat the fish dry well with paper towels, and sprinkle the salt and black pepper over it.

   Paper towels
2. 2
   Heat the olive oil in a large pan over medium-high heat.

   ⚙ Pan-fryingStoveFrying pan

   💡What you brown (meat, patties, schnitzel) goes into hot oil: in lukewarm oil it soaks it up and comes out greasy. For onion and garlic that you soften, oil heated over medium or low heat is enough; do not wait for it to smoke.
3. 3
   Fry the fish 3–4 minutes per side, until the fish is golden.

   StoveFrying pan
4. 4
   Transfer to paper towels to absorb the excess oil.

   Paper towels

For the Tomato sauce

1. 5
   Heat the olive oil in a wide pot over medium heat.

   ⚙ Pan-fryingStoveWide, shallow pot
2. 6
   Add the onion and fry 5 minutes, stirring now and then, until the onion is soft and translucent and starts to turn golden at the edges. If it browns too fast, lower the heat.

   ⚙ Adding to the hot fat and fryingStove

   💡Add by cooking time: what needs long (onion, carrot, meat) goes in first, and what burns fast (garlic, dry spices) goes in last, only until fragrant.
3. 7
   Add the garlic and fry 1 minute, just until fragrant. Don't let the garlic brown.

   ⚙ Adding to the hot fat and fryingStove

   💡Garlic burns quickly and turns bitter. Add it only after the onion has softened, over medium heat, and add the next ingredient as soon as it smells fragrant.
4. 8
   Add the cumin, paprika, hot paprika and turmeric and stir about a minute, until fragrant.

   Stove
5. 9
   Add the cumin, paprika, hot paprika and turmeric and stir about a minute, until fragrant.

   ⚙ SimmeringStove

   💡A gentle simmer, not a boil: a hard boil dries the food out and clouds it, a slow simmer cooks it evenly.

To assemble

1. 10
   Place the fried fish in the sauce. Cover and cook over medium-low heat 8–10 minutes, until the fish flakes easily.

   StoveLid

   💡Don't overcook: overcooked fish dries out and falls apart in the sauce.
2. 11
   Turn off the heat and sprinkle the parsley over the top.
3. 12
   Serve with couscous.