Skillet Chraime with Tilapia, Red Peppers and Whole Garlic Cloves with homemade tomato paste

👨‍🍳 Method

For the homemade tomato paste ✓ Homemade · or skip – back to store-bought

1. 1
   Wash the tomatoes, remove the cores and quarter each tomato.

   KnifeCutting board
2. 2
   Put the tomatoes, the salt and half of the olive oil in a wide pot, cover and cook over medium heat about 20 minutes, until the tomatoes soften and release their liquid.

   StoveWide, shallow pot
3. 3
   Pass the tomatoes and their liquid through a food mill or sieve and return the purée to the pot: the skins and seeds stay behind.

   Food millorFine sieve
4. 4
   Cook uncovered about an hour at a lively simmer, stirring now and then, until the purée reduces by half.

   StoveWooden spoon

   💡The paste burns easily as it dries: stir and scrape the bottom and edges, and once it is thick, don't walk away.
5. 5
   Preheat the oven to 110°C (230°F).

   Oven

   💡Put things in the oven only once it's reached temperature, after the heating light has gone off: an oven that hasn't reached temperature changes baking times, and the bake burns outside or stays underbaked.
6. 6
   Grease a wide baking dish with the rest of the olive oil and pour in the purée in a thin layer. Dry in the oven about 3 hours, stirring and scraping the edges every 30 minutes, until the paste is thick, sticky and brick red.

   OvenBaking sheetSilicone spatula
7. 7
   Let the paste cool.

   Jar

For the Tomato sauce

1. 8
   In a bowl, mix the tomatoes, olive oil, garlic, hot paprika, paprika and cumin with half the salt.

   StoveFrying pan
2. 9
   Add the red pepper and fry 6 minutes, until the pepper softens.

   Stove

   💡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. 10
   Take the pan off the heat for a moment, add the paprika, hot paprika and cumin and stir 30 seconds in the hot oil, so the spices don't burn.
4. 11
   Add the tomato paste, cumin, paprika and hot paprika and stir about a minute, until fragrant.

   Stove

   💡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. 12
   Season the fish pieces with the rest of the salt and a little Lemon juice.
2. 13
   Place the fish pieces in the sauce, skin side down, and spoon some of the sauce over it. 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.
3. 14
   Turn off the heat, lay the lemon slices on the fish and sprinkle the parsley over the top.
4. 15
   Serve straight from the pan, with challah.