Salat Tangiers (Tangiers Salad) is a traditional Italian recipe (from Sicily) for a traditional dish of a fish and seafood stew served with home-made couscous. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic Italian version of: Couscous alla Trapanese.
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Couscous is believed to have been spread among the inhabitants of the Iberian Peninsula by the Berber dynasties of the 13th century, though it is no longer found in traditional Spanish or Portuguese cuisine. In modern-day Trapani, Sicily, the dish is still made to the medieval recipe of Andalusian author Ibn Razin al-Tujibi.
Ingredients:
For the Couscous:
300g semolina flour
250ml water
Salt
Olive oil
For the Seafood:
1 white onion
4 tbsp whole black peppercorns
1 tbsp ground cinnamon
5 bay leaves
1 sea bass fillet
1 whole red snapper, cleaned, scaled and filleted (reserve the head, spice and tail)
225 grams calamari, cleaned and sliced
10 to 12 fresh mussels
10 to 12 fresh clams
8 fresh king prawns, peeled (reserve the skins)
1 celery stick, halved
1 large carrot, halved
1 ripe tomato, halved
6 to 8 sprigs of fresh parsley
Olive oil
3 garlic cloves, peeled
350ml dry white wine
30g almonds
2 tbsp tomato purée
Salt, to taste
Method:
Begin by preparing the couscous: Place the semolina flour in a large mixing bowl — the bigger the better. Dissolve 1 tsp salt in 250ml of water. Using a spoon, or even just your fingers, sprinkle a few drops of water over the flour.
Begin rubbing the flour in a circular motion, sweeping and wiping it around the bowl surface. As the water incorporates into the flour, it will eventually aggregate and ball up into couscous. Once the water you have added seems evenly incorporated into the flour, add a few drops more. It’s very easy to add too much water so be patient and add just a little bit at a time. Keep going until you have a bowl of tiny couscous balls.
When you have finished, drizzle a little olive oil over the couscous, season to taste with salt and mix thoroughly to combine. Spread the couscous over a clean towel while you prepare the remainder of the dish. Finely dice ¼ of a white onion and mix in with the couscous.
Fill the base of a couscousier or steamer pot with a 5cm depth of water. Add the black peppercorns, 3 bay leaves, and the cinnamon. Bring to a boil, then add the steamer top. Spread the couscous evenly in the steamer. Add 2 bay leaves and poke 3 to 4 holes into the couscous to allow steam through.
Cover the steamer with a clean cloth followed by the lid (to help keep the steam contained), being sure not the let the cloth edges fall onto your heat source The couscous will need to steam for 2 hours. In the meantime, prepare the seafood stew.
In a medium-sized pan, add the celery, carrot, tomato, ½ an onion, 3 to 4 sprigs of parsley, the head and spine of the red snapper, and the prawn skins. Fill the pot with enough water to cover the ingredients, then bring to a simmer. It should cook for about 30 minutes, during which time the mussels and clams can be cooked.
To prepare the shellfish, add 2 tbsp olive oil and one peeled garlic clove to a medium saucepan. Set over medium heat and when the oil is hot add the mussels and 125ml white wine. Bring to a simmer and cover the pan. Cook until the mussels open their shells (about 5 minutes) at this point discard any mussels that have not opened. Remove the mussels and set aside then filter the pan juices through a fine muslin and add into the stock.
Repeat this process with the clams. It's best to prepare them separately as they have a different cook time to the mussels.
Add the the almonds and one clove of peeled garlic to a blender along with the remaining ¼ white onion, 3 to 4 sprigs of parsley, and 3 tbsp olive oil. Process into a smooth purée.
Add this purée, 3 tbsp of olive oil, and 125ml of dry white wine to a medium-sized pan. Bring to a simmer then add the tomato purée and stir to combine.
Filter it through a fine-meshed sieve then add the fish stock into the pan along with this purée. Cut the sea bass and snapper fillets into thirds and add these as well, along with the calamari and a generous sprinkle of salt. Bring to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes. Season to taste with salt, then turn off the heat and keep covered.
When the couscous has finished steaming, remove the bayleaves and pour into a large bowl. Filtering through a mesh strainer, add just enough stock from the soup to saturate and dampen the couscous. Mix well, then cover with a clean towel and a blanket to preserve the heat. Set aside to steam for 3 hours.
When serving time is nearing, warm the stew again on the stovetop and cook the prawns. Bring 2 tbsp of olive oil up to medium temperature in a frying pan. Add the prawns and fry until bright red on both sides. Remove with tongs and set aside.
To serve Trapani-style: serve the couscous, the fish from the soup (along with the shellfish and shrimp), and the broth separately. The three elements can then be eaten and mixed according to the diner’s preference.
To serve Enna-style, serve the couscous drizzled with stock and topped with the seafood.
