Fish balls in red sauce with meltingly tender potatoes
Tender mullet fish balls with parsley, coriander and cumin, browned in oil then finished in a red sauce with garlic, caraway and harissa, served with potatoes and bread for mopping up.
Ingredients for two
| 350 g | Fish minced by the fishmonger (mullet or tilapia, for fish balls) Fresh mullet or tilapia bought that day, skinned, boned and fairly coarsely minced by the fishmonger |
| 55 g | Eggs 1 medium egg |
| 25 g | Breadcrumbs 2 heaped tbsp |
| 40 g | Yellow onions 1/4 onion, grated and squeezed dry, for the mixture |
| 15 g | Flat-leaf parsley A small handful of leaves |
| 10 g | Fresh coriander A few sprigs, leaves finely chopped |
| 25 g | Garlic 5 cloves: 1 for the mixture, 4 for the sauce |
| 4 g | Ground cumin 2 level tsp: 1 for the mixture, 1 for the sauce |
| 1 g | Ground black pepper 1/2 level tsp, for the mixture |
| 30 g | Harissa 1 tsp (5 g) for the mixture, 1 heaped tbsp (25 g) for the sauce; use 15 g in the sauce for milder heat |
| 50 g | Extra virgin olive oil 5 tbsp |
| 60 g | Double-concentrated tomato purée 3 tbsp |
| 8 g | Sweet paprika 1 tbsp |
| 3 g | Ground caraway 1 tsp |
| 450 g | Potatoes 3 medium potatoes, cut into thick, 1.5 cm rounds |
| 400 g | Water Hot |
| 8 g | Fine salt 3 g for the mixture, 5 g (1 tsp) for the sauce |
| 60 g | Lemon 1/2 lemon, yielding about 25 g juice |
| 160 g | Bread (baguette or country loaf) For mopping up the sauce |
Method
- Finely grate the onion and squeeze it in your hand to remove the juice. Finely chop the parsley and coriander. Peel the garlic, remove any green shoots and crush in a garlic press: 5 g for the fish mixture, 20 g for the sauce. Beat the egg in a bowl, then gently mix the minced fish with the egg, breadcrumbs, squeezed onion, herbs, 5 g garlic, 1 tsp cumin, pepper, 1 tsp harissa and the 3 g salt for the mixture, without kneading. Refrigerate for 10 minutes: the breadcrumbs absorb moisture and the mixture holds its shape on a spoon.
- Meanwhile, peel the potatoes and cut into thick, 1.5 cm rounds. With damp hands, shape 10 balls weighing about 50 g each, the size of a large walnut (4.5 cm), without compressing them, and place on a plate.
- Heat the olive oil in a 26 cm sauté pan with a lid over a medium-high heat. Brown the fish balls for 2 minutes on each side in a single layer, leaving them untouched until they release from the pan by themselves: the crust should be pale golden and the centres still raw. Set aside on the plate.
- Reduce the heat to medium, add the 20 g garlic to the same oil and stir for 1 minute until pale golden, without browning. Add the tomato purée, paprika, caraway, remaining cumin and the harissa for the sauce; stir for 1–2 minutes until the paste darkens, turns glossy and smells fragrant.
- Pour in the hot water, add the 5 g salt for the sauce and arrange the potato slices in a single layer. Bring to a simmer, cover three-quarters of the pan and cook over a medium-low heat for 10 minutes: a knife tip should meet definite resistance in the potatoes and the dark red sauce should have reduced by a third.
- Move the potatoes aside to fit the browned fish balls in one layer, spoon sauce over them, cover and poach over a low heat for 10–12 minutes. Gently shake the pan halfway through, without stirring with a spoon. Cut one fish ball in half: the flesh should be white, opaque and pearly all the way through, firm to the touch but springy; the potatoes should be meltingly tender and intact.
- Turn off the heat, pour over the lemon juice and leave to rest, covered, for 3 minutes: the sauce coats a spoon and the oil rises to the surface. Serve in shallow bowls, with 5 fish balls per person and the potatoes, generously coated in sauce, with bread for mopping up.
Fish-free
- Fish minced by the fishmonger (mullet or tilapia, for fish balls) → Minced chicken, freshly minced by the butcher 350 g (A mixture of breast and thigh, minced by the kosher butcher)
- For one fish plate and one fish-free plate, use 175 g minced fish and 175 g minced chicken. In step 1, prepare the base mixture (beaten egg, breadcrumbs, squeezed onion, herbs, 5 g garlic, cumin, pepper, harissa and 3 g salt), divide between two clean bowls, then add the fish to one and the chicken to the other. Wash your hands between shaping the two batches of 5 balls.
- Skip step 3 in the sauté pan: fish must not touch the oil used for a sauce that will also be served with chicken. Divide the oil: 30 g (3 tbsp) for the sauce, 20 g (2 tbsp) for browning the fish. Follow steps 4 and 5 in the clean sauté pan with the 30 g oil (golden garlic, tomato purée fried with the spices, then water, salt and potatoes cooked for 10 minutes).
- While the potatoes cook, heat the remaining 20 g oil over a medium-high heat in a small 20 cm frying pan. Brown the 5 fish balls for 2 minutes on each side, leaving them untouched until they release from the pan by themselves, then set aside on a plate. This pan is used only for fish.
- At the end of step 5, after checking the potatoes and while the sauce has had no contact with fish, transfer half the sauce and potatoes to an 18–20 cm saucepan with a lid: fish and meat must never cook in the same sauce. Add the raw chicken balls and poach over a low heat, covered, for 15 minutes, turning halfway through. After 4 minutes, put the browned fish balls in the sauté pan and poach for 10–12 minutes as in step 6, so both dishes finish together. The chicken is ready when a ball cut in half has no trace of pink in the centre (74°C if using a thermometer).
- Finish both pans in the same way: lemon juice, a 3-minute rest with the lids on, and bread for mopping up.
The recipe specifies 350 g chicken for two chicken plates; for one fish plate and one fish-free plate, use 175 g of each mince. Make one base mixture and one sauce, using clean oil and dividing the sauce before it comes into contact with fish. Brown the fish separately in its own pan; poach the chicken from raw, as in hraimi. Chicken balls in red sauce are a Tunisian classic in their own right.
Lighter version
- Extra virgin olive oil : 35 g
- Bread (baguette or country loaf) : 80 g
In step 3, brown the fish balls in just 15 g oil (1 1/2 tbsp), preferably in a well-heated non-stick sauté pan, still leaving them untouched until they release by themselves. In step 4, add the remaining 20 g oil (2 tbsp) before the garlic and make the sauce as directed.
Keep the browning step, which gives the fish balls their structure and flavour: 35 g oil instead of 50 g and half the bread, with the same sauce and cooking times.
On your plate
Recipe
991 kcal · protein 55 g · carbs 98 g · fat 38 g
Quantities per person
- 175 g Fish minced by the fishmonger (mullet or tilapia, for fish balls)
- 27.5 g Eggs
- 12.5 g Breadcrumbs
- 20 g Yellow onions
- 7.5 g Flat-leaf parsley
- 5 g Fresh coriander
- 12.5 g Garlic
- 2 g Ground cumin
- 0.5 g Ground black pepper
- 15 g Harissa
- 25 g Extra virgin olive oil
- 30 g Double-concentrated tomato purée
- 4 g Sweet paprika
- 1.5 g Ground caraway
- 225 g Potatoes
- 200 g Water
- 4 g Fine salt
- 30 g Lemon
- 80 g Bread (baguette or country loaf)
Fish-free version
991 kcal · protein 55 g · carbs 98 g · fat 38 g
Quantities per person
- 27.5 g Eggs
- 12.5 g Breadcrumbs
- 20 g Yellow onions
- 7.5 g Flat-leaf parsley
- 5 g Fresh coriander
- 12.5 g Garlic
- 2 g Ground cumin
- 0.5 g Ground black pepper
- 15 g Harissa
- 25 g Extra virgin olive oil
- 30 g Double-concentrated tomato purée
- 4 g Sweet paprika
- 1.5 g Ground caraway
- 225 g Potatoes
- 200 g Water
- 4 g Fine salt
- 30 g Lemon
- 80 g Bread (baguette or country loaf)
- 175 g Minced chicken, freshly minced by the butcher
Cooking tips
Ask for fairly coarsely minced fish: too fine a paste makes the fish balls rubbery. Keep the mixture cold and handle it lightly; for an even softer texture, replace the breadcrumbs with 40 g bread crumb soaked in water and squeezed thoroughly dry. If the sauce reduces too quickly in step 5, add 50 g hot water. The sauce and potatoes can be made a day ahead; reheat the poached fish balls gently, covered, for 5 minutes. They are even better served warm on Saturday lunchtime.
Fish balls from Tunisian Jewish cooking: a parsley, coriander and cumin mixture, browned then finished in a red sauce with caraway and harissa.
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