Neil Perry's seafood cous cous

Name: Neil Perry's seafood cous cous
Cook time: 1 h
Yield: Four
Cuisine: Middle Eastern
Ingredients: 400g skinless blue-eye fillets, cut into 2cm cubes; 12 large green king prawns, peeled, deveined, heads and shells reserved for stock; 24 mussels (600g); 24 clams (400g); freshly ground black pepper; ½ cup mint leaves harissa (optional)

Neil Perry

September 9, 2020

Time:30 mins - 1 hourServes:Four

Any seafood can be used in this dish, and you can replace the cous cous with rice or small pasta like orzo, ditalini or fregola if you prefer. The seawater from mussels and clams is important to the flavour, so if they aren't used, add salt to taste. Accompany it all with a green salad, a glass of white and, if you like it a bit hotter, a dollop of harissa.

Ingredients

400g skinless blue-eye fillets, cut into 2cm cubes
12 large green king prawns, peeled, deveined, heads and shells reserved for stock
24 mussels (600g)
24 clams (400g)
freshly ground black pepper
½ cup mint leaves harissa (optional)

For the fish stock

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
½ white onion, finely chopped
1 celery stalk, finely chopped
1kg mixed fish heads and bones, and prawn heads and shells
2 garlic cloves, peeled and lightly crushed
4 makrut lime leaves, crushed by hand
2 tomatoes, roughly chopped
2 lemongrass stalks, smashed, cut into 4 pieces
1 tsp of chilli flakes
4 tbsp white wine
1 tbsp tomato paste
1 litre tepid water

For the cous cous

1 cup cous cous
1 small garlic clove, peeled and finely grated
5 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
pinch ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground cumin
½ cup chopped coriander leaves

Method

1. Make the fish stock first. Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat and fry the onion and celery until softened (about 5 minutes). Increase heat to high, add the fish heads, bones, prawn heads and shells, garlic, lime leaves, tomato, lemongrass and chilli, stir thoroughly. Add the wine and reduce until it has nearly all evaporated (4-5 minutes). Stir in the tomato paste and water, bring to a low boil, then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer gently for 30 minutes.
2. Strain the stock through a fine sieve. Reserve about 1 cup to cook the cous cous and 1½ cups for cooking the seafood. Freeze the remainder.
3. Place the mussels and clams in a pot with a tight-fitting lid with about ½ cup of fish stock, cook over high heat, covered, until they open (2-3 minutes), remove with a slotted spoon, add another cup of stock and reduce by half (about 8-10 minutes). Reduce heat to medium, add the blue-eye and prawns and cook gently until just cooked through (2-3 minutes). Return the mussels and clams to the pot, fold through and check the seasoning: the juice from the molluscs should have made it salty enough. If not, add a little salt.
4. To prepare the cous cous, heat the amount of stock that the packet prescribes for a cup of cous cous (usually 1 cup), add everything to a bowl except the coriander, pour the heated stock over the top and allow it to soak in (about 10 minutes). Once the stock is absorbed, use a fork to fluff up the cous cous, add the coriander and fold through.
5. Spoon the couscous on the side of 4 bowls, add seafood and sauce to each bowl, scatter with mint and give a good grind of pepper. Serve with some harissa on the side, if desired.