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Fish, Maghreb and Middle East

Chraimeh with bread

Chraimeh is a fish dish simmered in a spiced tomato sauce with garlic, cumin, caraway, and chili, originally from Libya and Tunisia. It serves 4, takes 40 minutes, rates as easy, and costs €3.40 per person. The key is letting the sauce thicken before adding the fish, so it cooks gently without falling apart.

I'm making you chraimeh, this Libyan and Tunisian fish simmered in a garlicky tomato sauce with cumin and chili, with bread to scoop it all up.

Chraimeh with bread
Total time
40 min
Difficulty
Easy
Cost per person
€3.40
Calories per person
640 kcalcalculated by Kiloach, your weight coach
Season
Winter, Fall, Summer
The kids
They generally like it

Chraimeh is a tomato sauce with a bit of kick, scented with toasted cumin and caraway, wrapped around firm pieces of cod. The heat comes from harissa, which you can scale up or down for your table, and a squeeze of lemon at the end brightens everything. Country bread is there to mop up every last bit of sauce, which might be half the fun of the dish.

It's a weeknight dinner that breaks away from plain pan seared fish, ready in 40 minutes without much hands on time. It works just as well for a family Sunday lunch as for a casual dinner with guests, since everything simmers in one pan. Kids who like tomato sauce often go for it too, as long as you keep the harissa light at first.

The ingredients

4 people

Fish counter

  • Cod or hake fillets 700 g

Fruits and vegetables

  • Garlic 6 cloves
  • Fresh cilantro 1 bunch

Pantry

  • Crushed tomatoesoften in the pantry 600 g
  • Tomato pasteoften in the pantry 2 tbsp
  • Ground cuminoften in the pantry 2 tsp
  • Ground carawayoften in the pantry 1 tsp
  • Paprikaoften in the pantry 1 tbsp
  • Harissaoften in the pantry 1 tbsp
  • Lemon juiceoften in the pantry 2 tbsp
  • Olive oiloften in the pantry 4 tbsp
  • Saltoften in the pantry 1 pinch

Bakery

  • Country bread 8 slices

Allergens Fish, Gluten

The step by step recipe

  1. Heat the oil with the crushed garlic, paprika, cumin, and caraway over low heat.

    Don't go past a minute, the spices burn fast and turn bitter.

  2. Add the tomato paste, crushed tomatoes, harissa, salt, and a glass of water.

    Adjust the harissa to your taste, start with half a tablespoon.

  3. Let it simmer over medium heat until the sauce thickens. 15 min

    The sauce should coat the back of a spoon, otherwise the fish will drown in it.

  4. Place the fish pieces in the sauce, cover, and let it gently simmer. 10 min

    Don't stir, the fish steams through and stays whole.

  5. Add the lemon juice and chopped cilantro, and serve straight from the pan with the bread.

    A drizzle of raw olive oil at the end softens the sauce.

Our tips to get it right

  • Pick thick cod fillets, they hold up better during cooking and won't break apart in the sauce.
  • Crush the garlic with a knife rather than a press, it infuses the oil without burning as quickly.
  • Taste the sauce before adding the fish, that's your last chance to adjust the salt or the heat.

The variations

  • Swap the cod for hake or sea bream, two firm white fish that hold their shape well.
  • For a vegetarian version, replace the fish with cooked chickpeas added to the sauce at the same step.
  • For kids, leave the harissa out of the sauce and serve it on the side, so everyone can add their own heat.

What to serve it with

  • Country bread or pita
  • Plain couscous
  • Mint tea

Storage

Chraimeh keeps for 2 days in the fridge in a sealed container. The sauce alone freezes well, but the fish loses texture once thawed. Reheat gently in a pan over low heat, without letting it boil.

Questions about this dish

Can you make the sauce ahead of time?

Yes, cook the tomato sauce until it thickens, then keep it in the fridge. On the day, reheat it and add the raw fish so it cooks through in the hot sauce.

What fish works if I don't have cod?

Hake, sea bream, or pollock all work well, as long as the fillets are thick enough. Avoid very thin fish, which tend to fall apart during cooking.

How do I control the heat from the harissa?

Start with half a tablespoon and taste the sauce before adding more. You can also serve extra harissa on the side so everyone can adjust to their own taste.

Why toast the cumin and caraway before grinding them?

Dry toasting the spices for a minute releases their essential oils and deepens their flavor. That's what gives chraimeh its signature taste, sharper than with pre ground spices.

How long does it take to make a chraimeh with bread?

Count 40 min in total, prep and cooking included. The recipe is rated “easy”.

How many calories are in a chraimeh with bread?

About 640 kcal per serving, for a recipe meant for 4 people. Calories are calculated by Kiloach, your weight coach, the app that partners with Mon Chou.

How much does a chraimeh with bread cost?

About €3.40 per serving, or €13.60 for 4 people, based on average supermarket prices.

What allergens does this recipe contain?

This recipe contains fish, gluten. Always check the labels of the products you buy.

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