Recipe below: Shrimp Tagine with Tomato, Ginger, and Fennel
Mums are out, the ugliest flower in the Northeast (and they smell bad, too). They are the first sign that summer is closing down. (Pumpkins are next.)
But the weather is still fine, 83 today and not too humid. You can see the first signs of leaves going burnt orange, and some of my herbs are getting crispy around the edges, the basil just developing that late season cat-piss smell that makes me nervous. My fennel has gone to seed, but that’s a good sign. I like to dry the seeds and use them fresh-dried. Much better than most of the dead stuff you get at a supermarket. The aroma of my newly plucked seeds brings back a memory of a shrimp-and-fennel tagine recipe I found many years ago in Flavors of Morocco, by Ghillie Basan. I’ve made her version several times, and it’s lovely, incorporating many of my own favorite flavors like saffron, fennel, and smoked paprika. This time around I’ve, of course, fiddled with it. Not too much. Just enough to own it.
This dish is a cross between a Moroccan tagine and what I’d call an Andalusian cazuela de pescado. From Tarifa, in Southern Spain, Tangier is just a one-hour ferry ride across the water, as I learned a few years back when I took that route myself. Spanish culture infiltrated Tangier during an occupation that lasted from the nineteenth century to the mid-twentieth. Many people in Tangier speak Spanish, and I saw churros being sold on the streets. Bisteeya, the Moroccan pastry filled with pigeon, almond, and warm spice, has Andalusian origins. So a dish like this tagine is a natural.
I’ve removed the cilantro from the original recipe, because I find cilantro revolting. I love Moroccan food, but not its use of cilantro. They put it in almost everything. I’ve gotten around it by substituting mint or basil, or parsley, or a mix of oregano and parsley, depending on the recipe. Here I’ve replaced it with Thai basil, which is still growing well on my deck and hasn’t gone to cat piss like the Genoa variety.
The end of summer is a bittersweet time for most cooks. I try not to let it slip through my fingers. Here in New York we’ll have tomatoes and fresh fennel and garlic until probably early October, and many of my herbs will hold on until it gets solidly cold. They’re mostly rugged Mediterranean creatures.
Shrimp Tagine with Tomato, Ginger, and Fennel
3 fennel bulbs, trimmed and thickly sliced lengthwise
Extra-virgin olive oil
Salt
1 medium sweet onion, diced
2 summer garlic cloves, sliced
1 1-inch chunk fresh ginger, minced
1 teaspoon ground fennel seed
½ teaspoon sweet pimentón de La Vera (sweet smoked Spanish paprika)
3 large summer tomatoes, peeled, chopped, and lightly drained (hold on to the drained water)
½ teaspoon dried saffron threads, ground to a powder and dissolved in a few tablespoons of warm water
1 tablespoon honey
12 extra-large shell-on shrimp, three per serving (if you can find head on, that’s best, and it’s what I used)
A splash of dry sherry
15 Thai basil leaves, lightly chopped
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
Place the fennel slices on a lightly oiled baking dish or sheet pan. Sprinkle on a little water, drizzle with olive oil, and season with salt. Cover with aluminum foil, and roast until tender, about 30 minutes. Give one slice a poke with a sharp knife to make sure they’re done. Take them from the oven and pull off the aluminum foil.
Get out a large sauté pan, and drizzle in some olive oil. Turn the heat to medium, and add the onion. Let it soften for a minute or so. Add the garlic, ginger, fennel seed, and pimentón de La Vera. Add the fennel slices, and sauté for everything a minute or so, turning the fennel slices over once to coat them with seasoning. Add the tomatoes, the saffron water, and the honey, season with salt, and simmer at a low bubble for about 5 minutes.
Get out another large sauté pan, and set it over high heat. Season the shrimp with a little salt. Drizzle some olive oil into the pan, and add the shrimp, searing them quickly on one side, about 2 minutes. Turn them over with tongs, and sear the other side for another minute or so. Add the splash of sherry, and let it bubble away. Lift the shrimp into the fennel tomato sauce, along with any pan juices. Give everything a gentle stir, and warm it through on low heat for about another minute. If it seems too tight, add a little of the tomato water. Add the Thai basil (or regular basil, if you prefer). Serve hot.
I must add that I find it extremely important to support food distribution in Gaza any way I can right now. World Central Kitchen is trying hard to increase its food production to reach as many people as possible. If you’d like to help them out, either as a volunteer or with financial support, here is their link.
Erica De Mane 
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