I promise I can do things other than bake. I’ve noticed, however, that things are getting dessert-heavy up in here. When I get stressed, I bake things with reckless abandon but I often neglect to make the rest of the meal. Not this time!
We’ve been having a serious case of stormy weather down here. I love little more than sitting on a porch with a cold drink and a light meal listening to the thunder and the rain. I knew another storm was a’brewin’, so I made a spontaneous trip to Fresh Market (always perilous for the pocketbook) sans recipe and grabbed what I thought would make a nice light fish stew de style méditerranéen. Here’s what I came up with, and I’m pretty darned pleased with the results. Simple, hot yet refreshing, and pleasantly filling.
Ingredients (serves 4-6)
- 1 1/2 lbs firm white fish, cut into 2-3″ pieces (I used cod, which was absolutely perfect and conveniently the cheapest option available)
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 fennel bulb, sliced, plus a good handful of the fronds, chopped
- 2 shallots, chopped
- 2 cloves fresh garlic, minced
- 1/2 cup Vidalia onion, chopped
- 1/2 jalapeño (no seeds), minced
- 1/2 tsp saffron threads
- 2 medium tomatoes, chopped
- 1 cup dry white wine (I used a sauvignon blanc from New Zealand)
- 3 cups fish stock
- 1/2 tsp fennel seeds
- 1/2 tsp dried thyme
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp pepper
- 1 bay leaf
Heat the olive oil in a large pot (I used my enameled cast iron Dutch oven ❤ ) over medium heat. Throw in the fennel bulb and fronds, shallot, garlic, onion, jalapeño, and saffron and stir until the fennel has softened but nothing has started to brown.
*sniff sniff* Mmmm.
Sprinkle your seasonings (fennel seeds, thyme, salt, pepper, bay leaf) over the delightful medley and add the tomatoes, white wine, and stock.
Future fish bath.
Give it a good stir and let it work its magic until the whole thing has taken on the lovely golden color of the saffron and it’s got a healthy simmer going. You don’t want it to start boiling because you’ll break up the fish that way. I cut my fish into chunks the size of a few bites, but you could absolutely make them larger and artfully serve one or two large pieces per bowl, should you wish to get all fancy-schmancy like that.
Stew-sized fish bits.
Gently place your fish into the pot and make sure all of the pieces are fully submerged. Depending on what size you’ve cut them to, they should take anywhere from 5-10 minutes to cook through. I feel like how thoroughly cooked a piece of fish turns out is a personal preference. I don’t know your life. Just poke them until they’re done to your liking.
Therein lies the fish.
Lift out the fish gently with a slotted spoon into your bowl, then top generously with equal portions veg and broth. I made up some garlic toasties to accompany by slicing leftover sourdough into rounds, toasting in a pan with a bit of butter, then rubbing a fresh garlic clove over the crusty surface. Seriously, it’s the best way to do it. Enjoy with a refreshing beer (my choice was Abita’s Lemon Wheat, their newest summer seasonal and brewed with a mind to accompany seafood) while watching the rain fall.
Perfection.
Cooking Up Happy 