Fear-free fish stew: A new dinner staple from Nigella Lawson
“I know a lot of people are hesitant about cooking fish, and I do understand why,” said Nigella Lawson in Cook, Eat, Repeat (Ecco). “But this, my friends, is the recipe to allay your anxieties and free you from fear.”
“It’s also very useful when you have to get dinner on the table fast.” For although the sauce takes about an hour to cook—“and for a good half of this time you can be lying languorously on a sofa”—you can make the dish in advance. “Indeed, I think it is better for having time to steep and mellow.” When you’re ready to eat, “you just heat the sauce, adding a quarter cup of water, chop up your fish chunkily, drop it all into the simmering pan, and supper’s pretty much on the table.”
Recipe of the week
Fear-free fish stew
¼ tsp each cinnamon and ground mace ½ tsp each ground ginger, turmeric, hot smoked paprika, and cumin
1 large sweet potato
A small bunch of cilantro
2 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, roughly chopped
1 orange
2 fat cloves of garlic, peeled
1 tsp finely grated fresh ginger
1 (28 oz) can of diced tomatoes
1 tbsp tomato paste 1 tsp flaky sea salt or kosher salt (or ½ tsp
fine sea salt)
1 tsp honey or maple syrup
1¾ lbs skinless firm white fish, in 1 thick piece or thick-cut fillet
Measure all spices into a little bowl, then peel sweet potato, cut into ½-inch dice, and leave to one side. Finely chop tender stalks from cilantro, to create 3 tbsp.
Warm oil in a heavy-based saucepan or Dutch oven. Add onion and cook gently for about 20 minutes until beginning to soften.
Finely grate in orange zest and garlic, add chopped cilantro stalks and grated fresh ginger. Stir everything in over gentle heat, then add spices.
Tip in the diced sweet potato and stir in over medium heat for a minute or so. Add canned tomatoes and 1² ⁄ cups cold water. Spoon in tomato paste and add salt and honey or maple syrup. Halve zested orange and squeeze out 1 tbsp juice. Add that too, giving everything a good stir.
Turn up heat to bring to a boil, then clamp on the lid, turn heat down, and leave to simmer for 40 to 45 minutes until sweet potato is completely soft and sauce has thickened slightly.
Cut fish into large bite-size pieces and add to sauce. Turn heat down and put lid on. Depending on how chunky or how cold the fish is, it’ll need 3 to 5 minutes to cook. Remove pan from heat, remove lid and let stand for 2 minutes.
Chop cilantro leaves and sprinkle over stew. Serves 4.