August doesn’t only mean beach time. It’s also when we have enough precious time to catch up with loved ones. And they say a way to a persons heart is through food. So if you want to show your friends and family how much you love them, feed them this simple, healthy and delicious fish stew – known as Suquet de peix in Catalan.
We love the recipes produced by Spanish Sabores so we have borrowed here her Catalan fish stew recipe (thank you Lauren).
And since we love to share the love – if you want the very freshest fish in Barcelona, our tip is to head to La Bouquet market on La Rambla or La Peredeta which you can find in several locations around the city.
“Buen provecho” as we say in Spanish
Your La Pedrera team
Prep time:10 mins
Cook time: 45 mins
Total time: 55 mins
Ingredients
Extra virgin olive oil
6 cloves of garlic, minced
2 tomatoes, peeled and diced
1 teaspoon tomato paste
1 pound waxy potatoes, washed well (peeled if you wish) and cut into ⅓ inch thick slices
½ cup dry white wine or sherry (like fino or manzanilla)
1.5 cups fish stock
A pinch of saffron threads
1 teaspoon sugar
½ pound firm white fish fillets (such as hake, cod, halibut), cut into chunks
8 medium or large raw shrimp (I prefer whole shrimp but peeled will also work)
To Prepare the picada
10 raw almonds
2 large cloves of garlic, peeled
Extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon chopped flatleaf parsley
Instructions
Heat the the olive oil in wide and heavy pan (I used a cast iron pan) over a medium heat.
Add the garlic, tomatoes and tomato paste, and sauté for about 10 minutes, until the sauce is reduced.
Add the potatoes, wine and stock (make sure the potatoes are covered with liquid– add more stock if necessary). Then add the salt, saffron and sugar.
Cover and simmer on a low heat for 20 minutes.
To prepare the picada, coat a small skillet in olive oil and heat to medium high (but not smoking). Add the raw almonds and garlic, and brown on all sides. Remove and dry on paper towels. Once cool, pulse to a crumbly paste in your food processor or in a mortar and pestle. Add a bit of the stew’s liquid if necessary to blend.
Finally, add the fish chunks to the stew and cook for about four minutes (uncovered). Then add the shrimp and cook until just pink. If you plan to keep the stew simmering a bit longer, remove the shrimp so that they don’t overcook and just add back to serve.