Lorraine Williamson
Fresh fish from the local market, a bottle of Mercadona´s Hacendado fumet, and a few Mercadona staples. All this turns into a s weeknight cooking done the Spanish way.
It started with my weekly trip to the local market. Two types of fresh fish, no particular plan, and a question of what to do with them. Salmon and white fish fillets, bought that morning, became the basis for a stew that ended up tasting far more considered than the effort it took to make.
Mercadona´s Hacendado fumet de pescado, sold in those distinctive glass bottles, does a lot of the work here. It is a concentrated fish stock with a real depth to it, and it turns what might otherwise be a thin broth into something that tastes like it has been simmering for hours. If you cannot find the fumet, the caldo de pescado in cartons works too, though the result will be a little lighter.
The base is straightforward. Onion softened in extra virgin olive oil, garlic added once the onion has had time to go translucent, then a good spoonful of pimentón de la Vera dulce, the sweet smoked paprika from Extremadura that gives Spanish stews their colour and warmth. After that comes tomate frito, the cooked tomato sauce sold in jars across Spain, along with a fresh tomato roughly chopped. I use the one with the oil added (receta artisana). The two together give both texture and a rounded, slightly sweet flavour.
A “splash” of white wine goes in next, left to bubble and reduce for a couple of minutes before the fumet is poured in. I think I added a little more than a splash, and then topped up my glass while I was cooking. Then the potatoes. I was trying to use up items that we had in the cupboard, so we used a jar of pre-cooked baby potatoes from Mercadona, halved so they absorb the broth. Because they are already cooked, they only need five or ten minutes in the liquid before the fish goes in.
About the fish
The fish came from a local market, not a supermarket, and it showed. The salmon was a deep orange, the white fish firm and fresh. Both were cut into generous chunks and laid on top of the simmering broth with the lid put on, and the heat turned right down. Eight to ten minutes is enough. The steam does the cooking, and the fish stays tender rather than falling apart.
A squeeze of lemon at the end lifts everything, and fresh coriander scattered over the top gives it a brightness that parsley would not quite manage in the same way. The result is somewhere between a stew and a soup. It is brothy enough to eat with crusty bread, which is probably the right way to serve it.
A few notes for making this at home
Do not stir once the fish is in. Let it sit on top of the broth and steam through with the lid on. Stirring breaks it up, and you lose the texture. Also, if you are using jar potatoes as we did, add them late and do not cook them for too long. They are already soft and will disintegrate if they spend too much time in the heat.
The stew is forgiving in terms of quantities. More fish, fewer potatoes, a different white fish entirely. It works with most firm-fleshed fish, and it would be good with a few prawns added at the very end if you wanted to push it further.
Spanish fish stew – Serves 4, ready in about 35 minutes
Ingredients: 300g fresh salmon fillet cut into chunks, 300g fresh white fish fillet cut into chunks, 1 medium onion finely diced, 4 garlic cloves roughly chopped, 1½ tsp pimentón de la Vera dulce, 3–4 tbsp tomate frito, 1 fresh tomato chopped, 100ml white wine, 750ml Hacendado fumet de pescado, 400g jar baby potatoes drained and halved, juice of half a lemon, fresh coriander or parsley to finish, olive oil, salt and pepper.
Method: Warm a generous pour of olive oil in a wide pan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook for around ten minutes until soft. Add the garlic and pimentón, stir for a minute, then add the tomate frito and fresh tomato and cook for two to three minutes. Pour in the white wine and let it reduce for a couple of minutes. Add the fumet and potatoes, bring to a gentle simmer and cook for five minutes. Lay the fish on top, put the lid on and turn the heat to low. Cook for eight to ten minutes without stirring. Squeeze over the lemon, scatter with coriander or parsley and serve in deep bowls with bread.
You don´t need to be too precise with the measurements. Just go for it and enjoy!
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