Spanish cuisine · Soups & Stews

Extremaduran Fish Stew

Fish stew from Extremadura whose broth is thickened with a paste of toasted almonds, bread and garlic.

Ingredients · for 4 servings

• 800 g firm white fish fillet
• 800 g waxy potatoes
• 1 red bell pepper
• 1 onion
• 5 cloves garlic
• 50 g almonds (blanched)
• 1 slice white bread
• 1 tsp paprika (sweet)
• 150 ml white wine
• 1 bay leaf
• 5 tbsp olive oil
• Salt, pepper

Instructions

1. Cut the fish into 4 cm pieces, salt and chill; peel the potatoes and break into 3 cm thick chunks, dice the onion and pepper.
2. Heat 3 tbsp olive oil in a wide pot, toast the almonds, the bread slice and two whole cloves of garlic in it for 3 min until golden brown, then remove everything.
3. Chop the remaining garlic and sauté with the onion and pepper in the same pot for 8 min until soft, then toast the paprika in for 30 sec and deglaze with the white wine.
4. Add the potatoes and bay leaf, cover just barely with water and simmer covered for 20 min until the potatoes are almost done.
5. Pound the almonds, bread and roasted garlic in a mortar with a little cooking liquid into a paste (majado), stir in and simmer for 5 min until the broth clearly thickens.
6. Lay in the fish pieces, remove the pot from the heat and let sit covered for 6–8 min in the residual heat until the fish turns opaque; drizzle with the remaining olive oil and serve.