Quick fish stew

Special equipment • blender

SERVES 4

Ingredients:

1 tbsp olive oil

1 onion, finely chopped

3 garlic cloves, finely chopped

5 celery ribs, chopped

2 carrots, chopped

sprig of fresh thyme, leaves only

spoonful of tomato purée

½ cup dry white wine

4 ripe tomatoes, peeled

3¾ cups light fish stock or bottled clam juice mixed with water

2 haddock fillets, about 12oz (350g) each, cut into chunks

8oz (225g) raw shrimp, peeled and deveined

handful of flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped

sea salt

Method:

1 Heat the oil in a saucepan over low heat and add the onion, garlic, celery, and carrots, along with some salt and the thyme. Cook gently, stirring occasionally, for about 10 minutes.

2 Stir in the tomato purée, increase the heat to high, and add the wine. Let it bubble for a couple of minutes, then add the tomatoes (squashing them with a fork) and a little of the stock, and cook a few minutes longer. Pour in almost all of the remaining stock, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat slightly, and simmer for 10 minutes. At this point, you can puree the sauce with a hand-held blender until smooth, or leave it as is. Add the remaining stock if the mixture is too thick.

3 Add the fish and shrimp, cover the pan, and cook for 5–10 minutes until the fish is cooked through. Serve hot with fresh crusty bread.

Quick fish stew