Healthy Recipes

Healthy Fish Recipes

Here’s a spicy fish stew recipe with an authentic Basque flavor. In the South of France or Northern Spain Merluza would be the choice for preparing healthy recipes for fish, but you can use Cod, White Fish, Haddock, Shellfish or even Ocean Perch can also be tried as a tasty alternative when preparing healthy food recipes for this fish stew.

Healthy Food Recipes

Fish Stew Stock

• 1 cup thinly sliced fennel root
• 1 cup thinly sliced leeks
• 1 cup thinly sliced sweet onions
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, smashed
• 3 tablespoons tomato paste
• 3 cups no salt added chopped tomatoes (Pomi)
• 1-2 quarts fish or chicken stock (or use 1 quart Trader Joe’s low sodium chicken stock)
• 2 cups dry white wine
• 2 bay leaves
• ¼ teaspoon fennel seed
• 4 sprigs fresh thyme (or substitute 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme)
• 6 black peppercorns, whole
• 1/3 teaspoon saffron threads, crumbled
• 3-inch strip of orange peel
• 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper (2 teaspoonfuls if you like it really spicy)

Healthy Fish Recipes

• Three (3) pounds of fresh, firm, white fish cut into 2 inch pieces;
• OR: 2-1/2 pounds firm, white fish: I used grouper, flounder and triggerfish; other possibilities include cod, halibut, monkfish, haddock and catfish;
• OR: 1 pound large shrimp in the shell, heads on if you can get them; and 1 pound mussels, scrubbed;

Cooking Times

1. Heat a large stock pot over a medium low flame.
2. Add the olive oil, and when it is fairly hot, add the fennel, leeks, and onion.
3. Slowly cook for 6 to 7 minutes (or longer), until the vegetables are soft and translucent.
4. Do not let them brown: If they start to change color, lower the heat.
5. Add the tomatoes and cook for 2 minutes more.
6. Add the packaged fish or chicken stock, white wine and all the other stock ingredients.
7. Raise the heat to medium and when the liquid starts to bubble, partly cover the pot with a lid.
8. Lower the heat to maintain a steady simmer and cook for 20 minutes.

What Do You Serve With Fish

A well-chilled bottle of dry white wine and a green salad with a fairly acidic dressing are the only accompaniments you’ll need.