Old Bay, Butter, & Garlic Flavoured Fish Stew
Makes: 1 bowl of stew. Serving size as shown.
Spicy Old Bay style broth with buttery and perfectly flakey fish that all comes together in just one pot, is the answer to the season’s glum-ings.
INGREDIENTS
GROUP A: BROTH
1 whole clove, ground
Pinch of ground cardamom
Pinch of ground mustard
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
1/8 tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp Alderwood smoked salt
1/8 tsp ground black pepper
1/8 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp red chili powder
1/4 tsp smoked paprika
1 small bay leaf
2 1/4 cups water
1/2 tsp salted butter
1 tbsp liquid chicken stock
2 - 3 drops soy sauce
GROUP B: FISH
100 g Basa fish steak, cut into 1/2 “ sized cubes
1 tsp butter, melted
1/2 tsp dried parsley
1/2 tsp dried oregano
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
Salt and pepper, to taste
GROUP C: GARNISH
Fresh cilantro
Lime wedge
method
Season the fish with the rest of the Group B ingredients and set it aside till it’s time to cook it.
To a deep skillet, saucepan, or cook pot of choice, add all Group A ingredients. Set heat to medium low while you mix and dissolve the ground spices into the broth. Then turn up the heat to high, and while stirring occasionally, let the broth come to a rolling boil. Boil for 5 - 6 minutes, then turn down the heat to medium-high, cover the cook pot with a vented lid, and let the broth continue to simmer for another 10 - 12 minutes. Keep stirring while it simmers, and keep tasting it to make sure the spices are getting absorbed and cooked; the last thing you want is a broth that tastes like water and raw spices.
Add the marinated fish to the simmering broth, toss around to coat the pieces in broth all over, cover the pot again, and let the fish steam and cook for 3 minutes, till you can break it apart with No effort with just a butter knife - the fish should be flakey and soft. Add more cooking time if needed, till it reaches this stage. Once cooked to satisfaction, turn off the heat, transfer the stew to a bowl, spritz a lime wedge all over and garnish with cilantro. Serve with crispy flatbread or fluffy white rice and enjoy warm!
