Zarzuela de Marisco
Along the same lines as bouillabaisse, but bolder and more colourful, this rustic Catalan fisherman’s stew is traditionally served on Christmas Eve to fortify people through the late night mass.
The more variety of seafood you can fit in, the better. Serve with crusty bread and lots of Cava!
INGREDIENTS (serves 4)
About 2kg of fish and seafood
Mussels or clams
Large prawns, peeled (leave four unpeeled for garnish)
Squid rings
Firm white fish, like monkfish or sea bass
Cooked lobster or langoustines (it’s Christmas, after all)
To save time you could even use a bag of frozen seafood mix meant for paella
> About 3 cups fish stock (packet is fine)
> 2 medium onions, roughly chopped
> 1 large red pepper, chopped (or a jar)
> 4 cloves garlic, crushed
> 400g tin tomatoes
> 1 cup white wine
> 1 pinch of saffron
> 1 bay leaf
> 1 teaspoon of paprika
> half a cup ground almonds
> olive oil
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METHOD – Sauté the onion, pepper and garlic in the olive oil until soft – Add the saffron, bay leaf, almonds, paprika and tomatoes; simmer for 5 minutes or until amalgamated – In another pan, toss the seafood and pieces of fish briefly in the olive oil for 2 minutes – Add the wine to the sauce, then the fish and seafood, and stock to cover – Simmer until the fish and seafood are cooked through – about 5 minutes – Serve with lemon wedges and chopped parsley. |