Aromatic Baked Fillets of Fish with Potatoes
Ingredients
6 medium waxy potatoes
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
4-6 vine-ripened tomatoes
1 red onion, finely sliced
10 strands saffron, steeped in a little boiling water
2 tablespoons currants
½ cup light fish stock
3-4 handfuls spinach, stripped of stalks and coarsely chopped
¼ cup chopped fresh parsley and dill
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1.2kg filleted and boned hapuku, groper or gurnard, cut into 6 portions
Description
A terrific recipe to prepare ahead. You can get it to the stage where you bake it in the oven. Use thick fillets of my favourite fish, hapuku (or groper as it is called in the south), and bake them on a bed of sliced potatoes, topped with tomatoes, currants, saffron and spinach.
Method
Peel the potatoes and simmer in salted boiling water until just tender. Drain them well and, when cool enough, slice thickly. Toss in two tablespoons of the olive oil and layer the potatoes in a porcelain or heavy cast-iron baking dish.
Prepare the tomato mixture. Blanch the tomatoes in boiling water and place immediately in ice-cold water. This will make the skins easy to peel off. Squeeze the seeds out, then chop the tomatoes coarsely and set aside.
Preheat the oven to 180C. In a heavy frying pan, heat the rest of the olive oil and cook the onion slices until they turn translucent. Add the saffron (including the liquid) and currants and stir gently. Toss in the tomatoes, then the stock, and bring this mixture to a simmer. Cook, covered, for about 15minutes, then add the spinach and the chopped herbs. Cook a further five minutes, then season well and allow to cool slightly.
Place the fish portions on top of the prepared potatoes and spoon the tomato and spinach mixture over the fish.
Bake for 20 minutes until the fish is cooked through. Serve at once.
Categories
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