Region: Italy
Category: Seafood
Season: Any
Difficulty: Medium Difficulty
This is a recipe I make whenever fresh giant prawns are available, which needless to say isn’t often unfortunately. If you can manage to get those giant prawns with their heads still on, this stew will be quite impressive.
Yield: Makes 4 servings
Preparation Time: 1:15 hours
6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, finely chopped
4 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley
3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh basil
1 pound ripe tomatoes, cut in half, seeds squeezed out, and grated against the largest holes of a grater down to the peel
3 cups shrimp broth
1 cup water
Pinch of saffron, crumbled
4 salted anchovy fillets, rinsed
1 dried red chile, crumbled
3/4 pound firm-fleshed white fish such as swordfish or monkfish
4 fresh giant prawns with their heads (about 1 pound), shells removed but heads left on or 1/2 pound defrosted shrimp, shelled
5 fresh sardines or smelts (about 1/2 pound), gutted and cleaned, heads and tails left on
2 small redfish or red snapper (about 1 pound), gutted, scaled, and cleaned, heads and tails left on
12 littleneck or manila clams, washed well
1. In a wide, flame-proof casserole, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat, then cook the onion, garlic, parsley, and basil, until the onion is translucent, stirring frequently so the garlic doesn’t burn, about 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes and olives, reduce the heat to medium, and cook until much of the liquid has evaporated, about 10 minutes. Add the shrimp broth, water, saffron, anchovies, and red chile. Stir and reduce the heat to low and simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. The broth can be left a very low simmer until you are ready to make dinner.
2. Once you are ready to serve, know that all the fish will cook in about 8 minutes. Turn the heat to high and once the broth is boiling furiously add the whole fish chunks and the prawns with the heads but not the defrosted shrimp without heads, if that is what you are using. After 1 minute add the remaining ingredients, including the defrosted shrimp if using, gently pushing the fish down into the broth. Once the clams have opened in 5 to 6 minutes, cook for another 1 to 2 minutes and serve.
Posted: 12/29/2006
