Fish stew with garlic saffron and chilli

Often described as the ‘chef’s chef’, Shaun Hill was born in Primrose Hill and is co-owner and chef of Glasshouse Brassiere. He has won two Michelin stars.

"This dish is a regular vehicle for tidying the remains of whatever fish was on Saturday’s menu. It is as time sensitive as any soufflé but can be put together fairly swiftly from the sort of things that are always in my kitchen. You can use small scraps from the fish counter or whatever you have in the freezer. The fish mentioned here is just a guideline.

This stew is meant to be warm and spicy rather than vindaloo hot. The method is based on bourride in that it is thickened with garlic mayonnaise but the result is sharper and more citric.

The fish used can of course vary according to what suits and is available. I tend to boil scraped new potatoes in the liquor and serve these in the stew. No vegetables though, just a salad with the cheese course that always follows.

Serves four.

Download Shaun Hill’s Fish stew recipe - PDF (241k)

Ingredients

• 200g haddock fillet

• 150g salmon fillet

• 50g cooked prawns or shrimps

• Two shallots – peeled and chopped

• One tablespoon chopped celery

• One clove garlic

• Quarter average sized red pepper

• 5g saffron threads

• One birdseye chilli - chopped

• Grated zest of half an orange

• 500ml chicken stock or water

For the garlic mayonnaise

• One clove garlic – peeled and chopped

• Two egg yolks

• One tablespoon Dijon mustard

• Salt and pepper

• 50ml sunflower oil

• 50ml olive oil

• One tablespoon lemon juice

Method

First make the garlic mayonnaise in the usual way by whisking in the oils to the lemon, mustard, egg yolks and garlic.

Sweat the shallots, pepper and celery in a tablespoon of sunflower oil. Add the saffron, chilli and orange then the stock. Bring to the boil and simmer for a few moments. Add the fish in the order in which it takes to cook – in this case the halibut followed by the red mullet and then at the last moment the scallop and shrimp.

Take the pan from direct heat and drain all the liquid into a blender along with the bits and pieces of vegetable and orange. Liquidise along with the mayonnaise – add the mayonnaise a spoonful at a time and stop when the soup begins to thicken pour the liquor back onto the fish and warm through before serving.

Serve with warm crusty bread."