Serves: 4-6
INGREDIENTS
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 onions, sliced
1 large fennel bulb, sliced, feathery leaves reserved
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 teaspoon ground cumin
2 bay leaves
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1-2 tablespoons Pernod, dry Vermouth, or Pastis
pinch of saffron threads
grated zest of 1⁄2 an orange
few sprigs of fresh thyme
1 x 400 gram tin crushed Italian tomatoes
4 cups fish or vegetable stock
400 grams waxy potatoes, cooked and cut into bite-sized pieces
500 grams firm white fish fillets, thickly sliced
sea salt and freshly ground pepper
To serve
reserved fennel fronds
purchased garlic aioli
METHOD
Heat the olive oil in a large sauté pan. Add the onions, fennel, garlic, cumin and the bay leaves. Season, cover and cook until tender. Stir in the tomato paste, Pernod, saffron, orange zest and the thyme and cook for 3 minutes. Add the tomatoes and stock. Simmer for 20 minutes to infuse the flavours. Add the fish and potatoes and simmer gently until the fish is just cooked. Season if needed.
To serve: Ladle the soup into warm, shallow soup bowls and top with a few of the reserved fennel fronds. Serve with warm crusty bread and a dollop of garlic aioli.
Vegetable Stock: heat a little oil in a large pot and add a chopped onion, leek and carrot, a stick of celery, a tomato, a few mushrooms and 2 cloves of garlic. Toss, cover and sweat the vegetables over a low heat for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally so as not to let them scorch. Add 2 1⁄2 litres of water, 4 peppercorns, a few parsley stalks and a bay leaf. Bring slowly to the boil, skimming as necessary and simmer for 2-3 hours.
Cool and strain, pressing down on the vegetables to extract maximum flavour. Refrigerate for 2-3 days or freeze.
Keep up to date with
dish weekly recipes,
food news, and events.
Related Content
latest issue:
Issue #121
As winter arrives, so does the latest issue of dish! With over 60 recipes this edition features seasonal produce like pumpkin, leeks and silverbeet whipped into delicious dinners. Pasta takes centre-stage in 5 outrageously tasty recipes, then we break out the slow cooker and amp up the comfort with cozy roasts and braises. Winter wouldn’t be the same without a hearty pie or two, and we have a selection – from Beef Cheek Pot Pie to Moroccan Shepherd’s Pie. Food Fast has your speedy weeknight dinners covered then Melie brings the magic with inventive chicken dishes while Olivia’s baking and desserts will brighten the even the coldest days.