Easy fish stew and memories brought by food

Food brings a lot of memories to most people I am sure and I am no exception: certain dishes remind me of certain people.

I think of my mom whenever I eat or cook fish, for when I was a little girl she would cook it once a week, rain or shine, and would tell me every single time how good it was for the brain. :)

Mom never cooked fish the way I bring you here today, but I am sure she would approve it: the fish gets tender from cooking in this flavorsome sauce, enriched by both sweetness from the fresh tomatoes and a bit of tang from the canned ones. I make this quite regularly for my husband loves it and even though I always, always serve it with rice because of him it would be amazing with couscous, too. Easy, delicious and on the table in less than half an hour.

Easy fish stew
own creation

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 small yellow bell pepper (about 200g), deseeded and finely diced
½ onion, finely diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 ripe Italian tomato, deseeded and chopped
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 x 400g can chopped tomatoes
1/2 can of water
350g white fish, cut into large chunks
handful of fresh cilantro leaves

Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat – using a large saucepan is important for it will give you room to stir the fish pieces without breaking them.
Add the pepper and the onion and cook stirring occasionally until soft, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook for 1 minute or until fragrant. Add the tomato, season with salt and pepper, and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until soft and mixture is pulpy. Add the canned tomatoes and the water and cook for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the fish, season with salt and pepper again and cook for 8-10 minutes or just until fish is cooked through. Stir in the cilantro, check the seasoning and serve immediately.

Serves 2

Predictions and beef stew - or according to my husband, THE beef stew

Years ago I read an article on how the 2012 Oscars would be about the battle between Glenn Close and Meryl Streep, for Albert Nobbs and The Iron Lady respectively. Months went by, not everyone was that thrilled with Glenn’s performance (I adore her, think she should have two Oscars already but haven’t seen the movie yet), Viola Davis rose up to the occasion, becoming Meryl’s main opponent, and the latter took home the statue even though it should have gone to Rooney Mara’s hands.

Months ago I read another article about Oscar predictions, on how the 2014 Award would hold the duel between Naomi Watts and Nicole Kidman. Well, that never happened: Diana tanked big time and apparently Grace of Monaco is taking the same route.

The moment I saw the first released photo of Daniel Day Lewis in character as Lincoln I knew for sure he would sweep each and every award out there, and I have the feeling Steve Carell will do the same with Foxcatcher – you can come back here months from now and either congratulate me or make fun of me. :D

Predicting Oscar winners can be a tricky thing, but predicting if a dish will turn out good is a lot easier: as I cooked this beef stew, crisping the bacon first, then browning the beef, then sweating the vegetables –
building layers of flavor, as Jamie Oliver would say – I knew it would taste amazing, and it did. What I couldn’t have imagined, however, was that my husband would call this the best beef stew he’d ever had – that was a surprise, and a very nice one. <3 Beef stew, or according to my husband, THE beef stew
slightly adapted from Do-Ahead Dinners: How to Feed Friends and Family Without the Frenzy

½ large onion
1 medium carrot, peeled
1 small stick of celery
2 garlic cloves, peeled
olive oil
70g bacon in small cubes
500g round steak in bite sized pieces
1 tablespoon all purpose flour
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
2 tablespoons crushed canned tomatoes
2/3 cup (160ml) red wine – not your cheapest, not your best
2 tablespoons water
1 bay leaf
3 sprigs of fresh thyme
1 sprig fresh oregano, + a few leaves extra for serving

Preheat the oven to 150°C/300°F. Place the onion, carrot, celery and garlic in a food processor and process until finely chopped. Set aside.
Heat a drizzle of olive oil in a large ovenproof pan and fry the bacon until crisp. Remove with a slotted spoon. Put the beef and flour in a freezer bag along with a good pinch of salt and pepper and give the bag a vigorous shake to coat the meat. In batches, brown the beef all over on a high heat and remove to a bowl (place it in the same bowl of the bacon and avoid excess washing up). :)
Reduce the heat and add the butter, followed shortly by the vegetables and another pinch of salt and pepper. Gently cook, stirring occasionally, until softened – about 10 minutes. Return the meat to the pan along with the bacon, tomato purée, wine, water and herbs. Bring to a boil, cover and pop in the oven for 2 hours (check after 1 hour and add water if necessary). Taste the sauce for seasoning and serve – if not serving at once, cool completely and refrigerate.

I refrigerated it overnight and it tasted even more delicious; just let the saucepan come to room temperature, add a splash of water and reheat it over low heat.

Serves 2 (with some leftovers)