This warming seafood stew will be your new go-to dish

Its marriage of fennel and aromatics hits the sweet spot of the fennel flavour spectrum.

Fragrant, easy and delicious: the perfect combination.

This is a go-to dish in my house, most often on Saturday night rotation, when I want to cook and eat something I can prepare in advance or that needs very little finishing after our Saturday night ritual of a cocktail (or two). Its marriage of fennel and aromatics hits the sweet spot of the fennel flavour spectrum. There is just enough going on to balance out fennel’s dominance, yet somehow also let it shine. Hake is my preferred choice of white fish, but do switch that up for whatever is fresh and seasonal. The essential accompaniment is good bread for mopping up the juices.

Try also my red-wine cooked pears and fig and star anise champagne cocktail.

Angela Clutton.

Seasoning celebrates cooking with the seasons

Zarzuela (fennel and fish stew)

Ingredients

• 2 onions
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 garlic cloves
• 1 fennel bulb
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 thyme sprigs
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 250ml white wine or dry vermouth
• 800g filleted skinless loin of white fish
• 2 prepared squid, including wings and tentacles
• 8 raw king prawns
• Salt and black pepper

Method

1. Peel the onions, cut in half and slice into thin half-moons. Heat the oil in a large, deep frying pan or casserole dish, then add the onions and cook gently with a lid on, so they soften but do not colour. Check the onions regularly to make sure they aren’t catching on the bottom of the pan.
2. Meanwhile, peel and crush the garlic cloves. Prepare the fennel by removing and setting aside the fronds. Trim off the upper stalks and keep for stock, then thinly slice the bulb into rounds.
3. When the onions are nearly tender, add the garlic and fennel to the pan. Mix, season with salt, put the lid back on and sweat the vegetables for about 5 minutes, or until the fennel is softening. Stir in the bay, thyme and paprika, pour in the wine or vermouth and let it bubble for a minute, then add 500ml water. Season and gently simmer with a partial lid on for 20 minutes.
4. Remove the herbs and either carry straight on or set the sauce aside if making ahead of time. (Reheat if it has cooled.)
5. Cut the hake into chunks and stir into the sauce. Cut the squid into rings and add those, too.
   Turn the heat up and cook for 5 minutes. Sit the squid wings on top, cut each set of tentacles in half and add to the pan, and lastly sit the prawns on top. Cover and leave for 5 minutes for all the fish to cook through. It’s ready when the prawns are pink.
6. Scatter over the fennel fronds, give it plenty of black pepper and serve straight away. Serves 4-6 as a main

This is an edited extract from Seasoning by Angela Clutton.