Showing posts with label Spanish Food. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Spanish Food. Show all posts

Saturday, 20 September 2008

Mussels in tomato and saffron sauce with Catalan tomato bread - Mike Gorman

Ingredients:
For main dish:
500g live mussels
250g white fish (eg cod, haddock, black halibut, plaice) with skin on
1 onion
1 shallot
2 large cloves of garlic
1 small red chilli
1/2 tsp saffron
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp salt
1 green pepper
1/2 glass red wine (preferably rioja)
3/4 pint of fish stock
1 tin chopped tomatoes
1 bunch flat leaf parsley
1 small slice of butter
3 tblsp olive oil

For Tomato Bread:
1 fresh french stick or similar bread
4-5 fresh vine tomatoes
extra virgin olive oil
2-3 large cloves of garlic

Method:
For main dish:
Heat olive oil and butter in a heavy lidded pot. Chop onion, shallot, garlic and red chilli, and fry in oil and butter until soft. Add saffron, salt and pepper and fry for 2 more minutes. Add the green pepper and the red wine, cook for 5 minutes. Add fish stock and tomatoes, place lid on pot and simmer for 30-40 mins. Prepare mussels by washing and removing beards. Discard any that do not shut when tapped sharply on the kitchen sink. After sauce has simmered for 30-40 mins add white fish, replace lid, and simmer for a further 20 mins. The fish will disintegrate and add flavour and body to the sauce. Add mussels and parsley, chopped, replace lid and cook for a further 5-10 mins. The mussels will open when cooked.
Discard any mussels that have not opened after about 5 mins. Serve with Catalan tomato bread (below).

For Tomato Bread:
First slice the tomatoes in half, and cut the garlic cloves in half, across the grain (no need to peel them).
Then (and in this order), rub a slice of the bread with the exposed surface of the garlic, followed by one of the tomato halves, and drizzle with olive oil. Simple as that!