Seafood paprika stew
On cool summer evenings one of my favourite dishes is a nice seafood stew. I particularly like the Spanish versions that are made with chorizo. This seafood paprika stew is based on that, but instead of sausage I’m using lots of vegetables to make it more healthy. You can use other veggies if you prefer – aubergine, broad beans, sweet potato, green beans, kale would work too. Also, you can use other seafood too such as prawns, mussels or mixed seafood; and instead of salmon, cod or haddock would be fine too. The most important part is the rich paprika base which can be made spicy by mixing in a few pinches of cayenne or dried chilli flakes! When I make this dish for adults only, I add a chilli pepper (as whole) to the stew, together with the bay leaf, then discard it just before serving.
Ingredients
Method
- Finely chop the onion, fennel and garlic.
- Roughly chop the bell pepper and carrot. Cut the potatoes in half, if bigger than bite-size.
- Heat 2 Tbsp of olive oil in a large saucepan and gently sauté the onion and garlic. Add the chopped vegetables and cook for 10 minutes under cover and over low heat. Add the paprika and saffron, stir for a minute, then add the tomatoes purée and coat the vegetables well.
- Pour in enough stock to cover the vegetables. Add the bay leaf and bring to the boil. Cover the pan, turn down the heat and simmer for 10 minutes.
- Add the other vegetables (sliced and/or chopped) and cook for 5 more minutes over medium heat.
- Slice the squid and cut the fish into bite-sized chunks. Add these to the stew and cook for 5-8 minutes until the seafood is cooked through and the veggies are tender.
- Garnish with chopped parsley before serving.