Several weeks ago Erin and I went for a last minute dinner at FIG, my restaurant alma-mater. (I worked there for years starting in 2009.) After winning multiple James Beard Awards over the last 14 plus years it has become a tough table, so we don’t go that often.
This evening we sidled up to the busy bar and squeezed into two open seats. Although I don’t recognize any of the current staff, I still recognize the Fish Stew - a holdover from an earlier era, and a “classic” that surely won’t be going anywhere for years to come, with good reason. It is a damn good dish.
My dear old friend (and former co-worker) Jason Stanhope is the Chef these days, and a James Beard winner in his own right. He came over to say hello, and while we were elbows deep in the stew I demanded to know: “What makes this so good?”
Jason, ever the philosopher, launched into a poetic recounting of the efforts made in production of the fish stew. It began with a two (maybe three?) day process for the STOCK, before the goddamn thing even turns into something resembling a stew. Three days?! Collecting fish bones for a week?!
At that point I gave up on the possibility of ever recreating the stew in my own home, and sank into a deep despair. My only remaining choice was to finish what I had before me, drown my sorrows in a few glasses of exemplary Chenin Blanc, and begin the process of making MY fish stew. And that is what I did.
Dear reader, this recipe is truly painless, and it comes together in about 15 minutes. Perhaps it is my own hubris but I honestly believe it is as good as FIG’s version. And the real treat: it comes together with a lot of ingredients I’ve learned to keep on hand in the pantry: bottled clam juice, canned tomato, canned chickpeas, wine, canned clams, hot sauce, and a few other trusty kitchen stalwarts.
Join me, will you? This would make a particularly stunning meal this upcoming holiday week - the perfect cool/cold weather meal that feels simultaneously light yet abundantly filling. Enjoy:
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