Tomato & Fennel Fish Stew with Garlic & Oregano Bread

preparation 10 minutes
cook time 20 minutes
Serves 4

This meal was specifically designed for a campervan trip, where with a few ingredients you can pull together something delicious! But you can also cook this piquant fish stew at home - it's the perfect tasty weeknight dinner.

Recipe taken from Camper Van Cooking by Claire Thomson & Matt Williamson (Quadrille, £20) Photography: Sam Folan

Ingredients Method

3 tbsp good olive oil, plus more to serve
1 small onion, finely chopped or sliced
3 celery stalks, finely chopped or sliced
3 garlic cloves, finely sliced
Pinch of dried chilli flakes (optional)
Big pinch of salt, plus more to taste
2 tsp fennel seeds, lightly crushed
1 tsp dried oregano
½ can of chopped tomatoes (or about 1 cupful chopped fresh tomato)
700ml fish or vegetable stock
700g firm white fish, cut into bite-size pieces
Juice and finely grated zest of 1 lemon
Black pepper
For the garlic bread:
3 garlic cloves, crushed to a paste
2 tsp dried oregano
100g butter, softened
1 large baguette, slashed at 3cm intervals

Heat the olive oil in a wide, shallow pan over a moderate heat. Add the onion, celery and garlic, and the chilli flakes (if using). Season well with the big pinch of salt and some black pepper and cook for 10 minutes, until soft and fragrant.

While that’s cooking, prepare the garlic bread. Mash the crushed garlic and the oregano into the butter and season with salt and pepper. Use the mixture to butter the slashed bread. Wrap it in foil and place it on a heat source (in the embers of your campfire or in a dry pan) to allow it to warm through and melt the butter.

Add the fennel seeds, oregano and chopped tomatoes to the onion and celery in the pan and continue to cook for another couple of minutes, until rich and thick. Add the stock or water and bring to the boil. Turn the heat down to a simmer and add the fish, then cover with a lid and simmer until the fish is opaque and just cooked through – 5–7 minutes depending on the size and thickness of the fish.

Add the lemon zest and check the seasoning, adjusting with lemon juice and more salt, pepper and chilli flakes accordingly. To serve, ladle the stew into bowls with plenty of the sauce and serve with the garlic bread alongside.

Ingredients