True Cod and Clam Stew presents a bounty of flavors

I've got to admit, seafood is one of my favorite of the food categories. There is such an incredible variety to choose from and endless ways of preparing the dishes. As far as nutrition is concerned, you don't get any better than the fruits of the sea.

Today I chose to combine True Cod and Clams in a dish that is so incredibly savory and colorful, yet so easy to prepare. Both items were found on sale this past week and I couldn't resist picking up some of each. Oh, I threw in a bit of Chorizo for a bit of a kick and it worked out great. Here's what we need:

2 lbs of Fresh Clams
1 lb of Fresh True Cod
1/2 lb of Chorizo
4 strips of bacon
1 medium onion (yellow or white)
2 cups of chicken stock
3 Roma tomatoes
1/2 cup of chopped celery
3 cloves of chopped garlic
1 teaspoon of Anchovy paste
1/2 teaspoon of Saffron threads
2 tablespoons of Pernod (anise lacquer)
4 tablespoons of olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Start by preparing your ingredients for cooking. Wash and scrub the clams, cut the True Cod in 2 inch chunks, slice the Chorizo in 1 inch slices, cut up the bacon strips, chop the onion, and slice the tomatoes in 1/2 inch slices.

Heat the oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add the onions, bacon, and Chorizo and saute for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Next add the celery and garlic. Stir and continue to saute for another couple of minutes. Finally, add the tomatoes.

Add the Pernod and chicken stock, along with the Anchovy paste, increase the heat to medium high and bring to a boil. Add the Saffron threads, evenly spread the Clams in the pan, and add the True Cod in the same manner. Taste the broth and salt if needed. Add the black pepper, reduce heat to low and cover. Simmer for about 6 more minutes until clams have opened up.

Serve this wonderful dish, along with the broth over steamed rice or boiled yellow potatoes (Yukon Gold) and sprinkle with fresh chopped parsley if desired. In addition to the fork, you better have a spoon as well. The broth is absolutely to die for! Enjoy :)

7 comments:

  1. Makes my jaw hurt to look at the photo - YUMMMM Looks like one of those dishes to fix when you want to go in and sit by the fireplace and enjoy dinner and wine. Kate @ kateiscooking

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  2. Chef Nick! Wonderful, I love seafood, especially in a seafood stew like this. Give me some crusty bread and I'm good to go. Love the pernod and saffron in this.

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  3. Mmmm, that picture looks mouthwatering!
    My family would love this!
    Cheers~

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  4. Yes, that does look fantastic. I'm also a huge seafood fan and could probably finish off your stew on my own with a wonderful baguette to sop up the juices.

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  5. All I can say is, yum!

    This dish somehow reminds me of some Portuguese dishes I tried back in my New England college days... true comfort food.

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  6. What a feasible dish. Loved how used sustainable seafoods in this dish. Thanks for sharing this wonderful creation of yours....

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  7. What great flavors are going on here! Reminds me a lot of the Portuguese style seafood stews they make in southern New England where I went to school. Yum!

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