Fish Stew with Potatoes or Brodet
These are the reasons why we love it so much:
- a straightforward recipe for a hearty fish stew
- you can find a treasure of sea goodness in this recipe, from mussels, shrimp to a variety of fish
- the stew is thick, tasty, and full of vegetables
- love serving it with a drizzle of high-quality olive oil, some chopped parsley, and lemon wedge
- it's made in one pot only
- the recipe takes less than an hour, and it's the perfect family meal
- you can easily store any leftovers in the fridge or freezer, perfect for making ahead
Maristra - Gastronomic treasures of Istria and the sea
For this recipe, we went on a very special quest. A quest to rediscover Slovenian Istria. A culinary rich and delicious area located in the southwest of Slovenia. The local municipalities Ankaran, Izola, Koper, and Piran together with the European Union created an amazing project called Maristra - Gastronomski zakladi Istre in morja (Maristra - Gastronomic treasures of Istria and the sea) to connect tourism and gastronomy in this rich area.
The goal of the program is to connect fishermen, winemakers with the local gastronomy treasures. This way we can easily discover everything Slovenian Istria has to offer too.
This post is sponsored by the municipality of Ankaran, so we too had an amazing time discovering and relearning Slovenian recipes that are local, delicious, seasonal, and easy to make. The first recipe in our collaboration was a simple Octopus Salad recipe. This time we are going even deeper by including even more Slovenian Istria ingredients. We are making a delicious Brodet, or fish stew with potatoes. In the recipe, we will find Slovenian fish and seafood, and other local ingredients like olive oil, garlic, fennel, tomatoes, and herbs.
To take this whole Slovenian experience even further, we recommend serving this dish with one of these amazing Istrian red wines:
- Modri Pinot
- Refošk
Try this Easy Octopus Salad recipe too. It’s made with delicious Slovenian ingredients that are easily available around the world too.
How to make fish stew at home
The authentic Brodet or Jadran fish stew should contain seven fish, making it incredibly delicious and rich. In this recipe, however, we only used three local types of fish, mussels and shrimp. Use cheaper fish for fish stew, but most importantly, use local fish. You can find the whole list of ingredients and methods below. But let's walk through the main steps together for easier preparation.
- Saute the vegetables.
- Add the tomatoes, tomato sauce, fish stock, and season.
- Separately cook the potatoes.
- Add fish and seafood, along with the potatoes, to the pot to cook.
- Serve.
Important tips and trick
- Always cook the potatoes separately. That's the only way to ensure that the potatoes will cook perfectly. It often happens that the potatoes don't cook in time when cooking them in the fish stew.
- Use skinless and boneless fish. Sure, that's not a must, but it makes it so much easier to serve it later. A little effort, in the beginning, goes a long way. If you are using larger fish, chop them into cutlets.
- Use a large variety of fish. The more, the merrier. We love sea bream, porgy, monkfish, hake, cod, or other white fish for brodet.
What to serve with fish stew
There's no need for any special sides since this stew is already rich enough. We already add the potatoes to the stew, but feel free to omit them, and serve the stew with one of the following:
- creamy polenta
- fluffy white bread
- toasted baguette bread
- drizzle with high-quality olive oil
- sprinkle with chopped parsley or chopped fennel leaves
How to store or freeze this brodet (fish stew)
Brodet can be easily stored, but please make sure to discard the mussels as they can go bad very fast.
Store this fish stew with tomatoes and potatoes in an airtight container. Keep sealed in the fridge for up to 2 days. Reheat before serving.
Feel free to freeze this Mediterranean fish stew too. Transfer the cold stew to a freezer container, discarding the mussels beforehand. Keep in the freezer for up to a month. Before serving, bring the dish to room temperature, then reheat in a pot by bringing it to a boil.
Try these amazing fish recipes too
- Coconut Fish Curry with Vegetables
- Pan-Seared Cod in Butter Leek Sauce
- Easy Grilled Sardines
- Mediterranean Sea Bream with Fennel and Tomatoes
- Oven-Roasted Salmon with Rice and Savoy Cabbage
- Simple Oven Baked Salmon
- Salmon Wellington
METHOD
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vegetables
Place a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil, diced onion, diced celery, and diced fennel. Cook for 5 minutes over low heat, stirring occasionally. Add the minced garlic, bay leaf, and lemon peel. Continue to cook for 5 minutes over low heat, stirring occasionally.
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add the tomato and fish stalk
Roughly chop the tomatoes and add them to a pot along with the tomato sauce and wine. Stir, and cook for 5 minutes at high heat for the alcohol to evaporate. Pour in the fish stalk, add the parsley, season with salt and pepper, and continue to cook for 10 minutes.
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cook the potatoes
While the fish stew is cooking, cook the potatoes separately. Peel the potatoes and cut them into larger pieces, approximately 2 cm x 2 cm (1-inch x 1-inch). Add to a pot of salted boiling water. Cook for 12 - 14 minutes or until the potatoes are almost cooked.
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add the fish to the stew
Add the mussels, shrimp, and drained potatoes to the pot with the vegetables and liquid. Stir, then place the fish fillets on top. Gently dip the fish into the stew until at least half covered in liquid. Cover with a lid and simmer for 8 - 10 minutes, or until the mussels are cooked. Before serving, sprinkle with chopped parsley.
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serve
Divide the fish stew between four plates. Carefully take the fish from the pot using a fish spatula or a spoon. Be careful because the fish is soft and can easily fall apart. Drizzle with olive oil and optionally serve with additional parsley and a lemon wedge.
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