Spanish · Authentic-ish Spanish
Suquet de Peix
369 kcal a serving, against 511 for the traditional version. That is 142 kcal off, or 28%, with 37.3g of protein. Serves 4. 1 hour 15 minutes.
What the traditional version is
A fisherman's stew built from a base of olive oil, garlic and onion, with potatoes simmered in fish stock. White fish such as monkfish or hake, plus shellfish (usually clams and prawns), are added. The showstopper is the picada: bread and almonds fried golden in oil, ground with garlic and fresh parsley, stirred in at the end to thicken and deepen the sauce. Eat with plenty of crusty bread, usually with a spill down your shirt.
What changed, and what each change costs
Fried bread and almonds replaced with dry-toasted
Frying the almonds and bread in olive oil makes them golden and delicious, but you absorb all the oil, and every gram counts. Toasting them in a dry pan gives you the colour and a chunk of the flavour, but you skip most of the oil.
What it costs you. You get a drier, toastier picada, and the sauce isn't as thick or glossy. There'll be a tiny bit of graininess - the price you pay for dodging the oil. Nobody will send it back, but you won't fool a Catalan granny.
Olive oil cut from 60g to 10g, just a gloss for the onions
The real suquet starts with oil - lots of it - mainly for the picada and onions. Here, I let the bread and almonds toast dry and only use a drizzle for the onions to coax out the sweetness.
What it costs you. You lose that deep, rich mouthfeel. The onions will still go sweet, but you miss the truly 'unctuous' note the oil brings. I don't pretend otherwise.
Crusty bread on the side is not included
This is a cheat - the slice of bread to mop up the sauce is half the reason people make stews. I've left it out for the obvious reason. If you want to add it back, cut from somewhere else.
What it costs you. No mopping, no fun. You'll need a spoon for every last bit. Sorry.
Stock replaced with water
Shop fish stock is usually full of salt and some versions are more like brine. Most home cooks don't have fish bones lying about, so I use water and bump up the aromatics.
What it costs you. The broth is a bit lighter and fresher, but it isn't the full, deep seafood hit. You'll actually taste the fish you put in.
The numbers
| Per serving | Traditional | Lightened |
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 511 | 369 |
| Protein | 41.8g | 37.3g |
| Fat | 24.8g | 10.6g |
| Saturated fat | 3.5g | 1.3g |
| Carbohydrate | 31.9g | 31.9g |
| Protein per 100 kcal | 8.2g | 10.1g |
Every figure is computed from the recipe's own weighed ingredient list against public food composition databases. The appendix in Authentic-ish Spanish prints the exact database row used for each ingredient, so any number here can be checked.
Allergens. gluten, nuts, crustaceans, fish, molluscs.
The method is in the book
If you want the full restaurant effect, with velvet sauce and a good pint of oil in every bowl, you'll have to cook it the old way. This version is thinner and the sauce can get a bit grainy, but the fish gets a fair shout, and the almonds still bring character. It isn't as silky, it's a bit heartier and more honest. If you can live without fried bread and half a bottle of oil, you'll enjoy it. If not, you're on holiday and nothing I say matters.
The quantities and the method for this dish are in Authentic-ish Spanish, along with 57 more. It is not out yet. The swap kit is free in the meantime.