Jack Stein's hake and chickpea stew

Jack Stein's hake and chickpea stew. In the foreground, a bowl of orange and red stew with green parsley garnish. In the background, a sliced loaf of crusty bread on a wooden board.

On Friday 30 January, top seafood chef Jack Stein joined us in the studio to talk about sustainable, affordable fish to eat, and showed off a delicious hake and chickpea stew.

Ingredients (serves 4)

500-600g Hake fillets, skin off, pin bones removed

Table salt (for curing the hake), enough to coat liberally

Extra virgin olive oil – 85 ml, plus extra to finish

8 garlic cloves, finely chopped

1 tsp dried chilli flakes

4 (or 400g tin) of plum tomatoes, chopped (or tinned chopped tomatoes)

350g (or 2 x 400g tins) of cooked chickpeas, drained (or tinned chickpeas, drained and rinsed)

1 medium (about 175-200g)potato, peeled and cut into 2 cm cubes

300 ml of water or light stock

3 tbsp of flat leaf parsley, chopped

Black pepper to finish

Crusty bread (optional) to serve

Method

1. Salt the hake fillets: Keep the hake as whole fillets, skin off. Season both sides liberally with table salt. Leave for 1 hour in the fridge. Rinse under cold running water, wash several times, then pat completely dry. Cut into large chunks after rinsing and drying.

2. Build the base: Warm the olive oil in a wide pan over low to medium heat. Add the garlic and chilli flakes, cook for 1 to 2 minutes until fragrant. Do not let the garlic colour.

3. Add tomatoes, chickpeas, potato: Stir in the tomatoes, chickpeas and potato. Add the water or stock. Bring to a gentle simmer.

4. Simmer and thicken: Cook for 20 to 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the potato is tender and the stew has thickened. Mash some potato into the liquid with the back of a spoon. Add a splash more water or stock if it looks dry.

5. Cook the hake: Lay the hake chunks on top, cover the pan, and cook gently for 6 to 8 minutes, or until the hake just flakes.

6. Finish: Turn off the heat. Fold through the parsley. Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and finish with plenty of black pepper. Taste and add salt only if it needs it.