Thai-spiced fish stew: Simply heaven in a bowl

“This is heaven in a bowl and needs no more introduction than that,” says Kate Humble.

Thai-spiced fish stew

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

300g firm white fish, cut into chunks

200g raw peeled king prawns

Flavourless oil, such as sunflower

2 lemon grass stalks, trimmed and bashed

3cm piece of fresh root ginger, peeled and finely chopped or grated

4 garlic cloves, sliced

3 spring onions, sliced

1 long red chilli, sliced

1 tbsp tomato purée

150g cherry tomatoes, halved

160ml coconut cream

500ml fish or vegetable stock

1 tbsp fish sauce

1 tsp sugar

1 tbsp tamarind paste

250g sugar snap peas

Leaves from a small bunch of Thai basil

Sea salt and freshly ground

Black pepper

Method:

1. Put the fish and prawns into a bowl and sprinkle over 1 teaspoon of salt. Mix well and leave to one side for up to 1 hour.

2. Heat a large saucepan over a medium heat, add a dash of oil and stir the lemon grass, ginger, garlic, two-thirds of the spring onions and the chilli over the heat until the garlic turns light golden. Add the tomato purée and stir for a further minute.

3. Tip in the tomatoes, the coconut cream and the stock and mix to combine.

4. Then stir in the fish sauce, sugar and tamarind and bring to a gentle simmer for 10 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasoning, bearing in mind the fish with its salt will be added shortly. More fish sauce will give a saltier flavour, extra tamarind will increase the sour.

5. Add the fish, prawns and sugar snap peas and mix through. Simmer gently for a further 3–4 minutes, or until the fish is only just cooked through.

6. Remove the lemon grass stalks and discard. Serve in bowls, scattered with the basil and remaining spring onion.

‘Home Made – recipes from the countryside’ by Kate Humble (Gaia, £26).