Cod, Chorizo and Potato Stew

I haven't made this recipe before but there were four reasons why it fitted the bill perfectly for Christmas Eve. First, it's quick and easy to make - who wants to spend hours in the kitchen the night before the Big Day? Second, I still wanted to make something that could be considered as quite a special meal, always important for me on Christmas Eve. Third, the recipe uses Cod and Chorizo...two of my favourite foods. Finally, it's a one pot recipe...and I only had one saucepan left after having spent the afternoon prepping all the Christmas Day veggies! We all, including Theo, agreed it was a winner.

Serves 4

Ingredients:

110g chorizo, cut into 2cm slices (next time I'll use 1 cm slices)
1 onion
1 garlic clove, crushed
4 potatoes (I used medium sized), cut into 3cm chunks
227g can of chopped tomatoes (I used a 400g can)
500ml fish stock (I used cubes)
400-600g frozen cod fillets, defrosted and cut into 3-4cm chunks
a handful of flat leaf parsley, chopped


1. Heat a large pan over a medium heat and cook the chorizo for 2-3 minutes, then remove from the pan and set aside. Drain all but 1 tbsp of fat from the pan and use to cook the onion and garlic over a medium heat for 6-8 minutes until soft. Stir in the potatoes and cook for 3 minutes.

2. Add the tomatoes and fish stock, bring to the boil and simmer for 10-12 minutes until the potatoes are tender. (This may take longer, it took 20-25 minutes before my potato chunks were tender.) Stir in the cooked chorizo. You can freeze the stew at this stage, letting it cool to room temperature first.

3. If cooking from frozen, defrost the stew in the fridge overnight or in a microwave, then reheat. Add the cod to the stew and simmer for 4-5 minutes until just cooked. Season and serve immediately, scattered with parsley.

This recipe comes from Waitrose Kitchen December 2011