When I saw this fresh wild Cod at the store, I knew it would benefit from quick steaming. Yet, I also knew its’ mild taste would benefit from a somewhat assertive flavoring.As I’ve just bought a new tin of wonderful Spanish saffron, I’ve decided to go with a Mediterranean inspired sauce and combine it with tomatoes.
Soon, capers, anchovies, almonds, cooked chickpea, raisins, lemons and honey showed up on the working table; the sauce pretty much created itself and a wonderful aroma filled the kitchen…
As the fresh tomatoes available were far from acceptable, I’ve used good quality crushed canned tomatoes instead. However, if you find ripe and flavorful tomatoes, use them without hesitation.
With the chickpeas, I’ve used ones I’ve pre-cooked, but good quality canned chickpeas (preferably unsalted) would work just as well, and will shorten the preparation time.
The dish is great for entertaining, as the fish requires only 10 minutes of cooking, while the sauce can be made ahead and reheated. It can be served as a first course, using smaller portions of fish with the sauce only, or as a main course, with larger portions of fish served on a bed of saffron couscous, rice or polenta.
The Cod can be substituted with other flat fish, shrimps or scallops. The sauce is also great on its’ own, served with couscous, pasta or polenta.
Makes: 4-6
Prep time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: 30 minutes for the sauce, 10 minutes for the fish
Ingredients:
1 lb (450 grams) skinless and boneless fresh Cod fillet
1 tsp saffron threads
1 Tbs hot water
1 large shallot, chopped
¼ cup olive oil + 1 Tbs
5 anchovy fillets
¼ cup capers, roughly chopped
2 cups crushed tomatoes, with tomato paste
1 cup water
Zest and juice from 1 large lemon
1 cup cooked chickpeas
½ cup golden raisins
1/3 cup slivered almonds, lightly toasted
½ tsp freshly ground black pepper
¼ tsp cayenne
1-2 Tbs honey, preferably orange blossom
1-2 tsp salt
Serving option: couscous (see HERE how to prepare)
1. Portion the fish and pat dry with paper towels. Mix the saffron threads with the hot water and let sit for 5 minutes.
2. In a wide pot, sauté the shallot with ¼ cup olive oil. Add the anchovies, mash roughly with a spatula and cook for 1 minute. Add the crushed tomatoes and water and mix well.
3. Add the lemon juice, 2/3 of the lemon zest, the chickpeas, the raisins, 2/3 of the almonds, the pepper and cayenne. Mix well , bring to a boil and cook for 1-2 minutes. Lower the heat to medium-low and cook for 15 minutes, mixing occasionally, until the sauce reduces and thickens a bit.
4. Taste and add salt and honey according to the saltiness and acidity of the sauce. (The anchovies, capers and tomato paste vary in their levels of saltiness and acidity from one brand to another, so it’s best to cook the sauce before deciding how much to add.) Mix well and cook for 1-2 minutes.
5. Add the fish pieces, in one layer and not touching one another. Sprinkle the fish with salt, black pepper and the remaining lemon zest, and drizzle the 1 Tbs olive oil over it.
6. Bring the sauce to a boil and cover the pot. Lower the heat to medium-low and cook for about 8 minutes, until the fish is white and opaque.
7. For an appetizer, serve with sauce only. For main course, serve with saffron couscous.Sprinkle the rest of the almonds on top.
This sounds really good…but it’s your beautiful photos that make it look delicious! Love the color the saffron provides. Thanks for another must try dish!
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Thank you Nancy!
I’m the first to admit I usually don’t have a clue about what I’m doing when photographing, and usually don’t have the time to dwell on it – serving the food is the first priority after all! 🙂 So I’m really glad you think the photos are good and helpful. It just encourages me to try even harder. 🙂
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Hahhah…you and me both! As you know, I’m a big fan of photo tutorials that accompany the recipes, and yours just keeping getting better and better! Looking at this post, I think your trying days are over 🙂 Call it success!
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Thanks again! 🙂
The new problem is looking at quite a few dishes I’ve photographed a while ago, and they don’t look so good… 😦
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Ugh, me too. I try to remind myself it’s all a learning curve. Now at least, we both have the documentation to prove how far we’ve come! By the way, I’m making your marbled cupcakes today 😀 I’ll share them with a link on my next Shout-out Sunday.
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You’re so right.
I’ll be happy to see your take on the marble cupcakes. 🙂
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Saffron with cod, absolutely new to me but I guess it tastes really good! Thanks for sharing!
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You’re welcome!
The combination worked really well. I was quite happy with the results.
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I’ve been hoarding some saffron threads for years. How long do they keep?
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Kept in an airtight container, in a dark not too warm place, it can keep for a couple of years. But it would lose a lot of its aroma and color if kept for too long.
I would opt for a new tin… 🙂
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It’s in a cork-topped glass jar, and has been hiding out in my RV spice bin that I keep in the house. And yes, it is dark in there. But probably dead!
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wow! cod, tomatos and saffron… it sounds like a dream! I wish you had a lot of bread to enjoy at the best your recipe!
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Yes, this dish works great with lots of fresh bread! 🙂
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I love cod in a tomato sauce and yours here, Ronit, is one flavorful sauce! This would make such a wonderful meal and, yes, bread is a must. I see you, too, have a problem getting good tomatoes this time of year. By the time March rolls, around, I am desperate for just one good, flavorful tomato. On the other hand, it means that I will relish every bite of the season’s first BLT.
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Thank you, John!
I like Cod too, and was happy with how the complex flavors and textures of the sauce married so well with its freshness.
Good tomatoes are hard to find here as well. Which is why I use cherry tomatoes more often now, but they are not the best for such a sauce.
You are so right – once we’ll have the good ones, we’ll appreciate them so much more! 🙂
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What a beautiful and tasty sounding cod dish. Fresh cod is always available in our market and I can’t wait to try your recipe.
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Thank you Karen. I’m glad you liked the idea and hope you’ll enjoy the dish. 🙂
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Beautiful looking dish. Got to be tasty..
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Thank you! It was quite tasty indeed! 🙂
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Cod is one of my favourites and fresh wild cod is a great find. Your dish sounds wonderful.
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Thank you! 🙂 It was a great find and it tasted wonderful. So fresh and almost sweet. It went really well with the sauce. .
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That looks so pretty! I love the combination of saffron and tomatoes. Need to try this soon!
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Thank you! 🙂 The combination of tomatoes and saffron is indeed wonderful. I hope you’ll try and enjoy the dish. 🙂
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This looks terrific! I don’t even like fish.
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lol Thank you Carol, I appreciate your comment even more! 🙂
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💕
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חג שמח מירושלים! 🙂
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The combination of flavors sounds totally delicious, especially raisins – how interesting!
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Thank you Dolly, I’m glad you liked the dish. I love adding raisins to sauces. They add so much. 🙂
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They do, and we also make a sweet and sour fish under tomato sauce, but adding raisins “raises” it to a totally different level.
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My mouth was watering reading just half way through :-). Love white flaky fish with tomato. Beautiful dish, thanks for sharing.
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Thank you Jin, I’m glad you liked the dish. It’s my pleasure to share. 🙂
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