Minestrone-style Fish Stew

Ingredients

• 200 - 250g frozen skinless and boned white fish fillets
• 15 - 20 frozen raw king prawns
• 150 - 175g frozen spinach
• ½ cup frozen peas
• 1 400g tin of tomatoes
• 1 pint (~570ml) chicken stock
• 2 large garlic cloves, minced
• ½ tsp balsamic vinegar
• 2 large garlic cloves, minced or grated
• 1 tbsp Cajun spice mix
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp Herbes de Provence
• ~6 anchovy fillets in olive oil, chopped, optional
• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, or the oil from the anchovies if using
• 1 lemon
• salt

Instructions

Make the tomato-fish cooking liquid
1. 
Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a deep saucepan and stir in the tinned tomatoes. Fill the empty tin with water and then pour the water into the pan. Add in the garlic, Cajun spice, paprika, Herbes de Provence and the balsamic vinegar. Use a fork, or a potato masher, to mash the tinned tomatoes up. Stir in the chicken stock and bring to the boil. As the tomatoes boil you’ll notice the liquid take on a thicker and slightly velvety look - I think the oil helps this process. Stir in the chicken stock. Next, add in the frozen fish fillets and frozen spinach. You may have to break up the fillet to fit them in the pan. Allow to come to the boil again and let cook until the fish fillets have lost their frozen hardness and the cubes of frozen spinach to soften and break apart. You will need to stir the spinach around a little to loosen it up.
Cook the gluten-free pasta
2. 
Add a generous cup of gf pasta to the pot. Stir around well. Let the pot come to the boil, then reduce the heat to moderate-hot and let it cook for 6 minutes.
Cook the prawns

3. Next stir in the frozen prawns. Increase the heat to high, let it come to the boil again. Again reduce the heat to moderate-hot and let gently boil for a further 6 minutes. At this point the prawns should be well cooked, fully opaque, white and pink all over. If there are any still dark or slightly translucent parts on the prawns let them cook for a minute or two more. When the prawns are completely cooked, turn off the heat.
4. Let the frozen peas cook in the heat of the cooling soup
Stir in the chopped anchovies and the frozen peas. If using an electric cooker, remove the pot from the heat, cover the pan and let the peas cook in the heat of the soup. Allow 15 minutes or so for the soup to cool a little.
Serve with a squeeze of fresh lemon

5. Serve with a squeeze of fresh lemon and, if necessary, a sprinkle of salt. I don’t always have to add salt to the rice version of this dish, because of the anchovies. But I seem to always need a bit of salt for the pasta version. Taste and season to your liking.