Merluza en salsa verde (Hake in Parsley sauce)

Merluza en salsa verde (Hake in parsley sauce)

This is a very popular dish in Basque cooking. In Spain they normally use tinned asparagus.

Ingredients for 4 people

olive oil 3 tbsp garlic cloves 3 small shallot 1, finely chopped plain flour 1 tbsp Txakoli or dry white wine 200ml fresh fish stock 150ml hake fillets 4 × 180g sea salt and finely ground black pepper peas 200g

fresh clams 200g cleaned
white asparagus 8 (or 4 large), blanched for 5 to 8 minutes
finely chopped parsley 1 small handful

Method

Heat the olive oil in a frying pan over a medium heat and fry the garlic and the shallot until soft and lightly golden – this will take around 3 to 4 minutes. Add the flour and cook for about 2 minutes, then slowly add the wine and cook for another 2 minutes before adding the stock. You should then have a silky-smooth sauce.

Season the hake fillets and add to the sauce. Cook the hake for 4 to 5 minutes, then add the peas and clams, cover and cook for 2 to 3 minutes until the clams open. Discard any clams that do not open. To finish, add the asparagus and parsley, keep simmering for a minute, season to taste and serve with some crusty bread.