Fish and Seafood Fideuá
Fideuá is a really tasty alternative to paella using noodles instead of rice.
Ingredients
For the stock
- 6 Tomato grated
- 3 cloves garlic skins left on, crushed
- 2 onions roughly chopped
- 2 dried ñora peppers
- whitefish head and bones
- 1.5 litres boiling water
- 1 lemon juice only
- 1 pinch salt
For the fideuà
- 4 tbsp olive oil
- 1 whole monkfish tail or other white fish, cut into large chunks
- 12 king prawns
- 2 onions finely chopped
- 4 Garlic finely chopped
- 2 squid cleaned, spines removed, flesh roughly chopped
- 2 dried ñora peppers finely chopped (available from Spanish delicatessens and online specialists)
- 500 g short vermicelli noodles called 'fideo' in Spain
- 2 tbsp smoked paprika
- 400 g mussels scrubbed and de-bearded (discard any mussels that do not shut tightly when tapped firmly)
- salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
For the picada
- 100 g almonds
- 4 tbsp fresh flat-leaf parsley chopped
- 2 lemons cut into wedges, to garnish
Instructions
For the Stock
- Place the grated tomato skins in a large saucepan, reserving the flesh for later, with the rest of the stock ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat until the mixture is simmering, then continue to simmer for 30 minutes. Strain the stock and reserve the liquid.
For the Fidueá
- Heat half of the oil in a paella pan or large, heavy-based, shallow frying pan over a medium heat. Add the monkfish and prawns and fry for 1-2 minutes on each side, until browned on both sides, adding more oil if necessary. Remove from the pan and set aside.
- Heat the remaining oil in the frying pan, add the onions and fry for 3-4 minutes, or until softened. Add the garlic, tomato flesh and squid and continue cook over a low heat for 6-7 minutes, or until the squid is opaque.
- Add the ñora peppers and the noodles, mix well, and continue to cook for a further 2-3 minutes, or until the noodles are covered in the oil. Sprinkle over the smoked paprika.
- Pour in the stock and bring the mixture to a simmer. Simmer for 10 minutes.
- Return the monkfish and the prawns to the pan, then arrange the mussels over the top of the fideuà. Season, to taste, with salt and freshly ground black pepper, then cover the pan tightly with aluminium foil or greaseproof paper and continue to simmer for a further 4-5 minutes, or until the mussels have opened (discard any mussels whose shells do not open during cooking).
For the Picada
- Grind the almonds and the chopped parsley in a mortar and pestle as finely as possible.
- To serve, sprinkle the picada over the fideuà, garnish with lemon wedges and spoon onto serving plates.