Fish stew with gurnard, shellfish, tomato, saffron and garlic – by Liz Payne

Ingredients (Serves four)

2 cloves garlic, finely diced
2 bay leaves
Pinch chilli flakes
About 50ml olive oil
1 bulb fennel, sliced into rings
150ml white wine
75ml Pernod
350ml fish stock
1/4tsp saffron
4 fillets gurnard, cut into 3 pieces (any sustainable fish would work well, though)
250g mussels
250g cockles
250g surf clams
200g cherry tomatoes
1tbs Italian flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped
4 slices ciabatta (drizzled with olive oil)
2tbs aïoli

Method
Gently fry the garlic, chilli flakes and bay leaves in 25ml olive oil, then add the fennel and fry gently for a few minutes until soft. Add wine and Pernod and reduce by half, then add the fish stock and saffron and reduce by half again. Add gurnard, shellfish and tomatoes, cover and simmer until gurnard is cooked and shellfish are all open. Add parsley and season. Arrange in a large soup bowl and serve with the lightly grilled ciabatta and 1tsp of aïoli.

Wine match by Bordeaux Quay 2005 Schlumberger Riesling Les Princes Abbés, Alsace, Germany

By Liz Payne, head chef, Bordeaux Quay