This quick and easy Mediterranean Fish Stew is the perfect healthy winter comfort food! Firm white fish and vegetables simmered in a tomato broth with Mediterranean herbs – all easy ingredients to keep on hand for a fast weeknight dinner.
I’ve had a lot of requests recently for more savory recipes. I get it — now that we’re not hosting big gatherings, people aren’t baking as many big desserts for parties and celebrations.
And while baking will always be my true passion in the kitchen, I cook an awful lot, too. I cook dinner from scratch most nights for my family, and now I’m pretty good at the quick weeknight dinner game.
This Mediterranean fish stew fits all my requirements for a weeknight dinner:
Oh, and it’s also the best kind of healthy but hearty warm comfort food. A big bowl of soup, filled with fish and vegetables, served with a side of steamed or roasted vegetables and a loaf of bread is about as perfect as you can get for a quick and easy winter dinner.
Different kinds of fish require different cooking methods, and for this stew, we need something that will hold its texture. Many types of fish have a strong, oily flavor that overpowers the soup, or are too delicate to add to a soup.
Why does fish flake so easily compared to other types of meat? It’s time for my favorite subject… kitchen chemistry!
Kitchen Chemistry
Fish and meat have a similar protein content, but the structure is different. Fish has shorter muscle fibers and less connective tissue, and this connective tissue transforms into gelatin at a much lower temperature than the connective tissue in other meats, which results in the characteristic flaky texture.
For this Mediterranean fish stew, you’ll want to use a “meatier” type of fish with a firmer texture. Halibut, cod, catfish, snapper, or grouper are all perfect.
Avoid flaky like sea bass, branzino, flounder, tilapia, or trout — these fish are too delicate and tend to fall apart as they cook in the stew.
As someone who works full-time and has two small children, I love dinners that can be prepped ahead of time. This Mediterranean fish stew is no exception!
Cook everything for the stew up until adding the fish, then cool to room temperature and store in the refrigerator overnight.
The next day, heat the stew over medium heat, covered, until simmering; then add the fish and cook for 5 minutes.
Use a firm white fish, like halibut, cod, catfish, snapper, monkfish, or grouper.
Substitute the wine with 1 cup of chicken broth or vegetable broth.
If you don’t like fennel, swap in any other vegetable you like in soup; spinach or kale works exceptionally well. If you can’t find fresh fennel, use two stalks of celery plus one teaspoon of dried fennel seeds to replicate the texture and flavor.
Once the fish is added, it is best consumed while still warm. The base for the stew can be made a day in advance, with the fish added and cooked immediately before consumption. Leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days, but reheating the soup will cook the fish further and the texture will change.
Firm white fish and vegetables simmered in a tomato broth with Mediterranean herbs – all easy ingredients to keep on hand for a fast weeknight dinner.
Leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days, but reheating the soup will cook the fish further and the texture will change.
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This Mediterranean Fish Stew recipe was originally published on 01/22/2015 and republished with new photos and helpful tips on 12/04/2020.