Tomato and Garlic Poached Fish - Acqua Pazza

fish on a bed of cooked tomato sauce with olives and basil

5 from 13 votes

Tomato and Garlic Poached Fish - Acqua Pazza

Tomato and garlic poached fish is the quintessential Mediterranean fish recipe. It doesn't get much easier than simmering some veg in a pot, slipping in some fish right at the end and cooking it all to tender, moist perfection.

Prep Time15

Cook Time25

Total Time40

Servings:

Calories: 1035kcal

Ingredients

4 slices of crusty whole grain bread
Extra virgin olive oil cooking spray
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 shallots peeled and thinly sliced
6 cloves garlic peeled and sliced
1 cup dry white wine
2 cups water
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes more or less to taste
2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved or one 14 oz. can diced tomatoes
1 sprig fresh basil
1 pound firm white fish cut into 4 equal pieces
Salt and freshly ground pepper for seasoning fish
¼ cup kalamata olives pitted and sliced in half (optional)

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Spray both sides of your bread slices with extra virgin olive oil cooking spray, and sprinkle them with a little salt. Add the slices to a sheet pan and set aside.
Heat the olive oil in a deep 10-12 inch skillet or saute pan over medium heat. Add the shallots and saute until soft and translucent, 3-4 minutes. Add the garlic and saute for another minute, until fragrant.
Pour in the wine and allow it to cook off for 2-3 minutes, until the alcohol smell has dissipated. Add the water, salt, and red pepper flakes, and a couple of cranks of black pepper, and return to a simmer.
Add the tomatoes. Pull 3-4 leaves off of the sprig of basil and set aside to chiffonade for garnish. Add the rest of the sprig, stem and all, into the sauce with the tomatoes. Stir, then simmer for 15 minutes until the tomatoes are soft and cooked through, and the sauce has reduced by almost half.
While the tomatoes simmer, put your bread pieces into the oven for 10 minutes, then take them out and use tongs or a spatula to turn them over. Return to the oven for 5 minutes, then add them to the bottoms of four shallow soup bowls.
Season the fish with salt and pepper, then slip the pieces gently into the sauce and add the kalamata olives. Simmer for 5 minutes. Adjust the heat to keep it at a moderate simmer.
After 5 minutes, turn off the heat and carefully check your fish for doneness. It will continue to cook in the sauce, so if it’s not yet done, just wait a few minutes and check again. The fish is done when it is flaky all the way through.
Note: if you have very thick pieces of fish, you can hurry up cooking by turning your pieces over in the pan, then turning off the heat. They will continue to cook in the sauce. Check in 3-4 minutes for doneness.
Top each piece of bread one with a piece of fish, then use a slotted spoon to top the fish with the tomatoes, shallots, and olives from the pan. Spoon a little broth around the bread and fish, and top with a chiffonade of basil. Drizzle with a bit of high quality olive oil, and enjoy!

Notes

The sodium level in canned tomatoes varies widely, so if you use them, cut the salt back to ¼ teaspoon. Taste and adjust your seasoning before adding the fish.
For pieces of fish that are thinner than 1½ inches, check for doneness after 4 minutes. For pieces thicker than 2 inches, check after about 7 minutes.
Fish can be poached with or without the skin on. For more delicate fish or thinner pieces, leave the skin on to hold the fish together.

Nutrition