Fish and Chickpea Chowder

We often think of soups needing long and slow cooking, but the beauty of a fish soup is how quickly it can come together. I make this hearty but fast chowder with frozen mahi mahi fillets, but you can use any firm, mild white fish (cod, halibut, tilapia…) For lunch one day last week, I cooked the soup to the end and then tossed in a chopped leftover cooked fish fillet along with some diced shrimp that needed a home. While it’s not quite as luscious as using raw fish, I was able to turn a few ounces of halibut along with some white beans into a hearty meal for two or more and there were no complaints. (By the way: The backwards soup-making technique is a good one to have in your pocket for anytime you have a little leftover meat or fish and need to stretch it to make dinner once more.) If you’ve a food processor, chop all the vegetables --except the chickpeas and tomatoes-- together at the beginning for a fast start. Serve with crusty bread and butter or oyster crackers and a cold California Chardonnay.

6 servings

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil
Pinch of crushed red pepper
½ small yellow onion, cut into small dice
1 leek, white and light green parts only, sliced and cut into small dice
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 small stalk celery with leaves, cut into small dice (or sub fennel)
½ sweet bell pepper-yellow, red, or orange- cut into small dice
1 small carrot, peeled, and cut into very small dice
Handful fresh parsley, minced – plus more for garnish
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper- I use Morton’s salt.
1 teaspoon dry thyme
1 bay leaf
½ cup dry white wine
2 tablespoons tomato paste
5-6 cups fish stock* Or a quart of vegetable stock and 8 oz. clam juice (plus 1 cup water if needed)
Drop or two of Tabasco or to taste
1- inch piece of Parmigiano-Reggiano rind-optional
15- ounce can chickpeas, drained
1 medium ripe tomato, cut into small dice
1- pound (16-ounces) mahi mahi without skin, cut into 1-inch pieces (can sub other firm white fish)
½ cup half and half or whole milk
1 tablespoon cornstarch, or 2 tablespoons if you like a thicker chowder
Parmigiano-Reggiano, grated for garnish

Instructions

PREPARATION: Preheat oven to 150 degrees F and place soup bowls on a rack set at the center to warm while you make the soup.
SWEAT THE VEGETABLES: Heat the olive oil in a 6-quart dutch oven or soup pot over medium flame for two minutes. Add the pinch of crushed red pepper and cook for another minute. Scrape in the chopped onion, leek, garlic, celery, sweet pepper, carrot, and parsley. Stir well and season with ½ teaspoon kosher salt and ¼ teaspoon black pepper along with the thyme and bay leaf. Cover and cook 5-7 minutes until tender, stirring regularly and turning down heat if the vegetables begin to brown.
POUR IN THE WHITE WINE AND TOMATO PASTE and cook uncovered, stirring occasionally, for several minutes or until the wine is mostly absorbed into the vegetables.
POUR IN 5 CUPS OF THE FISH STOCK; add the Tabasco and Parmigiano-Reggiano rind, if using. Cover, raise the heat to high, and bring to a boil. Reduce to a low simmer and cook for 10 minutes or so. Add chickpeas and diced tomato, cooking only until heated through. If the stew has become too thick, add another cup of stock.
WHISK TOGETHER the half and half and cornstarch in a measuring cup. Slowly pour the slurry (the half and half mixture) into the pot, stirring all the while, and cook until slightly thickened.
STIR IN THE FISH and cook gently 2-3 minutes or until fish is just cooked through and opaque. Remove from heat. Taste and adjust seasonings. Fish out the piece of cheese rind, if you've used one; discard. Serve hot in the warmed bowls garnished with reserved parsley and grated Parmigiano-Reggiano along with a few more grates of pepper.
STORE two days in the fridge, well-covered. Reheat over low flame without boiling. Do not freeze.

Notes

*You can buy fish stock or make a shrimp stock of saved and/or frozen shrimp shells, too. (See blog for links.)