Ingredients
- 1 litre fish stock, preferably homemade
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 sprig of fresh parsley
- 1 sprig of fresh thyme
- 2 stalks celery, thinly sliced
- 1 bulb of fennel, quartered lengthwise and thinly sliced
- 2 carrots, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced
- zest of 1 lemon, finely shredded or coarsely grated
- 1 French shallot, finely chopped
- 1 clove garlic, finely chopped
- 1 fresh red chilli, halved and seeded (optional)
- 500 g skinless white fish fillet, cut into bite–sized chunks
- salt
- pepper
- leaves from the fennel bulb, herb fennel or fresh dill to garnish
- 2 red capsicums, halved lengthwise and seeded
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1⅓ cups (200 g) instant polenta
- ½ cup (50 g) freshly grated parmesan
Preparation
- Preheat the grill to high.
- Grill the capsicums, skin side up, for about 10 minutes or until blistered and blackened.
- Put in a plastic bag and leave to cool for 5 minutes.
- Peel off the skins; cut lengthwise into 5 mm wide strips.
- Set aside.
- Cook the polenta with the salt according to the instructions on the packet.
- Continue to cook, stirring constantly, until it is thick.
- Sprinkle a plastic chopping board or tray with water and turn the polenta out onto it.
- Use a wet palette knife to spread out the polenta into a rectangle about 1 cm thick.
- Arrange the strips of capsicum diagonally on top, gently pressing them into the polenta.
- Wet a sharp knife, then trim the edges of the polenta rectangle.
- Leave to cool.
- Preheat the oven to 200°C and grease a baking tray.
- Sprinkle the parmesan over the polenta rectangle and cut it into 16 sticks.
- Transfer the polenta sticks to the baking tray and bake for 15 minutes or until the cheese is melted and bubbling.
- Leave to cool for 2 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack and leave to cool completely.
- For the soup, pour the stock into a saucepan.
- Tie the bay leaf, parsley and thyme together into a bouquet garni and add to the pan with the celery, fennel, carrots, lemon zest, shallot, garlic and chilli, if using.
- Heat gently until boiling, then simmer for 5 minutes or until the vegetables are slightly tender.
- Cover the pan and remove it from the heat.
- Leave to stand for 10–20 minutes.
- Discard the bouquet garni and chilli halves.
- Bring the liquid back to the boil.
- Reduce the heat, then poach the fish for 4 minutes or until it is opaque and flakes easily.
- Season to taste.
- Transfer the polenta sticks to a plate.
- Ladle the soup into warmed bowls and sprinkle with the fennel leaves or dill.
- Serve at once.
Serves 4
Preparation: about 30 minutes, plus about 1.5 hours cooling and 10-20 minutes infusing
Cooking: about 40 minutes