With some fish and a pulse in your kitchen you’ll have the building blocks for a nutritious dinner. When I say pulse I’m of course talking about the dried, edible seed of a legume.
Pulses, which we produce a lot of in Canada, include such things as lentils, peas, beans and chickpeas, all of which work well with fish, and all of which provide fibre and a range of minerals and vitamins.
I chose chickpeas, though, because I thought they would match best with the fish I used (salmon fillets), and I how wanted to prepare them.
The latter decision was made when I looked in my bottled spice drawer and saw I had all the spices needed to flavour the salmon, Moroccan-style. To do that, in a shallow dish, I combined ground spices such as cumin, coriander, ginger, cayenne pepper and cinnamon, with olive oil, lemon juice and honey. I then marinated the salmon fillets in that mixture 15 minutes.
Unlike some cuts of meat that, before cooking, you marinate several hours to help make them tender, with fish, the marinating is all about quickly infusing it with flavour.
When the salmon has finished marinating you set it in a pan and bake it until cooked through. The fish is then served on what I called a heavenly spiced chickpea stew.
That easily made stew contains chickpeas, orange juice and zest, vegetables, stock and the same mix of heavenly aromatic spices used to flavour the salmon.
To round out the meal, if desired, you could also serve the salmon and chickpea stew with couscous, quinoa or rice and warm wedges of pita bread.
You can make the chickpea stew in advance of cooking the salmon and reheat it when needed. If you don’t eat fish, you could also serve the chickpea stew on its own. See the Eric’s options part of the recipe for details on both of those things.
Moroccan-style Salmon with Heavenly Spiced Chickpea Stew
Salmon, quickly marinated with Moroccan-style spices, is baked and served on a heavenly aromatic chickpea stew.
Preparation time: 60 minutes
Cooking time: 35 to 37 minutes
Makes: two servings
2 tsp olive oil
2 tsp lemon juice
1 tsp honey
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
2 (5- to 6-oz/140- to 170-gram) sockeye or other salmon fillets
• salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• Heavenly spiced Chickpea Stew (see recipe below)
• plain yogurt, to taste (optional)
• parsley, fresh cilantro or mint sprigs, for garnish
Combine oil, juice, honey, cumin, coriander, ginger, cayenne and cinnamon in shallow dish. Add the salmon and turn to coat. Let fish marinate 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, preheat oven to 425 F. Line a shallow baking pan that’s large enough to hold the fish with parchment paper.
When salmon has marinated 15 minutes, set fish in a single layer in baking pan. Drizzle salmon with marinade left in the dish, and season with salt and pepper. Bake fish 10 to 12 minutes, or until cooked through (see Note).
To serve, fill two shallow serving bowls with some of heavenly-spiced chickpea stew.
Top the stew in each bowl with a piece of the salmon and a dollop of the yogurt, if using. Garnish with parsley (or cilantro or mint) sprigs and serve.
Note: Salmon fillets can vary in thickness so to determine that they are cooked, the fish will feel slightly firm, begin to very slightly flake, and a white protein may seep out from the flakes.
Heavenly-spiced Chickpea Stew
Spices, such as cumin, coriander, ginger and cinnamon, give this easy-to-make stew a warm and appealing taste and a heavenly aroma. Serve it as a generous side dish for the salmon recipe above, or on its own, served on a bed of couscous, quinoa or rice.
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: 25 minutes
Makes: two servings
1 Tbsp olive oil
1/3 cup finely diced onion
1/3 cup finely diced carrot
1/3 cup finely diced red or green bell pepper
1 large garlic clove, minced
1 Tbsp tomato paste
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp ground coriander
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1 (14 oz./398 mL) chickpeas, drained well, rinsed, and drained again (see Note 1)
1 (14 oz/398 mL) can fire-roasted diced tomatoes (see Note 1)
1 cup chicken, fish or vegetable stock
1 tsp finely grated orange zest
1/4 cup orange juice
2 tsp honey
• salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1 cup, packed chopped kale leaves, blanched (see Note 2)
Place oil in a pot set over medium, medium-high heat (my pot was eight inches wide, and six inches tall). Add onion, carrot and bell pepper and cook and stir three minutes. Mix in garlic, tomato paste, cumin, coriander, ginger, cayenne and cinnamon and cook and stir a minute more.
Add chickpeas, tomatoes, stock, zest, orange juice and 2 tsp of the honey to the pot and bring this chickpea stew to a gentle simmer (small bubbles should just break on the surface). Adjust heat to maintain that gentle simmer. Simmer stew, uncovered, 15 minutes. Stir in the blanched kale, return to a simmer, and cook a few minutes more. Season the stew with salt and pepper, and it’s ready to serve (see Eric’s options).
Note 1: Fire-roasted diced tomatoes, which add a slightly smoky, rich tomato flavour to the stew, are sold in the canned tomato product aisle of most grocery stores. If you can’t find them, use regular, diced, canned tomatoes instead.
Note 2: To blanch kale, set in a pot of boiling water two to three minutes, until bright green and just tender. Drain well, cool with ice-cold water, and then drain well again. Squeeze any excess water from the kale and it ready to use. Blanching and precooking the kale in this way will help preserve its bright green colour when added to the stew.
Eric’s options: You can make the chickpea stew in advance, cool it to room temperature, refrigerate it, and reheat and serve it later. You may want to thin it with stock when reheating.
If you want to use dried chickpeas for the stew, instead of canned, set 2/3 cup dried chickpeas in a bowl, cover them with a generous amount of cold water and soak eight hours, or overnight. Drain soaked chickpeas, then set in a pot. Add six cups of fresh cold water, set pot over medium-high heat and bring chickpeas to a boil. Reduce heat until chickpeas gently simmer. Simmer chickpeas for 60 to 70 minutes, or until they are tender, but still nicely holding their shape. Drain chickpeas well, let cool, and they are ready to use.
Eric Akis is the author of eight cookbooks. His columns appear in the Life section Wednesday and Sunday.
