I’ve written before about things that feel just right, such as a bath at the perfect temperature. To this list I’m now adding making a stew after an autumnal walk, and the tearing and dunking of good bread into a steaming bowl of said stew. Of course, the stew has to be just right, too – not too brothy or light, and it needs to sit in the stomach radiating away, but not so heavy as to put you straight to sleep. I think today’s stew, sweetly spiced and generously flavoured with some of my favourite ingredients, might be that “just-right stew”.
Fennel, artichoke, potato and kalamata olive stew
Prep 15 min
Cook 50 min
Serves 4
7 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 large fennel bulb (400g), trimmed, fronds reserved, then cut lengthways into ½cm-thick slices
6 fat garlic cloves, peeled and thinly sliced
1½ tsp fine sea salt
150ml white wine
2 tsp sweet smoked paprika
400g tin chopped tomatoes – I like Mutti’s polpa
350g new potatoes, halved (or quartered, if large)
400g tin chickpeas, drained
160g drained jarred artichokes, from a 280g jar, sliced
100g pitted kalamata olives
30g flat-leaf parsley, leaves and tender stalks, finely chopped
Good baguette, to serve
Put the oil in a large pot on a medium heat and, when hot, add the sliced fennel and cook, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes, until coloured and softening. Stir in the garlic and salt, cook for five minutes more, then add the wine and leave it to bubble away for a couple of minutes.
Add the paprika, tomatoes, potatoes, chickpeas and 200ml water, then cover the pan and leave to cook for 20 minutes, until the potatoes are tender. Stir in the sliced artichokes, olives and 250ml water, cook for another five minutes, then take off the heat; add more water, if need be, to make it as stewy as you like it.
Stir through the chopped parsley, then serve in shallow bowls topped with the reserved fennel fronds, if you like, with a crusty baguette on the side.
