Recipe Cod, Kala Chana, N'duja

[Morning Glory]

Surf with a touch of turf. Spicy and fruity tasting, n'duja has a wonderful affinity with seafood and a little goes a long way. Kala chana (black or brown chickpeas) add a lovely earthy note to this dish. If you want to make this for two people (as I did) halve the quantities of cod, butter and kala chana but make the sauce as shown below and reserve half the sauce for another dish. I used the reserved sauce in a pasta dish.

Ingredients (serves 4)
4 cod loin fillets (approx.130g each)
50g butter
400g cooked kala chana (cooked weight). This is approximately 1¾ cans, drained
3 to 5 fresh mussels per serving (optional)
Oil of your choice to drizzle (I used parsley oil)

For the sauce:
1/2 medium onion, chopped
1 tbsp oil
1/2 tin chopped tomatoes
1 tbsp tomato pureé
50 ml red wine
40g ‘nduja
Salt to taste

Method

1. Start by making the sauce. Cook the chopped onion in oil until softened and translucent. Add the tomatoes, tomato pureé and red wine.
2. Simmer for approximately 20 minutes until the sauce thickens and is reduced by at least a third. Purée the sauce until smooth (I used a stick blender).
3. Place the sauce back on a medium heat. Add the ‘nduja in little clumps and stir until it dissolves into the sauce. Add salt to taste
4. Add the drained kala chana and simmer gently to heat through. Keep the kala chana mixture warm while you cook the fish.
5. Heat the butter on a medium/low heat in a non-stick pan until it begins to foam.
6. Place the cod fillets in the pan and cook for 4 to 5 minutes per side, basting with butter as you go. If the butter begins to brown too much lower the heat and add a little more butter or olive oil to the pan. Set aside to rest for a few minutes.
7. Add the mussels to the pan with splash of water and cook for a few minutes, stirring until they open.
8. To serve, place the cod on top of the kala chana, arrange mussels around the plate, drizzle with oil and garnish with chervil or parsley.