LENTILS

BAKED FISH WITH LENTILS, TOMATOES AND OLIVES

Lentils have gone from a kind of hippie wholefood ghetto to a year-round staple, perfect for cosying up a soup in the winter, and never better than in this consoling dish. The tiny, mottled greeny-blue pellets of puy lentils introduce a spicy earthiness and an incomparable nutty texture. When added to other ingredients at the still-warm stage, they soak up flavours beautifully.

PREPARATION TIME: 15 minutes | COOKING TIME: 35 minutes | SERVES: 6

² /₃ cup (125 g/4½ oz) small green (puy) lentils

2 × 400 g (14 oz) tins chopped tomatoes

1 cup (250 ml/9 fl oz) stock

1 cup (155 g/5½ oz) pitted black olives

3 garlic cloves, crushed

1 tablespoon capers, drained

6 thick white fish fillets (about 155 g/5½ oz each)

1 handful small basil leaves

Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F (fan 160°C/315°F).

Rinse the lentils and put in a large pot of water. Bring to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer for about 35 minutes, or until the lentils are tender. Drain well.

Meanwhile, put the tomatoes with their juices, stock, olives, garlic and capers in a casserole dish and gently cook on the stovetop for 10 minutes. Place the fish fillets in the dish with the cooked lentils and spoon over the tomato sauce, making sure the fish is covered completely in the sauce to prevent it from drying out. Loosely cover with foil and bake for 10 minutes, or until the fish is just cooked. Use the point of a small knife to peek inside the thickest part of the fish. It should gently resist flaking and if it appears almost opaque, the fish is cooked. The trick is to take it off the heat just before you think it’s fully cooked, as fish continues to cook for a couple of minutes off the heat. Serve the fish with the sauce spooned over and garnish with basil leaves.

TIPS Use a sustainable best-value fish. Instead of the basil, try pairing parsley with some dill, which is a natural choice of herb for fish.