Tom Kerridge loves filling portions, even when on a diet, but I found his Baked Cod with Beans, Courgettes and Chorizo somewhat overbearing. Two chunky cod fillets, 3 courgettes, a tin of butter beans, a punnet of cherry vine tomatoes with olives and chorizo, for two people, wow. I ended up making this for three but it still felt like a big meal that was lacking in flavour, despite the cod being left for 2 hours to marinate with the sea salt and the smoked paprika.
There were plenty of leftovers, however interestingly the beans, courgettes, tomatoes and chorizo were so much more tastier the day after. Hmm, maybe the flavour juices intensified after being cooked with the fish. Even so, at a hefty cost of over £6 per portion, it’s a recipe I’m unlikely to return to as I believe these ingredients can be put to better and more frugal use.
Recipe: Baked cod with beans, courgettes and chorizo
Calories: 535 calories per serving
Serves: 2
Book: Tom Kerridge – Lose Weight for Good
Prep time: Approx 15 mins (in addition to up to 2 hours to prep the fish)
Cooking time: Approx 30 mins
Ingredients: 2 tsp flaky sea salt, 1 tsp hot smoked paprika, 2 cod fillets (200g each), 3 medium courgettes (cut into chunks), 4 garlic cloves (thickly sliced), 200ml fresh fish stock, 1 tsp dried oregano, olive oil spray, 400g tin butter beans (rinsed and drained), 200g cherry tomatoes (on the vine), 40g pitted green olives, 8 thin slices of chorizo, finely grated zest and juice of 1 lemon, sea salt, ground black pepper, flat-leaf parsley (finely chopped, to finish)
Cost per portion: Approx £6.24
Method: Mix the flaky salt with half a teaspoon of smoked paprika and sprinkle over both sides of the cod fillets. Place them on a plate, cover with cling film and refrigerate for one to two hours.
Preheat the oven to fan 180°C/gas 4. Line a roasting tin with baking parchment.
Place the courgettes in the roasting tin. Add the garlic and pour on half of the fish stock. Sprinkle with the oregano and some salt and pepper. Spray with 25-30 sprays of oil. Cook on the middle shelf of the oven for 15 minutes.
Remove the fish from the fridge, wash off the salt and pat dry with kitchen paper.
Take the tray from the oven and mix through the butter beans. Nestle the fish fillets into the mixture, along with the cherry tomatoes and olives. Pour on the rest of the fish stock. Lay the chorizo slices, overlapping, on top of the cod fillets.
Sprinkle the lemon zest and juice and the remaining half teaspoon of smoked paprika over everything and season with salt and pepper. Spray another 20 sprays of oil over the surface and bake in the oven for 12 minutes, until the fish is just cooked. Sprinkle with chopped parsley and serve.
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