Fish Stock

On my visit to Fish at the Fox, Marc gave me a big bag of fish heads and bones to make stock. It really is worth asking your fishmonger if he has any trimmings like this, as homemade stock far surpasses anything you can buy in the shop.
The heads did look rather gruesome, especially the hake head. My slightly morbid curiosity (and interest in biology) took hold and I examined the heads, peering into their mouths, the hake had particularly fearsome teeth, so I kept my fingers well away.

You'll need a big, okay very big pan for this. Rinse the fish heads to remove any blood as this can make your stock slightly bitter in taste. Put the heads and bones ( about a kilogram's worth) into the pot and add a chopped onion, a chopped fennel bulb, about 100g sliced celery, 100g chopped carrot, 25g sliced button mushrooms and a sprig of thyme. Pour in 2.4 litres of water, place on the stove and bring it to the boil, then turn down to a low simmer for about 45 minutes.

Strain the stock through a muslin cloth-lined sieve and store as required. I like to freeze mine in 250ml portions for ease.

Photo: ©childsdesign 2011