Swordfish, Malaga style

I went to Malaga once and it was cold. A friend had offered a vacation condo in this Mediterranean resort after I sold my loft, but it was February and I had to keep the space heater going the whole time.

Nonetheless, the name conjures up hot weather and beaches, so for one of my bachelor fish dinners, I picked this recipe from Janet Mendel's My Kitchen in Spain. I had to cut down the recipe, of course, and just left out the ingredients I didn't have (I bought the swordfish before I found the recipe).

Saute chopped onion, chopped garlic, and chopped green pepper (missing) in olive oil for 5 minutes, then add diced tomato, white wine, parsley (missing), bay leaf, ground cloves, salt and pepper, and simmer to thicken sauce. Then add the swordfish steak(s) and cook in sauce, turning once, until cooked through. I didn't sprinkle it with sliced green olives to finish. I had it with white rice.

I find the taste of swordfish surprisingly mild given how oily and fishy it looks in its raw state. Here the white flaky cooked fish paired nicely with the tomato, onion and garlic.

Mendel has this nice touch of simple, tasty recipes that bring you the Mediterranean with just a couple of ingredients. "Malaga style," she explains in the headnote, means cooked with a sofrito that includes fresh tomatoes. Maybe next time I go it will be sunny and hot.