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Overhead bowl of stoccafisso alla genovese with flaked stockfish, potatoes, black olives, and pine nuts in tomato sauce

Stoccafisso alla Genovese: Ligurian Stockfish Stew

A slow-braised Ligurian stew of rehydrated stockfish, potatoes, tomatoes, olives, and pine nuts, simmered until the fish flakes apart.
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Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 50 minutes
Total Time 2 hours 10 minutes
Servings: 4 servings
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Italian (Ligurian)
Calories: 460
Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Stockfish
  • 800 g stoccafisso, pre-soaked, cleaned and boned cut into 5 cm chunks
For the Sauce
  • 60 ml extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 onion, finely chopped medium
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 celery stalk, finely chopped
  • 1 carrot, finely chopped
  • 2 anchovy fillets, chopped
  • 100 ml dry white wine
  • 400 g crushed tomatoes canned
  • 500 ml fish stock or water
  • 500 g potatoes, peeled and cut into 3 cm chunks waxy variety like Yukon Gold
  • 40 g pine nuts
  • 80 g pitted Taggiasca olives
  • 15 g dried porcini mushrooms soaked in warm water 20 minutes, chopped
  • salt and black pepper to taste
  • 2 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped

Method
 

Make the Soffritto
  1. Heat olive oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Add onion, garlic, celery, and carrot; cook 8 to 10 minutes until soft and pale gold.
  2. Stir in the anchovy fillets and mash them into the soffritto with a wooden spoon until they dissolve, about 1 minute.
Build the Stew
  1. Add stockfish chunks to the pot and sear 2 to 3 minutes per side, turning gently so the pieces don't break apart.
  2. Pour in the white wine and let it bubble 1 to 2 minutes until the sharp smell cooks off.
  3. Stir in the crushed tomatoes and stock. Bring to a gentle simmer, cover partially, and cook 45 minutes, stirring occasionally.
  4. Add potatoes, pine nuts, olives, and porcini. Cover and simmer another 40 to 45 minutes until the potatoes are fork-tender and the stockfish flakes easily with a fork.
  5. Uncover and simmer 5 to 10 more minutes if the sauce looks thin, until it coats the back of a spoon.
  6. Season with salt and pepper, stir in the parsley, and let the stew sit off heat 5 minutes before serving.

Notes

  • Under-soaked stockfish stays tough no matter how long you simmer it.
  • Use waxy potatoes like Yukon Gold so they hold shape in the sauce.
  • Taggiasca olives are milder than Kalamata; adjust salt if you swap them.
  • The sauce should coat a spoon before you call the stew done.