Acqua Pazza – Fun to say, delicious to eat, Pesce all’ Acqua Pazza is an Italian poached fish dish that looks and tastes like summer on a plate!
The best part is the crispy garlic crostini hidden under the fish that soaks up all that delicious sauce …
Pesce all’ Acqua Pazza: Italian poached fish
The literal translation of this Italian dish is “fish in crazy water”. Maybe because who would ever think that fish poached in a water-based sauce could be so delicious??! That’s crazy! 😉
While some have used the name as a licence to add all sorts of things to it, it’s actually supposed to be a simple dish based on three core ingredients: wine, tomato and herbs.
Oh – and yes, fish. 😂
As always there are various accounts of the origins and meaning of the dish name. No matter the truth, one thing that’s clear is it’s a dish that showcases the spirit of Italian cooking: taking a few simple ingredients and turning it into something magical.
This, coming from someone who usually steers clear of poached fish, declaring that there are so many more exciting ways to prepare fish! But truly, I’d happily eat this every day. And I practically have, leading up to sharing this recipe. 🙂
What goes in Acqua Pazza
Here’s what you need to make this wonderful Italian poached fish dish:
Best fish for Acqua Pazza
This dish works best with fairly firm white fish fillets that are not too thick. Here are some suggestions:
Snapper – this is what I used, it’s perfect!
Dory
Barramundi (try to get the thinner fillets)
Bream
Tilapia
Halibut
Pollock
Cod
Emperor fish
Whiting
Flathead
Perch
Ling
Bass
Basa, hake, hoki, gummy shark
Skin-on is preferred as it helps the fillets hold their shape, but if your fillets are skinless or you dislike poached fish skin, without skin still works fine.
Small whole fish would also work just fine. Cut a few slashes so it cooks evenly and faster to ensure there’s still juices left in the pan when the fish is done.
Fish to avoid
I recommend avoiding:
Fish that dry out easily when cooked – Like swordfish, tuna, bonito, kingfish, marlin. Unless you’re extremely careful they can become dry inside. I feel these fish are (mostly) better in raw/rare form such as Ceviche, Poke Bowls, Tartare;
Delicate and thin-filleted fish – Like flounder, sole, plaice. The texture of the flesh is a bit too delicate for this type of cooking and these fish tend to be very thin fillets; and
Oily fish – Like salmon, trout, mackerels, mullet and sardines. While it will work just fine, it’s not so common to see it with this kind of sauce.
Other ingredients
Chardonnay (or other white wine) – Using a bolder white wine is an excellent option here to pack complexity and depth of flavour into this simple dish. Unless you can’t consume alcohol, I really urge you not to skip the wine. Best non-alcoholic sub: chicken or fish stock (low sodium);
Fennel and onion – The sauce flavour base. Fennel is an Italian favourite which adds fabulous sweet flavour into the sauce. Don’t skip the fennel even if you’re not a huge fan; the aniseed flavour is very mild in the finished dish;
Chilli and garlic – Excellent friends of tomato and wine. We’re using a big red chilli here – and only half at that – which means the spiciness is virtually non-existent. It’s more about adding a really subtle background warmth. Feel free to add more!
Tomato – Both red and yellow cherry tomatoes here, simmered in the sauce until they break down to form part of the sauce. A fabulous splash of summer colour!
Basil and parsley – That moment they’re sprinkled into the hot sauce and the fresh herby flavour hits you, you know you’re in for something special!
Garlic crostini
And here’s what you need for the garlic crostini. Trust me when I say that you do not want to skip the crostini!!
How to make Acqua Pazza
The fish is half steamed, half poached on the chunky sauce. This means we get the best of both worlds: ultra moistness from gentle steaming, and a magical exchange of flavour between fish and sauce.
Sauté fennel and onion first, adding garlic and chilli, then tomato;
Reduce wine by half, cooking out the alcohol and leaving behind all the flavour!
Simmer sauce – Add water then simmer to reduce by about half. Don’t bother tasting at this stage, it’s not exciting yet;
Place fish on top of the sauce. Because it’s a chunky style sauce, it will sit mostly above the liquid level. Then place a lid on – any lid is fine (I use a pot lid just larger than my skillet). Pending a lid, cover with a baking tray or foil instead;
Poach until fish is just cooked. This takes around 6 minutes for the 180g/6oz thick snapper fillets I used, or check until the internal temperature is 55°C/131°F. This is medium which is when the fish is just cooked with no rare/raw parts left, optimum moistness. Read more about internal temperature of cook fish here.
Using this method of cooking is excellent for extracting the most flavour out of a simple dish. The juices from the fish mixes into the sauce – the purest form of fish stock ever – and the fish absorbs the flavour of the sauce; and
Herbs – Remove fish, then finally stir herbs into the sauce. Now you can taste the sauce!!!
Plating up
And here’s how to assemble the finished dish:
Place 2 slices of crostini in a shallow bowl;
Spoon some sauce over the crostini;
Top with fish; and
Spoon remaining sauce around fish. Garnish with fresh basil and drizzle with olive oil.
This needs to be served immediately because the idea here is that the crostini under the fish is still crunchy, yet is soaked with sauce. Digging in with your hands at some point is not optional!
Another nice thing about Acqua Pazza is that it’s a complete meal. Protein, starch and a nice amount of veg are all here, so there’s no need to fuss with a side salad here.
It’s also got a nice flow to it, one of those recipes where you get things started on the stove as you can continue preparing the other ingredients.
Don’t let the simplicity of the dish fool you. This is a poached fish dish that packs seriously good flavour. The Italians know best! – Nagi x
Watch how to make it
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Acqua Pazza – Italian Poached Fish
Ingredients
- 2 x 180g/6oz snapper fillets, or other white fish, , skin on, bones and scales removed (Note 1)
- 1/4 tsp salt
Sauce:
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1/4 red onion , sliced 1cm / 1/3″ thick
- 1/2 fennel (medium) , sliced sliced 1cm / 1/3" thick
- 1/2 large red chilli (cayenne pepper) , seeds removed and finely chopped (Note 2)
- 2 garlic cloves , finely minced
- 15 red cherry tomatoes , halved
- 10 yellow cherry tomatoes , halved (or more red)
- 3/4 cup chardonnay (not too woody) , or other dry white wine (Note 3)
- 2 cups water
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp basil , finely sliced (keep stems), plus more for garnish
- 1 tbsp parsley , finely chopped (keep stems)
Garlic Crostini:
- 1 crusty baguette , cut 4 to 6 slices on a diagonal, 1cm / 1/3" thick
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 – 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 garlic clove , halved (for rubbing)
Instructions
- Sauté fennel and onion: Heat oil in a non-stick skillet over medium heat. Add fennel and onion, cook 4 minutes until softened but not golden.
- Garlic and chilli: Add garlic and chilli, cook for 1 minute until garlic is softened.
- Tomatoes: Add cherry tomatoes, cook for 4 minutes.
- Reduce wine: Turn stove up to high, add wine and simmer rapidly for 2 – 3 minutes until reduced by half.
- Simmer sauce: Add water and salt, and the basil & parsley stems if you kept them. Bring to boil, then lower stove to medium and simmer for 20 – 25 minutes until sauce reduces by about 2/3 (it will thicken from tomatoes breaking down).
- Cook fish: Sprinkle flesh side of fish with salt, then place on sauce skin side down (it will mostly sit above sauce). Cover with lid (or foil or tray) and cook for 6 minutes or until internal temperature registers 55°C/131°F (for medium, no rare/raw left with optimum juiciness).
- Remove fish: Remove lid, transfer fish to plate.
- Add herbs: Remove basil and parsley stems. Stir basil and parsley into sauce. Taste sauce, add more salt if required.
To serve:
- Place 2 crostini in a shallow bowl. Spoon over a bit of the chunky sauce, top with fish. Spoon remaining sauce around.
- Garnish with extra basil and a drizzle of olive oil. Serve immediately.
Garlic crostini:
- Preheat oven to 180°C/350°F (all types).
- Brush olive oil on bread, sprinkle with a bit of salt. Flip and repeat. Bake 10 minutes, turning halfway, or until fully crispy.
- Rub bread lightly on one side with cut face of garlic. Use warm or at room temperature.
Recipe Notes:
Non-alcoholic substitute: low sodium chicken or fish stock, and reduce salt in sauce by 1/4 tsp. 4. Bread – Best to use a bread that’s got a bit of structure and heft to it: ciabatta, pane di casa / pain de campagne, stone-baked loaf or a sourdough. If you use the soft white baguettes, the crostini will soak through immediately once sauced and just become soggy. You want it to stay crispy even once sauced so you can pile it up with the fish and vegetables – it’s the best eating experience! Slice on a suitable diagonal angle so you get long thin pieces that are at least the length of the fish fillet, if not longer. 5. Best made fresh. If you have leftovers, keep fish and sauce separate from crostini. Microwave / steam reheat fish and sauce, then assemble. 6. Nutrition per serving, assuming 2 slices of crostini. Shave off 62 cal per serving by reducing cooking olive oil from 2 tbsp down to 1 tbsp.
Nutrition Information:
Life of Dozer
I’m too embarrassed to tell you what he’s getting a hunk of here … let’s just say it’s pricier than fish …
FABULOUS! I am Italian and this recipe is just divine perfection. I love your style and the way you write instructions and suggestions. You have a fan for life!
I love this dish, it’s so simple and tasty. I’m making it as part of an Italian banquet for 3 couple. What sides would you recommend with it?
Hi Vic – just a nice simple salad and a killer dessert would be fine – it already has the crusty bread and lots of vegetables. Try my tiramisu here: https://www.recipetineats.com/easy-tiramisu/ Buon Appetito! N x
HI Nagi and Dozer.
I was wondering if I can use fennel seeds in place of fennel since I do not have any? If not what can I use in its place?
Hi Redonia, I would substitute with celery and some fresh dill for flavour – N x
Thank you.
This is a favorite of ours. Honestly if it hadn’t come from Nagi I would not have even tried it because I don’t like fennel. The flavor is so lovely here!
this was amazing. I drank the leftover sauce right out of the pan!!!
We’ve all done that at some time haven’t we Jenn 😉 N x
Hi Nagi, can i sub sake for the white wine?
A dry white would be better to use for this one sorry Gayle! N x
This is the best recipe! I’ve added muscles and prawns and it always is a winner in our house. Thanks Nagi
I never ever cook fish but this looked too good to pass by. It’s absolutely delicious 😋
Hi Nagi, would this work if I sub white wine with red? have some really good red leftover
Not for this recipe sorry Gayle, red is a little too rich and will overtake the gentle flavours. N x
What can I sub for fennel? It isn’t readily available where I am. By the way, I love you blog. We have had many delicious meals from you 😍
Hi Nagi,
I was thinking of adding some kalamata or Sicilian olives to the dish, do you think it would work? I was thinking to add them in during the simmering of the sauce process. Thanks x
Olives would be a great addition Rachel – I would try Sicilian as they aren’t as intense in flavour – N x
Made exactly as recipe, except didn’t add fresh basil/oil when serving, as didn’t think it needed. Clever using herb stems-I think that, and the really good Charddy, made the poaching liquid divine. Used Goldband Snapper-whole family LOVED it…I got a “do it again mum” Yay!! Love your recipes, and directionsXXX
Well, what can I say? OMG……
I have wanted to try this for couple of weeks, at last !!
My husband went from “it’s nice, isn’t it” to “OMG this is the BEST fish dish EVER”
That Nagi is the best compliment from him, he’s a serious fisher man !!!
I used our favourite fish, snapper…
Thanks for all your magnificent recipes, with videos to help us see how to make it.
Thanks, thanks, thanks.. Pam
What can you replace the garlic crostini with for gluten free peeps
Hi Rachael
I have a son hi is coeliac and we buy Baguette/French stix from Coles and Woolworths.
Pam
Hi Nagi. It looks amazing…! I bought all ingredients but I cannot find fennel in small British grocery stores. Probably big shops have it but I cannot go there because of the lockdown. Can I use something else instead of fennel?? I really want to try this recipe 🙏
We also couldn’t find fresh fennel, and replaced it with some fennel seeds for the flavour. If you can’t get fennel seeds either, you could just leave it out altogether and use a bit more red onion. I think it would still be really good.
oops, I didn’t leave the star rating in my comment so here it is
Thanks so much Brenda!! N x
I made this and it was really good-and I don’t like poached fish, lol. Hubby loved it too. It was the pic and the video that made me want to try it because it looked so yummy, and it was! Made as is except I didn’t have red chili pepper so I used a really small dash of cayenne spice. I bought more cod to make it again. Thanks for your great recipes-and is the expensive food you’re giving Dozer (in the above pic) lobster?? Lucky dog lol. Hope he’s doing better after eating all the mulch. I worked as a veterinary asst for 27 yrs so I’ve seen similar.
All right, Nagi… I bought some fennel and I’m trusting you here…
This was amazing. Not overpowering in flavours, just right. I used barramundi and it went really well with it.
Forgot to buy baguette so served with rice which worked well
This was so good! Fantastic recipe
Thanks so much Ari! ❤️ N x
We loved this dish! It was excellent and such a treat for Valentine’s dinner. Used red snapper and was shocked/horrified when one piece had several bones in it. I had not anticipated bones in red snapper, but otherwise it was perfect. Instead of a red chili, I used two, seeded cherry peppers. The garlic crostini was delicious with this dish. I served broccoli and spinach tortellinis for sides. Thank you for sharing this yummy recipe — it is absolutely awesome!