Catalan fish stew (romesco de peix)

This is a simplified version of the famed fishermen’s stew from the Catalan region of Spain. There, cooks use a variety of fish and thicken the stew with picada, a sauce-base made using dried chillies, garlic, fried bread, olive oil and pounded toasted nuts (hazelnuts or almonds). Use a mix of your favorite firm white fish – snapper, barramundi, bream, blue eye or bream, for example – or just one type, as we've done here.