TABELIAAUTHENTIC RECIPE
Merluza en salsa verdeHake in Green Sauce
White fish and clams are gently cooked in a garlic and parsley sauce. This Basque version is served with white asparagus, keeping the delicate fish flesh intact.
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Ingredients (4 servings)
- Hake (skin-on portions)4 portions of 200g each.800 g
- ClamsPurge for 2 hours in 3% salt water (30g salt per 1L water), then scrub the shells under running water.400 g
- White asparagus in waterAlso use 200ml of the preserving liquid.200 g
- Garlic15 g
- ParsleyLeaves form part of the sauce.20 g
- Plain flour20 g
- Olive oil50 ml
- Salt30g for purging the clams and 4g for the fish.34 g
- WaterFor purging the clams.1000 ml
Method
Purge the clams
- 1 Dissolve 30g salt in 1L water to make 3% salt water and add 400g clams in a single layer to purge.
- 2 Leave in a cool, dark place for 2 hours, then scrub the shells under running water.
Ready when
Continue when sand has settled on the bottom of the container and the shells are clean.
Prepare the fish and green aromatics
- 1 Check 800g hake for bones and scales, remove them and pat the fish dry.
- 2 Lightly coat the fish with 4g salt and 20g plain flour.
- 3 Finely chop 15g garlic and 20g parsley leaves.
- 4 Separate 200g asparagus from 200ml of its preserving liquid.
Ready when
Continue when the flour coating on the fish is thin and even.
Gently braise the fish and clams
- 1 Put 50ml oil and the garlic in a wide pan and warm over low heat for 2 minutes.
- 2 Arrange the fish skin-side down, add the clams and 200ml asparagus liquid and cover.
- 3 Simmer over medium-low heat for 6–8 minutes, occasionally shaking the pan without breaking the fish.
Ready when
Continue when the clams open and the fish is opaque through its thickest part.
Caution
Do not eat clams that remain closed after cooking.
Add the parsley to make the green sauce
- 1 Add the asparagus and parsley to the pan and gently shake it over low heat for 2 minutes.
- 2 Transfer the fish, clams and asparagus to plates and spoon the sauce over them.
Ready when
It is ready when the sauce is lightly thickened and the parsley is evenly distributed.
About this dish
Basque fish cooking has sauces known by their colours: red vizcaína, black squid ink, and salsa verde, coloured green by parsley.
Hake in salsa verde is a characteristic dish using this green sauce. It combines ingredients such as garlic, olive oil and stock, and some versions include clams; it is a familiar example of Basque seafood cooking.
Exploring coastal cooking reveals that heads and belly cuts appear at the table as well as fillets. The Basque Country’s tourism guide also presents hake kokotxas and albacore belly, offering a glimpse of a culture that appreciates the different parts of a fish.
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