One Pot Meal: Baked Fish Provençal

Pet peeve: meals that dirty several pots. Or a meal that you start on the stove and transfer to a casserole to put in the oven. Or a meal that dirties the blender or food processor in addition to one or more pots. I hate dishes so I try to keep them to a minimum! Sometimes, when a recipe says to start cooking on the stovetop and transfer to a casserole, I try to figure out if I can do the whole thing in the same pot or skillet. Since my pots are oven safe, that's often a viable option. So that's what I did with this easy fish dish. It's one example of the kinds of simple meals we're eating lately in order to stay sane. Make sure you have a pot with an oven-safe lid, too.

Baked Fish Provençal 
(adapted from $3 Dinners)

Ingredients: 
1/4 c. olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 (14 oz) can diced tomatoes and their juice
3 T. chopped parsley or 1 T. dry parsley
1 T. Herbes de Provence (see note below)
1 bay leaf
2 large potatoes, thinly sliced (or 3 medium or 4-6 small)
1/3 c. chopped and pitted oil cured olives (I find them in the international aisle at Meijer)
unrefined sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
1 1/2 lbs fish fillets, such as cod or whitefish, rinsed (make sure it's wild-caught and not from China)

Method:
1. Preheat oven to 375.
2. Heat oil in large skillet on medium. Add onion, cook 3-4 min, adding garlic in the last minute. Add tomatoes, herbes de provence, parsley, bay leaf, potatoes, olives, and salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a boil and simmer, covered, 7-10 minutes until potatoes begin to soften.
3. Remove bay leaf, check seasoning. Remove half of the mixture to a dish (perhaps one you will be eating out of later so as to not dirty an extra dish), and place fish fillets on top of remaining mixture. Place reserved mixture on top of fish.
4. Cover and bake 25 minutes, until fish is opaque and flakes easily with a fork and potatoes are tender.(You can also uncover it for the last 10 minutes or so, see update below.)

I think it's great with a sprinkle of parmesan and a squirt of fresh lemon juice. You can serve it with some vegetables or a salad on the side, but it also makes a pretty complete meal on it's own. Even better!

Note: Don't have Herbes de Provence on hand? Neither did I. There are plenty of recipes online for how to make your own. Here's the one I used. If you're out of something, don't stress about it (unless it's the oregano or thyme). I made mine without savory or lavender. I'm sure it would be extra tasty with those added, but it was plenty good without them, too!

What's your favorite one-pot meal?

[Update: yesterday I heated up the leftovers for lunch in a 250 degree oven for a little over an hour while I was running errands. I turned the heat up to 300 when I got home for 15 minutes or so. These leftovers were even more delicious than the original, which I owe to two things: cooking for so long at a low temperature concentrated the delicious sauce, and heating it uncovered crisped up the potatoes. Our family practically devoured it. I love it when leftovers taste so good!]

This is part of Real Food Wednesday, Gluten-Free Wednesday, This Chick Cooks and Simple Lives Thursday. Check them out for tons of great recipes and kitchen tips!

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