Brazilian fish stew

Adapted from Simply Recipes 
Serves 2

Ingredients
Marinade:
2 garlic cloves crushed
Juice of 1 lemon
salt
1 tbsp of paprika
2 1/2 tsp of dry cumin
1 1/2 tsp of freshly ground black pepper

2 salmon fillets cut into bite sized chunks
2 haddock fillets cut into bite sized chunks
Olive oil
2 small onions, sliced
1 green pepper, seeded, de-stemmed, and sliced
3 plum tomatoes, sliced
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1/2 can of coconut milk
1 large bunch of curly parsley
Freshly cooked rice for serving

Mix together the marinade ingredients. Let the fish marinate in this paste for at least 2 hours. The longer, the better.

In a large pan, add a couple tablespoons of olive oil. Add a layer of  1/2 the sliced onions, and then a layer of  1/2 the peppers, and a layer of 1/2 of  the sliced tomatoes. Place the fish pieces, with the marinade, on top of everything, and start layering again – onions, peppers, and tomatoes. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Add about half of the curly parsley to the top. Pour coconut milk over the top. Drizzle generously with olive oil over the top (several tablespoons).

Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, cover and let simmer for 30 minutes to an hour, until the vegetables are cooked through.

Serve with rice; garnish with remaining curly parsley

 

First time using coconut milk as the base for the stew; normally it’s tomatoes or cream but this works very well. Not too overpowering and it blends well with the spices. Love the balance. Key modification of the recipe is that I used curly parsley instead of coriander because I couldn’t find coriander at Waitress. But interestingly curly parsley works quite well too, I don’t think it adds much in terms of taste but I like the difference in texture that it gives; crisp.

Brazilian fish stew

Ingredients

8 (6-ounce) pieces skinless hake or Pacific cod fillet (1/2 to 1 1/4 inches thick)
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
1/2 teaspoon finely chopped bottled malagueta peppers or 1/4 teaspoon dried hot red-pepper flakes
2 tablespoons finely chopped garlic (3 cloves)
2 teaspoons salt
1 pound extra-large shrimp in shell (16 to 20 per pound)
1 1/2 pound tomatoes, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 large onion, chopped
1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper
1/3 cup chopped yellow bell pepper
2 yellow plantains, peeled and each cut diagonally into 8 pieces 
1/2 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro 
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley 
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Pat fish fillets dry and put in a bowl. Stir together lime juice, malagueta peppers, 1 tablespoon garlic, and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, then pour over fish and toss to combine. Marinate, covered and chilled, 30 minutes. Add shrimp and chill at least 30 minutes but no longer than 1 1/2 hours more.

Put tomatoes in bottom of a wide 5- to 6-quart heavy pot. Top with onion and remaining tablespoon garlic, then sprinkle with bell peppers. Place plantains on top of vegetables. Sprinkle evenly with remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt. Arrange fish in 1 layer on top of plantain. Sprinkle cilantro and parsley over fish, then arrange shrimp in 1 layer over herbs, reserving marinade. Pour oil and marinade evenly over mixture in pot. 

Bring to a simmer, then cover pot. Adjust heat to gently simmer until vegetables are softened and have released liquid and fish is just cooked through, about 20 minutes. 


Bananas and fish. l’s first reaction when I told her about it was: eeewwwwkkkk. Surprisingly, it turn out pretty well. The bananas gave the stew a faint fruity taste which distinguishes it from the typical tomato based fish stews. My mom is quite happy with this dish as well, aside from the fact that she likes the taste: fresh, wholesome and healthy, she is impressed by the fact that the dish is simple to make and clean to prepare. No stains on the stove as it’s just a matter of simmering in the pot for 20 minutes.

Oh and I didn’t know what plantains are. I had to use wikipedia to work out what it is: a kind of banana!