Bahian Style Fish Stew Moqueca De Peixe Recipes

MOQUECA DE PEIXE BAIANA (BRAZILIAN FISH STEW)

Steps:

• Rinse sea bass under running cold water; pat dry. Place in a shallow dish and season with lime juice, garlic, and salt. Marinate for 30 minutes.
• Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add grated onion and cook for a few seconds. Add fish and marinade to the skillet and cook for 3 to 5 minutes. Stir in palm oil and onion rings, followed by water and coconut milk. Simmer for 15 minutes. Add green bell pepper, red bell pepper, tomatoes, cilantro, and green onions; cover and cook until vegetables are soft and flavors are well combined, about 5 minutes.

BAHIA-STYLE MOQUECA PRAWN STEW

Steps:

• Place the prawns in a bowl with 2 tbsp of the lime juice, 1 tsp of salt and 1 tbsp of the chopped garlic. Chill for 1 hr.
• Heat the coconut oil in a large saucepan. Add the spring onion and onion and fry for 5 mins, then add the red pepper, chilli flakes, paprika and remaining garlic.
• Pour in the tomatoes, coconut milk and a little salt. Bring to a simmer and let reduce for 10 mins. Add the prawns, all the marinade and remaining lime juice. Gently simmer until the prawns turn white, about 3 mins. Serve with the fresh coriander and rice.

SEAFOOD MOQUECA

Steps:

• For the sauce: Heat a 12-inch saute pan with a lid or a 6-quart Dutch oven over medium heat, then add oil and garlic. Stir for 30 seconds or so, until it gets a little color, then add onions, salt, pepper and Pepper Sauce. Cover pan and sweat the onions for 4 to 5 minutes. Add bell peppers and tomatoes, then cover, lower heat and very gently simmer, scraping the bottom to prevent burning every 5 minutes or so, until peppers and onions are cooked but still have a bite, about 30 minutes. Check your seasonings again.
• For the seafood: Meanwhile prepare the seafood: cut fish fillets into thumb-size pieces (same size as the shrimp), scrub clams and mussels, and cut calamari into rings.
• Increase temperature of the sauce to medium-high. Add clams, fish, shrimp, coconut milk and dende oil and season with salt and pepper (and more Pepper Sauce to taste). Cover the pan until clams start to open, 2 to 3 minutes. Add calamari and mussels, then cover again and cook until all shells are open and calamari and shrimp are opaque and cooked through, another 2 to 3 minutes.
• Serve family-style, from your Dutch oven, or split into four large bowls.
• Garnish with green onions, parsley and cilantro, if using. Serve with white rice.
• Combine the peppers, olive oil and salt in a food processor until fully incorporated.
• Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

MOQUECA (BAHIAN FISH STEW)

Steps:

• First make the fish stock. In a stockpot, combine the shrimp shells; fish heads and scraps; the quartered onion; 1 of the garlic cloves, peeled and lightly crushed; 4 of the scallions; the bay leaf, and parsley. Add the water, and bring to a boil. Skim off any foam that rises to the surface. Reduce the heat, and just barely simmer for about 2 hours or until the stock is well flavored. Strain, discarding the solids, and reserve. You should have about 5 cups of stock. The stock can be made well ahead of time and refrigerated or frozen until ready to use.
• Place the shrimp, fish steaks and scallops on a deep platter, and sprinkle with lemon juice; lime juice; 1 clove of the garlic, finely chopped; salt, and pepper. Cover and set aside to marinate not less than 1 nor more than 2 hours. Turn the seafood at least once during this time. Rinse and debeard the mussels. Pick over the crab, discarding any bits of shell and cartilage. Reserve the mussels and crab until ready to use.
• In a large stockpot over medium heat, saute the chopped onion; the remaining 6 cloves of garlic, chopped; the remaining scallions, and the bell peppers in olive oil, stirring frequently, until the vegetables are thoroughly wilted, about 10 minutes. Add 2 cups of the strained fish stock, the tomatoes and coriander, and bring to a simmer. Cover and simmer very gently for about 1 hour.
• When the sauce has finished cooking, puree in a food processor or pass through a food mill. For a more elegant presentation, strain the resulting puree through a sieve. Return the puree to the stove over very low heat. Stir in the coconut milk, and let cook gently for 2 or 3 minutes, then add the palm oil and stir it in. Taste, and add a little cayenne pepper. Add the marinated seafood along with any juices that may have accumulated. Add the mussels. Cover and simmer until the shellfish have opened and the fish steaks are thoroughly cooked, 10 to 15 minutes. Add the crab meat, stir in, and serve immediately.
• Pass the pepper sauce with the stew. A little spoonful (or more, depending on taste) should be drizzled over each serving.

BAHIAN BRASILIAN FISH STEW, DECORATED WITH BOILED EGGS (MOQUECA

Steps:

• Set eggs on to boil.
• Stir together the lime juice, cumin, paprika, garlic, salt and pepper in a non-reactive bowl. Add the Tilapia and GENTLY toss with your fingers to coat. Cover and refrigerate for 10-15 minutes being careful not to let the fish "cook" in the lime juice.
• Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Saute the onions and the diced chilies until onions are transparent and beginning to lightly brown. Wash hands thoroughly after handling the chilies.
• Reduce heat to medium. Stir in the tomato paste.
• Add the bell peppers and diced tomatoes to the pot in succeeding layers. Pour the coconut milk over the mixture. Stir well but gently.
• Cover the pot and simmer on lowest heat for 15- 30 minutes or until the peppers are at a consistency you like, stirring occasionally.
• Gently add the fish, marinade and 2/3 of the chopped and stemmed cilantro and continue cooking until the fish is thoroughly cooked. Allow 5-8 minutes depending on the thickness of the fillets.
• Ladle or gently pour the Moqueca into a large serving bowl, garnish with boiled egg wedges on top and finish with remaining chopped cilantro.
• Serve over white rice, with lime wedges. Side dishes: sauteed collards or spinach and garlic. For dessert, cold orange slices. Also a good accompaniment: Brazilian Cheese Bread (Pão de Queijo) ( it's gluten/wheat free)!
• Slow Cooker Variation:.
• Place ALL ingredients including the marinade in the slow cooker EXCEPT the FISH pieces and cilantro). Cook 6 to 8 hours (overnight) on low and then to WARM.
• 1 hour prior to serving, return cooker to LOW: ADD half the cilantro and the fish.
• Gently spoon sauce over fish pieces and allow fish to cook for 1 hour until the fish is cooked through. Garnish and serve as described above.

BRAZILIAN FISH STEW (MOQUECA DE PEIXE)

Steps:

• Combine first 6 ingredients in a large bowl; toss to coat. Marinate in refrigerator 30 minutes.
• Heat oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat.
• Add the onion, bell peppers, green onions, garlic, and bay leaf; cook 6 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• Increase heat to medium-high; add tomato, and cook 2 minutes.
• Add 1/4 cup cilantro, clam juice, and broth. Bring to a boil; reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes.
• Discard bay leaf.
• Place one-third of vegetable mixture in a blender, and puree until smooth.
• Pour pureed vegetable mixture into pan. Repeat procedure with remaining vegetable mixture.
• Add coconut milk and red pepper to pureed vegetable mixture.
• Bring to a boil over medium-high heat; cook 3 minutes. Add fish mixture; cook 3 minutes or until fish is done.
• Sprinkle with 1/4 cup cilantro.