Moqueca Recipes

MOQUECA (BRAZILIAN SEAFOOD STEW)

Steps:

• Use a pair of kitchen scissors to cut along the length of each prawn deep enough to expose and remove the vein. Place the fish chunks in a large bowl and season with 1 teaspoon salt. Squeeze in the juice of 1 lime and toss to coat. Set the prawns and fish aside while preparing the sauce.
• In a large, shallow Dutch oven or large, deep skillet, melt 2 tablespoons dendê oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, until softened and fragrant, 1 minute. Add the onion, stir and cook, stirring until translucent, about 2 minutes.
• Increase the heat to high, add the peppers, tomatoes and chile. Season with salt. Cook, stirring frequently, until the peppers are softened and any liquid from the tomatoes is beginning to evaporate, 4 minutes.
• Pour in the coconut milk, stir and reduce the heat to medium. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until the liquid thickens and reduces to a creamy sauce, about 10 minutes. Taste, adjust the salt, if necessary, and stir in 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro.
• Carefully place the prawns in the sauce in a single layer and cook for 2 minutes. Turn the prawns to cook the other sides and add the cod. (Discard any juices in the bowl.) The fish will be partly submerged. Cook until the fish is tender and just cooked through, 2 to 3 minutes.
• Remove from heat, drizzle in the remaining 1 tablespoon dendê oil and sprinkle with the remaining 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro. Slice the remaining lime into wedges. Serve immediately, with steamed rice and lime wedges for squeezing.

MOQUECA (BRAZILIAN FISH STEW)

Steps:

• Make the farofa if desired: Melt butter in a skillet or shallow saucepan on medium heat. Add sliced onion, and cook, stirring, until it turns light brown. Stir in manioc and cook, stirring, 5 to 8 minutes, until it starts to toast. Cover and keep warm.
• Make the fish broth: Cut each bass fillet in 4 or 5 pieces, cover and refrigerate. Place trimmings in a 3-quart stovetop casserole, preferably an earthenware pot. Lightly salt shrimp, cover and refrigerate. Place shells in the pot. Add 5 cups water; the bay leaves; the turnip; 2 onions, chopped; 2 tomatoes, chopped; half the shishito peppers; the garlic; and half the cilantro and chives. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer about 45 minutes, until vegetables are tender.
• Heat oven to 450 degrees. Cut a slit in the skin of the plantain, wrap in foil and bake 20 minutes, until flesh is tender. Cool.
• Strain broth into a bowl, pressing on the solids. Discard solids and return broth to pot. Cook over medium heat until reduced to 1 1/2 cups.
• Slice remaining tomatoes and remaining onion 1/4 inch thick and add to pot. Add bell peppers, Cubanelle peppers, remaining shishito peppers, remaining chives and all but 1 tablespoon remaining cilantro. Bring to a simmer and cook about 20 minutes, until vegetables are tender.
• Peel plantain and slice it 1/2 inch thick. Add to pot. Add coconut milk and dende oil. Add fish and octopus, if using, and simmer 5 minutes. Rinse and dry shrimp and squid, if using, and add to pot. Simmer 3 minutes. Check seasonings. Strew remaining cilantro on top, garnish with a red chile and serve over rice directly from the pot, with farofa and piri-piri on the side.

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.

MOQUECA (BRAZIL)

Steps:

• Place the fish in a large non-reactive mixing bowl. In the carafe of a blender, combine the chopped onion, the chopped tomatoes, 2 cloves of garlic, 1 tablespoon of cilantro, 1 teaspoon of salt, and the lime juice. Blend until smooth in the blender, then pour directly over the fish. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour.
• Heat a large saute pan over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil to the pan, and once hot, add the julienned onions to the pan and saute, stirring often until translucent, about 3 to 4 minutes. Add the minced garlic to the pan and saute for an additional 30 seconds. Pour the fish and the marinade into the saute pan and add the remaining teaspoon of salt, the Piri Piri, and the coconut milk and stir to combine. Once the liquid comes to a boil, dot the top of the pan with the sliced tomatoes and cover with a lid. Reduce the heat to medium-low and continue to cook until the flesh starts to flake, about 10 minutes.
• Remove the cover from the pan and sprinkle the remaining 4 tablespoons of cilantro over the fish. Serve accompanied by steamed white rice.
• Heat a small saute pan over medium-high heat. Add 1 tablespoon of the olive oil to the pan. Once the oil is hot, add the garlic and peppers to the pan. Saute, stirring often, until the edges of the garlic start to turn brown, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the lemon juice to the pan, and remove from the heat.
• Place the contents of the saute pan in a blender and add the salt. Puree the peppers and garlic in the blender until mostly smooth. Drizzle the remaining 1/2 cup of olive oil through the feed tube of the lid of the blender. Let cool before using, and store refrigerated in an airtight container.

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

Steps:

• Spread out fish and shrimp on separate large dishes. Sprinkle each with lime juice, salt, and pepper. Marinate for 1 hour.
• In a large pot, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onions, garlic, and paprika, and cook until soft, about 15 minutes.
• In a large pot, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onions, garlic, and paprika, and cook until soft, about 15 minutes.
• Add fish in one layer; top with shrimp. Add bouquet garni and cook, covered, over medium heat for 10 minutes.
• Add fish in one layer; top with shrimp. Add bouquet garni and cook, covered, over medium heat for 10 minutes.
• Put tomatoes and peppers in the bowl of a food processor and cover with thin Coconut Milk. Puree, strain, and pour over fish. Simmer over low heat until fish is fully cooked. Remove bouquet garni.
• Put tomatoes and peppers in the bowl of a food processor and cover with thin coconut milk. Puree, strain, and pour over fish. Simmer over low heat until fish is fully cooked. Remove bouquet garni.
• Pour off and reserve 6 cups of cooking liquid. Stir in dende oil and thick Coconut Milk. Cover and simmer for 2 to 3 minutes.
• Pour off and reserve 6 cups of cooking liquid. Stir in dende oil and thick coconut milk. Cover and simmer for 2 to 3 minutes.
• Serve with Pirao and Coconut Rice.
• Serve with Pirao and Coconut Rice.