Fish Stew

Brazilian style fish stew, to be precise. I thought it was quite delish, although my two taste testers weren't quite as enthralled with it. It is supposed to be served with rice to soak in the broth which I didn't have, so I used bread. It is also quite good the next day as leftovers. I was a bit nervous about this one, because it is quite different from anything else I've made--although I have a Thai recipe book that I hope to crack open and then coconut milk will be taking a starring role in my kitchen.

Anyway, it's been a long few weeks. I had way too many dud recipes, and then a migraine that lasted a week an a half. But I'm back cooking, and I now have two awesome recipes that I'll be putting up.

And on to the stew!

1 lb white fish fillets cut into bite size pieces The recipe called for cod, but our local grocery generally has flounder (frozen, eugh!) tilapia, and catfish. So I went with tilapia as being inoffensive and mild.
1 lb shrimp, peeled and deveined (and if you get the bigger ones, cut into bite size pieces--I usually get whichever size is on sale, this time it was the ginormous shrimp)
lime juice
minced garlic (it called for 1 tablespoon...ha. hahaha...as if I would stint on garlic--there are two pounds of fish in this thing. One tablespoon of garlic for each pound of fish seems quite reasonable...)
2 red bell peppers, seeded and sliced thin
1 can of diced tomatoes (or three fresh tomatoes, chopped)
cilantro leaves, whole (optional for those who don't like it, add parsley or spinach instead)
olive oil
one onion, diced
1/2 cube chicken bouillon and 1/2 cup water
1 can coconut milk
salt and pepper to taste

Put fish, shrimp, 1/4 cup lime juice and half the garlic into a bowl, stir with a little salt and pepper. Set aside where the cats can't get at it.

Heat a couple tablespoons oil in a large pan. Saute the onion until transparent. Add peppers and remaining garlic, cook until the peppers are softened. And tomatoes, cilantro, and chicken bouillon cube with water, stir and bring to a boil. If using fresh tomatoes, cook for about five minutes. Add the coconut milk, stir around and bring back to a boil. Once it is boiling, gently place the fish and shrimp into the mixture and stir a little. Put a lid on the pan and cook until fish and shrimp are opaque/cooked through. Serve with rice. I think that Brazilian style black beans would also go well with this.

THE Magpie