Moqueca de peixe (fish stew) recipe

Moqueca de peixe is a typical Brazilian fish stew, specifically from the state of Bahia and Espírito Santo. Although the exact origin of this recipe is unknown, the first writings that mention it date back to 1554, so we are facing one of the oldest and most traditional dishes in the country. Over the years, the recipe has been modifying some details until reaching the one we know today.

Ingredients to make Moqueca de peixe (fish stew):

• 4 clean boneless hake fillets
• 1 red bell pepper
• 1 green pepper
• 2 onion
• 1 bunch of coriander
• 400 milliliters of coconut milk
• 1 splash of palm oil (optional)
• 3 grated garlic cloves
• 1 lemon (the juice)
• 3 fresh and ripe tomatoes
• 2 chives (the green part)
• 2 pinches of ground black pepper
• 2 pinches of salt

How to make Moqueca de peixe (fish stew):

1. Remove the bones from the hake with a pair of tweezers and place the already cleaned fillets in a container. Distribute the grated garlic over the hake and add salt and pepper.
2. Tip: you can make the mosques de peixe with another type of fish, such as sea bass or dogfish.
3. Pour in the lemon juice and leave the container in the fridge for the fish to macerate. The lemon not only adds extra flavor to the stew, it also prevents the fish from falling apart.
4. Wash and chop the vegetables. To follow the traditional fish mosques recipe, cut the peppers, tomatoes and one of the onions into slices and finely chop the cilantro and the green part of the chives. Chop the remaining onion instead of slicing it.
5. Take the fish out of the fridge and reserve the remaining juice. Heat a casserole with a good jet of oil and sauté the chopped onion over low heat for a couple of minutes. Next, add the fish and brown it for 2 minutes on each side.
6. Without removing the fish from the casserole, add a layer of red and green peppers and a pinch of salt. Next, incorporate another layer of onion and tomato and also add a point of salt and ground pepper.
7. Don’t stir at all and continue layering the same vegetables until they’re all gone. At the end, add the coriander and the sprigs of the spring onion. You could also make the mosques banana with a single layer instead of interspersing layers, but the traditional recipe is usually done this way to get the ingredients mixed from the beginning.
8. Once all the vegetables are in the casserole, pour the coconut milk, distributing it little by little throughout the preparation. When it starts to boil, cook the fish mosques over low heat for 5 minutes..
9. After 5 minutes, add the palm oil to all the ingredients and turn up the heat so that it cooks more intensely. Preferably, leave the casserole half covered.
10. Tip: if you don’t want to use palm oil, you can just use olive oil.
11. Add salt to taste if you consider it necessary and a splash of natural water, cover the casserole again so that the flavors continue to mix and, finally, you will obtain an incredible broth. Let it continue cooking for 10 more minutes over medium heat.
12. Tip: At this point, you could add shrimp
13. Serve the dishes hot to better notice the flavors of the Bahian peixe mosques recipe. This is an ideal spoon dish for the cold months and full of nutrients due to the amount of ingredients it has. Do not hesitate to try it and tell us how it turned out.