Serves: 4-6
Time: 40 mins
Moqueca comes from the state of Bahia in the northeastern part of Brazil where fresh seafood is more than plentiful. Add a few other key ingredients and you have yourself an elegantly rich and slightly spicy bowl of homestyle Bahian goodness.
Now the ingredient list varies from kitchen to kitchen. This particular recipe I got from a dear Brazilian woman I friended during my time in Brazil and I’ve tested it out various times, so I can vouch for its deliciousness.
One thing that is certain, though, is that there is one vital ingredient that cannot be substituted in this recipe. That ingredient is dendê.
Dendê is an oil that tastes like olive oil, but gives an amber color to the food it’s added to. For more information on the history and the nutritional value of dendê check out this page.
Ingredients
1tbsp coconut oil
1/2 big onion or 1 medium onion (chopped)
3-4 garlic cloves
1/2 green pepper (diced)
1 tomato (sliced)
1 tomato sauce
1/2 lemon (juiced)
4 fillets of white fish (i.e. tilapia, cod, … fresh or thawed)
12oz shrimp (thawed)
cilantro (to taste)
1 (13.5oz) can full-fat coconut milk
3tbsp dendê oil (red palm oil – see note)
salt & pepper to taste
Directions
Step 1:
-Combine the squeezed lemon juice, cilantro, black pepper and thick salt in a long casserole dish (or any other large pan with tall edges)
-Allow the shrimp and fish to marinate in the prepared juice for at least 15 minutes
Step 2:
-In a large soup pot, sauté the garlic and half of the onion in oil
-Once the onion begins to become translucent, remove it from the heat (careful not to burn your garlic here) and layer the bottom of the pot with fish.
-Add 1 layer of tomato sauce, then return pot back to the stove
Step 3:
-After 1 minute on the stove, add another layer of fish and another layer of tomato sauce
-Add in the green pepper, the tomato slices, and the rest of the onion and cilantro
-Cook for another 3-4 minutes
Step 4:
-Add the coconut milk and the dendê.
-From here, do not stir the pot. You can grab the pot by the handles and circle it every now and then, but be careful not to move it around too much.
-Salt to taste and allow to cook for 5-6 mins
Step 5:
-Add the shrimp and allow to cook through (~ another 8-10 mins)
TIP:
Serve with white rice (-> For an excellent rice recipe click here.)
Notes:
-Dendê can get super messy and stain anything and everything with that bright amber coloring. Mind where you use it, how you use it and a little goes a long way. I suggest you start off with 1.5 tbsp for your Moqueca and work your way up.
-Dendê isn’t a common thing you can find in the grocery store. Even the international food stores tend to not have it on the shelves. I recommend purchasing off Amazon. You can find a direct link to the product down below if you’re interested.
