Dear all,
Here's a nice way to cook that wonderful snapper that you guys caught in Florida. It's a personal adaptation of a typical Brazilian dish from the state of Bahia (Salvador) and it serves 6-8.
Moqueca de imperador (Snapper Stew)
Ingredients:
1 cup of diced onions;
1 cup of diced green peppers;
1 ½ cups of chopped fresh cilantro, washed and crushed;
2 ripe tomatoes, diced;
5 tbsp of good olive oil (Berrio is ok);
1 tsp of red chilli powder;
1 package (1 ½ lbs or so) of frozen, peeled with tails on, large shrimp;
3 cups of coconut milk (Goya is ok);
2-3 lbs of fresh snapper (about 6-8 filets), cut in bite-size pieces;
¾ cup of crushed cashews;
3 tbsp of all-purpose flour;
1 cup of white cooking wine (if you must, you can replace it with 2 tbsp of vinegar and the rest water);
2 beef sticks, finely chopped (can be replaced by summer sausage, chorizo, or similar – not slim jims);
coarse sea salt and black pepper to taste;
Instructions:
In a large, heavy pan or pot (it’s heavy if when you hit someone with it in the head the person passes out; if not, discard it and look for another one), drop 3 tbsp of olive oil. Once hot (not sizzling), add the onions and the chopped beef sticks.
Once tender (not brown) add the peppers, tomatoes, and cilantro. Season with salt and pepper to taste and add 2 more tbsp of olive oil if necessary. Stir and cover for a few minutes. Add 1 cup of hot water and let simmer a little bit more (here lies the secret of Portuguese and Brazilian cooking: this process of manufacturing an olive oil and onion base is known as a “refogado”, and its proficiency comes only with experience; don’t let it burn or brown, but make sure that all flavours blend well – you’ll smell it when it’s ready).
Add the shrimp, chilli powder, cooking wine and more water (if necessary) until it barely covers the “refogado”. Bring it to a boil, reduce, and let simmer for 10’ until ¾ of original volume. Add the snapper and stir everything well. After a few minutes, add the coconut milk. Bring to a boil, reduce, and let simmer to taste (the less volume, the stronger the flavour – 10’-12’ is fine with me).
In a small bowl, combine the flour with the stew, by adding a ladle at a time of liquid from the stew to the flour and blending well with a wire whisk. Keep adding liquid until batter is smooth and no lumps can be seen. Slowly add it to the stew (you may not need it all – the more you add, the thicker it will get). Taste and rectify seasonings (salt, black pepper, chilli powder). Add ½ cup of cashews. Let simmer for 5’-10’.
Remove from heat. Serve immediately, decorated with ¼ cup of crushed cashews and chopped cilantro on top. It is usually served with white rice and fried bananas on the side.
Optional: If cooking in a pan, you may wish to break a few eggs on top of the stew (max. 5), after removing from heat and baking it in the oven (450º) for a few minutes (until eggs are done). Decorate as mentioned above and serve immediately.
Cheers,
Nuno
Pretty sweet shot of the boys
Toni, that's B.A.
Love it
Hi Dad and Cori, here is the packing list I promised:
