BONUS RECIPES
Portugese Fish / Seafood Stew (Caledeirada de Peixe)
Portugese Fish / Seafood Stew (Caledeirada de Peixe)
Portugese Fish / Seafood Stew (Caledeirada de Peixe)
Corn Wraps for Three Sisters
Portugese Fish / Seafood Stew (Caledeirada de Peixe)
Portugese Fish / Seafood Stew (Caledeirada de Peixe)
BONUS RECIPE: Caldeirada de peixe
This is one of a few recipes not included in the final version of the book. I happily share with you my take on Caldeirada de Peixe, a fish/seafood stew from Portugal. Caldeirada translates from Portugese to "stew" and peixe translates to "fish".
If I had to eat one dish from this project every day, it would be this one. A hearty marriage of seafood, tomatoes, potatoes, garlic and a bit of heat.... this is a dish that warms the soul. Serve with toasted garlic bread to dip in the broth. Enjoy.
Download printable recipe (pdf)
Caldeirada de peixe recipe
My version of the Portuguese fish stew. This is a relatively easy dish to make and a great one-pot recipe, perfect for a dinner party or gathering. Don't feel limited by the seafood included in this recipe. It's a rustic stew meant to be made from local fish and seafood. Best made with a combination of oily fish, whitefish, and shellfish to create a well-rounded, flavorful broth.
Prep Time: 30-40 minutes (not including soaking clams about 45 minutes hours prior to cooking)
Cook Time: 25-30 minutes
Serves: 10
Notes: Feel free to use any combination of fish filets, seafood and shellfish.
Special Equipment Needed: A Large Pot with a lid – a heavier pot is better. If you don’t have a lid, use a baking pan and handle with oven mitts to avoid burning yourself. Small scrub brush to clean mussels and clams. Cheese cloth or coffee filter.
This recipe is Pescatarian. It contains fish and shellfish, but no meat.
Make it Gluten-Free: Use gluten-free vegetable stock. Use gluten free bread for the garlic bread, or skip altogether. Make sure your tomato paste and white wine are labeled gluten-free. As always, make sure all the ingredients and spices you cook with are gluten-free.
Ingredients
- 2 pounds Fresh Mussels
- 1/2 pound Fresh Clams
- ¾ Pound Tuna or Swordfish Filet, or combination of both, rinsed and patted dry, cut into 1 ½”-2” chunks
- ¾ pound Haddock, Flounder or Cod Filet, rinsed and patted dry (or any combination, cut into 1 ½”-2” chunks)
- 1 Pound Large Raw Shrimp (16/20 count), deveined. Your choice peeled or unpeeled, heads on or off. Frozen and thawed, or fresh.
- 1 can Sardines packed in olive oil, break sardines up with a fork
- 4 Ripe Tomatoes, chopped (approximately 30 ounces)
- ¼ Cup Tomato Paste
- 1 Yellow Onion, diced
- 3 cloves Garlic, chopped fine
- 3 Bell Peppers: One each of Green, Yellow and Red, cleaned, diced
- 3 medium-sized potatoes, Yukon Gold or a good boiling potato, cleaned, peeled , cut into 1 ½” cubes
- 2 Cups Dry White Wine
- 2 Cups Vegetable Stock
- ½ Teaspoon Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
- 1 Bay Leaf
- 1 Teaspoon Black Peppercorns (substitute ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper)
- 2 Teaspoons Coriander Seed
- ½ Teaspoon Ground Coriander
- 1 Tablespoon Paprika
- ¼ Teaspoon Black Pepper
- 3 Tablespoons Olive Oil for sautéing, plus optional 1 Tablespoon to drizzle over layers as they cook
A note about choosing and storing fresh clams and mussels:
When choosing your fresh clams and mussels, shells should be closed and they should smell like fresh, lovely seawater. If they smell rank, or many of the shells are broken or open, avoid purchasing. Store in your refrigerator for up to 24 hours by putting them in a bowl (one bowl for clams, another bowl for mussels) and cover directly with a damp dishcloth. Do not cover with fresh water or ice, and don’t cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap. They need to breathe.
Prepare Clams for Cooking (45 minutes before cooking the stew)
Soak Clams to remove sand or grit: Make sure each clam is closed. If slightly opened, press shell to close. If it re-opens, discard. Also discard any clams with broken shells. Place clams in a large bowl. Add cold water until water is a few inches above clams. Add 1/8 cup salt. Soak for 20 minutes. Remove clams with your hands and place in another bowl of cold, salted water for 20 minutes. Alternately, you may soak overnight in refrigerator. Finally, scrub each clam with a scrub brush and rinse in cold water.
Prepare Mussels for Cooking:
Mussel shells should be closed when raw (before cooking). If a shell is open, gently tap it a few times against a surface, then pinch the shell closed. The shell should close. If it remains open, discard. Raw mussels that remain open after this process are dead and can make you and your guests sick. Discard any mussels with broken or cracked shells. Scrub each mussel with a bristled brush and rinse under cold water briefly. Just before cooking, de-beard the mussels (it kills the mussel, so don’t de-beard your mussels if storing before cooking). There may be strings of what appear to be seaweed coming out of the shell towards the hinged end, commonly known as a “beard”. Grasp the beard tightly between your fingers (using a damp cloth covering fingers makes this easier) and pull quickly downward to remove the beard.
Make Caldeirada de Peixe:
- Bundle the seasonings (bouquet garni): Bundle the bay leaf, peppercorn and coriander seed in cheesecloth tied with kitchen twine or simply knot the ends of the cheesecloth. If you don’t have cheesecloth, use a coffee filter, tied, with excess ends of filter and kitchen twine cut off.
- Heat a large, heavy pot over medium-high heat. Add 3 tablespoons olive oil and the crushed red pepper. Add onions and the peppers, sauté for 5 minutes. Add garlic, sauté 1 minute. Add tomatoes, tomato paste, paprika, ground coriander, white wine, vegetable stock and your bundle of bay leaf/ peppercorns/ coriander seed. Stir. Cook for a few minutes. Add potato, cover the pot and cook for 6 minutes from the time it starts to simmer– you do not want to fully cook the potatoes in this step.
- Place the sardines and fresh fish in the pot in an even layer, then place the shrimp, mussels and clams on top of the fish. Cover and cook 5-10 minutes depending on your stove, or until the fish is flaky and the mussels and clams have opened. Remove any unopened clams or mussels. Discard bouquet garni. Spoon some of the broth over the fish and seafood items on top layers several times.
To serve:
Divide fish, mussels, clams and shrimp between bowls. Ladle the remaining potatoes and broth into each bowl. Or, if using a wide pot, place pot in center of table for guests to serve themselves. Serve with toasted garlic bread, recipe below:
Toasted Garlic Bread
1 long loaf crusty bread
1 clove garlic
3 Tablespoons olive oil
Sea Salt
Preheat oven to 400 degrees
Cut the bread into thick slices. Arrange on a baking sheet.
Crush the garlic and mix in small bowl with olive oil. Spread mixture over each slice using a spoon or a brush. Sprinkle each slice with a few grains sea salt. Place pan in oven for about 5 minutes, or until bread begins to brown.
Or: toast your bread slices, keep garlic clove whole. Rub each toasted slice with garlic clove drizzle with olive oil. Heat garlic toast and serve.
BONUS RECIPE: Corn Wraps for the Three Sisters Recipe
The recipe for the corn wraps was edited out due to its length. Here is the recipe for the wraps, should you wish to prepare them with the dish.
Corn Wrap recipe for the three sisters Squash, Beans, & Corn
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 3-4 minutes each wrap. If you have a large griddle you can cook more at a time
Yield: Approximately 16 Corn Wraps
Special Equipment: A tortilla press is the best way to press corn wraps. If you don’t have a tortilla press, you can press using a cutting board or flat pan and two heavy duty plastic freezer bags or plastic wrap.
This recipe is Vegan & Gluten-Free! (as always, double-check that all your ingredients are vegan/ gluten-free when cooking)
Corn Wrap Recipe
2 ¼ cups Masa Harina Corn Flour (not corn meal
1 Cup + 3 Tablespoons Hot Water
1/3 Cup Corn or Canola Oil
¾ teaspoon Salt
Put the Masa Harina and salt in a large bowl. Add the oil and combine with the Masa Harina using clean hands – pinch with your fingers to mix the oil and Masa while also stirring with your hand. Add the hot water. Mix well either by hand or with a sturdy spoon. If the dough is dry or crumbly, add additional hot water 1 tablespoon at a time. If dough is too wet, add additional Masa Harina a bit at a time. You want a dough that holds its shape.
Turn the dough onto a clean, dry surface. Knead until smooth, about 3 minutes. Again, if it becomes too dry or too sticky, adjust with water or Masa Harina. Cover dough with a wet paper towel to keep the dough moist, and a clean kitchen towel over that.
Pull off pieces of dough, about the size of a golf ball, and roll in hands until it forms a ball. Keep your dough covered while you work. Cover the dough balls with a damp paper towel and a kitchen towel over the paper towel.
Heat a cast iron or frying pan over medium-high heat. If you have a second pan or a large griddle surface, you can cook several at once.
To flatten into rounds: Place heavy-duty plastic (freezer) bag or a 14” length of plastic wrap on counter. Place dough ball in center. Cover with another plastic freezer bag or piece of plastic wrap. Place a cutting board on top. Bang down on the cutting board forcefully about 10 times in the area where the dough is, moving outward from where the center of the dough would be. You can use a kitchen mallet, rubber mallet, large can on its side, a hammer, or anything you can “hammer” the board with. You’re trying to get the corn wrap as thin as you can.
Lift the cutting board and the top freezer bag or plastic wrap. Carry the wrap to your hot pan, and gently lift off the plastic and place in pan. If you find it comes apart during this process, simply invert the plastic over the pan and place the dough on the pan, being careful not to let any plastic touch the pan or hot surfaces.
Cook on one side until you see the top surface puffing up a bit – about a minute. Flip to other side and cook for about a minute. There should be golden brown spots on both sides . If not, flip and continue cooking. Continue until all corn flats are cooked.
As wraps are done cooking, place under a clean dry towel. Do not stack wraps while they are cooling. When cool, stack wraps and wrap them in plastic wrap or keep in an airtight container, or keep in a tortilla warmer if you have one.
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