Even after being an avid fish lover, I never thought of making a good and comforting vegetable fish stew. Thanks to my quest for high protein dinner, I came across this luscious fish stew recipe which hit the ball out of the park in terms of taste and satiability!
How did I come across this luscious vegetable and fish stew recipe?
While searching for high protein dinner recipes, I was looking for alternatives of chicken as too much chicken can also be boring at times. While browsing through one of my many cookbooks, I stumbled upon this fish stew recipe.
They called it spicy monkfish stew. The idea of fish stew stuck with me and I started looking for more on YouTube. After going through many fish stew recipes, I finally derived my own as per my liking!
I already knew that I will like this fish stew, not only because I love fish (especially the boneless fish fillet for its tender & melt-in-mouth texture), but also because of the magic ingredient it has! Wanna know what’s that? Keep reading!
Which fish to use for a delicious fish stew?
When it comes to fish recipes, choices are truly endless. For stews, you can only just consider the boneless ones as fish cubes with bones will not be convenient to eat in a stew.
Even for boneless fishes, you have multiple choices. Basa fish would be a very good choice if you are anywhere in India. Other good choices could be cod, haddock or tilapia.
Any white meaty fish would be great for this fish stew recipe. What did I use? I used tilapia fillets as that’s what I had handy at that time. I am planning to make it with basa next time as this fish stew is gonna stay as one of my staple dinner for long!
Why this vegetable and fish stew became my favorite in no time?
I have been a fish lover for as long as I can remember. In my childhood, I never used to have a single meal without a serving of fish. Being Bengali, our staple fish recipe was machher jhol, which still is a staple in our home.
This tilapia fish stew is totally different than any Bengali machher jhol; but this has a characteristic of its own. The luscious stew with chunks of flavorful fish and veggies of your choice is nothing short of a taste & health boost for your mind and body.
You can use any veggies of your choice which is typical of any stew recipe. Bell peppers i.e. capsicums with onions are good combinations and goes well with the texture of tender fish cubes. You can also add sweet corn, green beans, carrot juliennes or anything of your choice.
Why the fish stew broth is so addictive?
If you try this fish stew, you will realize how addictive this stuff is! The creamy and luscious broth of this fish stew is made with coconut milk which is the super magic ingredient I was talking above!
Coconut milk can make everything taste better and it is also not as fattening as your regular dairy cream but gives a similar creamy texture to the broth; so total win-win! The taste & flavor of coconut milk are so refreshing and tasty, that you will hopelessly fall in love with it once you try.
Best part of this vegetable and fish stew is that you can add more to it to make it a loaded meal for lunch as well. Add mushrooms, chicken along with fish & veggies and you are sorted with a power-packed meal to take on any life challenges!
Trust me! Because as the saying goes – you are what you eat! Enjoy!
- Boneless & skinless fish fillet – 250 gms, cut into 2 inch long pieces (I used tilapia fillet, you can use basa)
- Cooking oil of your choice – 2 tbsp (cold pressed sunflower oil or olive oil)
- Onion – 1, large, thinly sliced (about half a cup)
- Spring onion – 4-5 stalks, finely chopped
- Grated garlic – 1 tsp (about 6 to 7 cloves)
- Yellow bell pepper/capsicum – ¼ of a large pepper, cut into long strips, about ½ cup
- Red bell pepper/capsicum – ¼ of a large pepper, cut into long strips, about ½ cup
- Paprika/red chilli powder – ½ tsp
- Cumin powder – ½ tsp
- Thick coconut milk – 400 ml/ 1 & ¾ cup
- Fish sauce – 2 tsp
- Salt and black pepper to taste
- First start with prepping the fish fillets. If you are used frozen fillets, then thaw them completely before cooking. Once thawed, cut them into 2-inch pieces. Don’t make the pieces too small as they will anyways break while cooking.
- Now heat a saucepan and add 2 tablespoons of cooking oil. Once the oil is hot, add the sliced onion. Sauté the onion on medium flame until translucent and soft, about 5 minutes.
- Then add the grated garlic and keep cooking on medium flame until the raw smell is gone, about 2 minutes.
- Now add half of the spring/green onions and give a good stir. I like to add half of the green onion while cooking and remaining half at the end so that they retain their green.
- Once the onion is soften and lightly golden brown, after about 5 more minutes, add the paprika/chilli powder and ground cumin/cumin powder. Give a good mix and sauté the spices on medium flame for couple of minutes.
- Once you see the oil oozing out of the spices, it’s time to pour in the coconut milk. Pour all of the coconut milk and add a little bit of water, about ¼ cup if coconut milk is too thick.
- Stir everything well and let the broth come to a simmer. Cover and let the coconut milk get infused with the flavors of the spices, for 5 to 7 minutes.
- Now uncover the pan and give a stir. Then add in the capsicum and fish cubes. Once all the veggies & fish cubes are added to the broth, be very careful while stirring as fish cubes are very delicate and break easily.
- Add salt and black pepper to taste. Also add the fish sauce and carefully give a stir. Please note that fish sauce is also quite salty, so add salt sparingly.
- Now cover the pot and let the few stew simmer in low heat for 10 minutes until the fish is cooked completely and the bell peppers become tender.
- Uncover the pot after about 10 minutes and check the doneness of the fish. The fish cubes would become flaky and will break very easily. Peppers may remain little crunchy which would give a good texture to your fish stew.
- If the fish is completely cooked, add the remaining green onions and give a mix. Check for seasoning and adjust if needed.
- The consistency of the fish stew broth should be not too thick but you can adjust to your liking by adding little more water if too thick or boiling off excess if too watery.
- Your flavorful vegetable and fish stew is done and ready to serve! Enjoy your protein and omega-3 rich dinner!
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