Moqueca Baiana Inspired Vegan Fish Stew
This vegan fish stew is made up from a spiced coconut and tomato broth, brightened with lime, where soft chunks of vegan fish fillets are joined with red bell peppers, carrots, and celery. Served over rice and topped with cilantro, it’s vibrant, flavorful, and warming. It’s great to make ahead and eat throughout the week!
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What is Moqueca Baiana?
Moqueca Baiana is a Brazilian fish stew from the northern part of Brazil, commonly cooked in a clay pot. It features fish, tomatoes, cilantro, coconut, and lime, and, much like Brazil itself, comes from a blend of cultures. Moqueca capixaba is another common variation of fish stew from further south in Brazil, with a lighter flavor. Both dishes were originated from indigenous techniques for cooking fish, but the baiana takes on some of the flavors of Africa, while the capixaba shares a flavor profile with dishes from Portugal and Spain. Our dish isn’t exactly like either version of Brazilian fish stew, but it was inspired heavily by the baiana. Most obviously non-traditional, we’re not really using fish, but use a homemade fish alternative instead. We also added carrots and celery to the stew, which isn’t in most recipes I’ve seen, but I appreciate a little added vegetable. Probably the biggest moqueca sin we committed was in omitting dende, or red palm oil. Red palm oil is unrefined palm oil, and is pretty much always part of what makes moqueca baiana. We left ours out for a few reasons. First is practicality- it isn’t an ingredient readily available in the US. I’m sure you could find some online, but not in most stores. Secondly, however, is due to deforestation. Although some palm oil is grown responsibly, a booming global demand has meant that massive deforestation has occurred in order to make the room to grow oil palms. The effect on the Sumatran orangutan has been devastating. So if you do happen to have some ethically sourced palm oil on hand, add a tablespoon or so in with the coconut milk. If not, believe me, it’s totally amazing without it!
Lookin for Stew? Try one of these Vegan Stews (and Stew-like Recipes)!
- Warming Vegan Stew with Squash and Cardamom
- Spicy Jackfruit and Black Bean Stew with Bananas
- Butter Chicken of the Woods (Vegan Butter Chicken)
- Baby Bok Choy Christmas Lima Bean Soup
How to Make Vegan Fish Stew
Before you get started, go ahead over to my previous blog post and make your vegan fish fillets. I recommend doing it the day before, to allow to fish to cook and cool, and so you’re not trying to get too many things done at once. My recipe for vegan fillets makes three fillets, and this recipe for vegan fish stew only uses one and a half. So either make this twice, or experiment with some other great vegan fish recipes! Also before you get started, chop and prep all your vegetables. You might want to get a pot of rice going too. Now let’s cook- start by crisping up your vegan fish in the skillet. You just want to get a bit of a crispness to them, and then they’re right back out of the pan until the end (since they’ve already been steamed when you made them, they don’t need to cook much). Next get your vegetables and spices cooking, eventually adding the tomatoes and coconut milk, stir, and let your broth simmer. Once your vegetables are cooked, you’re almost done. Add lime, salt and pepper. I used the juice of half a lime, and served my stew with lime wedges, but you might want to use a whole lime in the broth. Taste and decide. Finally add back the fish, and top with cilantro. Enjoy!
Moqueca Baiana Inspired Vegan Fish Stew
Ingredients
- 1 ½ Vegan Fish Fillet (make ahead!)
- Oil, for cooking
- 3-4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tsp. cumin seeds
- ½ medium sized onion, diced
- 1 red bell pepper, cut into strips
- 2 medium-sized carrots, cut into small pieces
- 1 stalk celery, cut into pieces
- ½ tsp. smoked paprika
- 1 tsp. Mexican oregano
- 14.5 oz. can diced tomatoes, drained
- 1 tbsp. soy sauce
- 14 oz. can full fat coconut milk
- 1 lime
- Large handful of cilantro, chopped
- Salt and Pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Make sure you make your vegan fish fillets ahead of time. This recipe uses one and a half fillets, so you should have enough “fish” leftover to make this recipe again. Chop your fillets into cubes. Heat a good amount of oil in a large skillet, and add the fish, “skin” side down. Cook for a few minutes to crisp, and then remove from the pan and set aside.
- Add the cumin seeds to your skillet, and cook until they start to pop. Add the garlic and onion to your pan, and cook until fragrant on medium-high heat, stirring frequently to avoid burning. Once the onions are somewhat softened, add the carrots, celery, bell pepper, paprika, and oregano. Sauté for another couple minutes. Add the tomatoes, stir, and add the coconut milk and soy sauce. Bring the mixture to a low simmer, and let it simmer until all the vegetables are nicely cooked.
- Add the cooked fish back to the skillet, and let it simmer for another minute or two to warm up. Turn off the heat, and add the juice from half the lime, season with salt and pepper, and taste. Add the remaining half lime juice if desired, and adjust the salt and pepper as needed. Top with chopped cilantro, and serve warm- it’s perfect with rice.
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