Portuguese-Style Fish Stew

Every year I tell myself that I am going to cook and eat more fish.  Well, this year is no different.  I love fish so I don't know why I don't cook it more often!  When I was perusing through my recipe binder, I found a recipe that I clipped from Food Network Magazine for Portuguese-style fish stew and it reminded me to get back to my fish resolution.  This recipe looked super simple, which made it a perfect dish for a Friday night dinner.

First, I gathered my ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil (I omitted the additional tablespoon for drizzling)
• 2 bay leave
• 2 teaspoons paprika (smoked or sweet)
• 1 small yellow onion, thinly sliced
• 1 small green bell pepper, thinly sliced
• 1 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes
• 1 clove garlic, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• Kosher salt and fresh ground pepper
• 1 cup water
• 1 1/2 pounds skinless cod (my Whole Foods didn't have striped bass), cut into 2-inch chunks

After I prepped the ingredients, I warmed up two tablespoons of olive oil in my Le Creuset French oven over medium-high heat.  I added the bay leaves and paprika and stirred those ingredients together for about thirty seconds.  I then added the onion, bell pepper, tomatoes garlic and two tablespoons of the cilantro.  I seasoned the vegetable mixture with salt and pepper.

I covered the French oven and let the vegetables cook until they were softened.  Afterwards, I added the water and reduced the heat to medium low.

I seasoned the fish with salt and pepper, and then nestled the pieces among the vegetables in the pot.

I covered and simmered until the fish was just cooked through.  I cooked my fish for about ten minutes.  I probably overcooked it a bit because I was terrified of the fish not being cooked through but luckily the fish didn't taste dry because of all of the moisture in the stew.

I removed the bay leaves from the pot and served the stew in shallow bowls sprinkled with the chopped cilantro. 

I loved all of the flavors in this dish, even the green bell pepper (which I'm usually not a fan of).  However, I would say that this stew recipe definitely needed more seasoning.  I rarely do it but I definitely added some salt at the dinner table.

This stew would be perfect with some rice mixed in or with some hunks of crusty bread.  But for me, it was a perfect dinner to slurp up on Friday evening to unwind from a long work week.


Tell me, do you have any food-related resolutions this year?