Portuguese fish stew (Caldeirada de peixe)

Ingredients

• 2 finely chopped Onions
• 1 Diced Red Pepper
• Small bunch Coriander
• 1 small Red Chilli
• 3 cloves Garlic
• 400ml Dry White Wine
• Pinch Saffron
• 1 Bay Leaf
• 300g Potatoes
• 400g Plum Tomatoes
• 600g Cod
• 300g Squid
• 8 Tiger Prawns
• 500g Clams
• 500g Mussels
• 1 sliced Baguette

Quantities are the original recipe’s. The cost is our own estimate — typical own-brand supermarket prices for these quantities, divided by 4 servings. TheMealDB does not state how many a dish serves, so 4 is our assumption, not theirs. Treat it as “about this much a head”, not a shopping bill.

Method

1. Warm a little oil in a wide, deep pan and cook the onion and red pepper over medium heat until soft but not coloured.
2. Chop the coriander stalks and stir them into the pan with the chilli and garlic, saving the leaves for serving. Cook briefly until fragrant.
3. Pour in the wine, then add the saffron and bay leaf. Let it bubble until the liquid has reduced by around half.
4. Tip in the potatoes, tomatoes and 300ml water, and bring everything to a soft boil. Mash the tomatoes a little against the pan as they cook.
5. Keep at a gentle simmer for 20-25 minutes, until the potatoes give easily when pierced and the tomatoes have collapsed into the sauce.
6. Season generously, then nestle the cod into the liquid and lay the squid, prawns, clams and mussels over the top.
7. Cover and cook for 6-8 minutes, until the shells have sprung open, the prawns have turned pink and the fish flakes apart.
8. Meanwhile, toast the baguette slices, rub them with the cut side of a garlic clove and trickle over a little olive oil.
9. Scatter the stew with the reserved coriander leaves and serve with the garlicky toasts alongside for dipping.

These steps were written by StreetOwl from the original recipe, in British English, with every oven temperature and cooking time checked against the source. They are not the original author’s words. If anything reads oddly, the original is linked below and it wins.