Encocado de pescado
Fish in coconut milk
Encocado: Colombian Pacific fish fillets simmered in coconut milk with peppers, onion and native herbs
Fishing towns of the Colombian Pacific, from Buenaventura's Pueblo Nuevo market to the stilt houses of Tumaco, cook their catch in coconut milk scraped from fresh coconuts, with a refrito of onion, peppers and garlic and the coast's wild herbs: chillangua (culantro), poleo and oregano cimarrón. Encocado is lighter and more herbal than many coconut stews, mild rather than hot, with the fish just cooked in a creamy, pale-orange sauce. It is eaten at lunch with white or coconut rice and patacones or boiled green plantain. Boiling the coconut milk hard after the fish goes in is the classic error: the sauce splits and the fillets toughen, so keep it at a gentle bubble. Chef's tip: culantro (sawtooth coriander) is sold in Asian and Caribbean shops; if you can't find it, use twice the amount of ordinary coriander plus a few mint leaves to stand in for poleo.
- Total time
- 50 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
For the fish
- 1 ¾ lb firm white fish filletscorvina, snapper or hake, in 4 pieces
- 2 tbsp lime juice
- 3 garlic clovescrushed
- 1 ½ tsp salt
For the sauce
- 2 tbsp sunflower oil
- 1 red onionfinely chopped
- 2 spring onionschopped
- 1 red pepperdiced
- 2 ripe tomatoesgrated, skins discarded
- ½ tsp ground achiote (annatto)or 1/2 tsp sweet paprika
- 2 ½ cups coconut milk
- ⅓ oz culantro (chillangua)chopped; or 20 g coriander
- ½ tsp dried oreganoMexican oregano if possible
To serve
- 6 fresh mint or poleo leaves (optional)torn
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Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Rub 1 ¾ lb firm white fish fillets with 2 tbsp lime juice, 1 ½ garlic cloves and ¾ tsp salt. Cover and keep in the fridge for 15 minutes.
15 minStep 2: Heat 2 tbsp sunflower oil in a wide pan with a lid over a medium heat. Fry 1 red onion, 2 spring onions, 1 red pepper and the rest of 1 ½ garlic cloves for 6 minutes, until soft and sweet.
6 minStep 3: Add 2 ripe tomatoes and ½ tsp ground achiote (annatto) and cook for 4 minutes, until thick and glossy.
4 minStep 4: Pour in 2 ½ cups coconut milk, add half of ⅛ oz culantro (chillangua), ½ tsp dried oregano and the rest of ¾ tsp salt. Simmer gently for 8 minutes, stirring, until the sauce is slightly thickened.
8 minStep 5: Lay the fish in the sauce in one layer and spoon some over the top. Cover and cook at a gentle simmer for 8–10 minutes, until the fish is opaque all through and flakes when pressed.
10 minStep 6: Scatter with the rest of ⅛ oz culantro (chillangua) and 6 fresh mint or poleo leaves and serve with rice and patacones.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 450 kcal
- Protein
- 38 g
- Carbs
- 10 g
- Fat
- 29 g
- Fibre
- 2 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does encocado de pescado take?
- About 50 minutes in total: 20 minutes to prepare and 30 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of lime juice?
- Lemon juice, same amount.
- What can I use instead of garlic cloves?
- ½ tsp garlic paste or ⅛ tsp garlic powder per clove.
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