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Pacu assado
Roast whole river fish
Pacu assado: Pantanal river fish roasted whole with a savoury farofa stuffing
BrazilianCuiabá's fish restaurants and weekend riverside lunches in the Pantanal put a whole pacu on the table, stuffed with farofa and roasted until the skin is golden and crisp. Pacu is a round, fat-rich river fish with sweet, juicy flesh; ask your fishmonger for whole sea bream, pompano or a large tilapia if pacu is not available. The stuffing is cassava flour toasted with onion, garlic, pepper, tomato and herbs, and it soaks up the fish juices as it cooks. Serve with white rice, a tomato vinagrete and lime. The mistake to watch for is over-roasting until the flesh dries out; check at the backbone and stop when it is just opaque. Pacu has fine Y-shaped bones in the belly, so eat carefully. Chef's tip: cut deep slashes on both sides and push a little lime-garlic paste into them; it seasons the thick flesh and helps it cook evenly.
- Total time
- 80 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 6
Ingredients
For the fish
- 4 ⅜ lb whole pacuscaled and gutted; or sea bream, pompano or large tilapia
- 2 limesjuiced
- 6 cloves garliccrushed
- 2 tsp salt
- 3 tbsp olive oil
For the farofa stuffing
- 4 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 onionfinely chopped
- 1 green pepperfinely chopped
- 1 tomatodeseeded and chopped
- 7 oz farinha de mandiocatoasted cassava flour
- 4 tbsp parsley and spring onionchopped
- 4 tbsp water
To serve
- 6 lime wedges (optional)
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What you'll need
Fresh ingredients (6)
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Method
0/7 doneStep 1: Cut 3 deep slashes on each side of 4 ⅜ lb whole pacu. Mix 2 limes, 3 ⅝ cloves garlic and 1 ¼ tsp salt into a paste, rub it inside, outside and into the slashes, cover and marinate in the fridge for 30 minutes.
30 minStep 2: Heat the oven to 400°F (350°F fan).
Step 3: Heat 4 tbsp vegetable oil in a frying pan over a medium heat and fry 1 onion, 1 green pepper and the rest of 2 ⅜ cloves garlic for 5 minutes until soft. Add 1 tomato and cook for 2 minutes.
7 minStep 4: Stir in 7 oz farinha de mandioca and the rest of ¾ tsp salt and toast for 3 minutes, then add 4 tbsp parsley and spring onion and 4 tbsp water so it just clumps when squeezed.
3 minStep 5: Fill the belly with the farofa, close it with cocktail sticks and lay the fish in an oiled roasting tin. Drizzle with 3 tbsp olive oil.
Step 6: Cover loosely with foil and roast for 25 minutes, then uncover and roast for 15–25 minutes more until the skin is golden and the flesh is opaque and flakes easily at the backbone (145°F).
50 minStep 7: Rest for 5 minutes and serve with 6 lime wedges, lifting the flesh off the bones and spooning out the stuffing.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 480 kcal
- Protein
- 44 g
- Carbs
- 34 g
- Fat
- 18 g
- Fibre
- 3 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does pacu assado take?
- About 80 minutes in total: 30 minutes to prepare and 50 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 6 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- What can I use instead of limes?
- Lemon, same amount.
- What can I use instead of garlic?
- ½ tsp garlic paste or ⅛ tsp garlic powder per clove.
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