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Pescado con coco
Fish in coconut sauce
Pescado con coco: Samaná-style fish in coconut sauce, Dominican Republic
On the Samaná peninsula in the north-east of the Dominican Republic, where coconut palms grow down to the sea and the local cooking carries traces of the African-American settlers who arrived there in the 1820s, fish is braised in fresh coconut milk with tomato, peppers and herbs. It is served at beach shacks in Las Terrenas with white rice and tostones to mop up the sauce. The common mistake is boiling the sauce hard once the coconut milk is in, which makes it split and oily; keep it at a gentle simmer. Chef's tip: let the fish sit in lime, garlic and salt in the fridge for 15 minutes first, but no longer, or the acid starts to cook it.
- Total time
- 40 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
- 1 ¾ lb firm white fish steaks or thick filletssnapper, grouper or kingfish
- 2 tbsp lime juice
- 4 cloves garliccrushed
- 1 ½ tsp salt
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 onionsliced
- 1 red peppersliced
- ½ green peppersliced
- 2 tomatoeschopped
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- ½ tsp dried oregano
- 1 ¾ cups coconut milk
- 3 tbsp fresh corianderchopped
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Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Toss 1 ¾ lb firm white fish steaks or thick fillets with 2 tbsp lime juice, half of 2 cloves garlic and ¾ tsp salt. Cover and chill for 15 minutes.
15 minStep 2: Heat 2 tbsp vegetable oil in a wide pan over a medium heat. Fry 1 onion, 1 red pepper and ½ green pepper for 5 minutes until soft, then add the rest of 2 cloves garlic for 1 minute.
6 minStep 3: Add 2 tomatoes, 1 tbsp tomato paste and ½ tsp dried oregano and cook for 5 minutes until the tomatoes break down.
5 minStep 4: Pour in 1 ¾ cups coconut milk and the rest of ¾ tsp salt and bring to a gentle simmer. Lay the fish in the sauce in one layer.
3 minStep 5: Cover and simmer gently for 8–10 minutes, spooning sauce over the top, until the fish is opaque all the way through and flakes easily at the thickest point.
9 minStep 6: Scatter with 3 tbsp fresh coriander and serve with white rice and tostones.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 420 kcal
- Protein
- 36 g
- Carbs
- 12 g
- Fat
- 26 g
- Fibre
- 3 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does pescado con coco take?
- About 40 minutes in total: 15 minutes to prepare and 25 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?
- ½ tsp garlic paste or ⅛ tsp garlic powder per clove.
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