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Pimentade de poisson
Fish in hot tomato sauce
Pimentade: Guianese fish in a hot tomato and onion sauce
Pimentade is weekday cooking in Cayenne and along the coast at Rémire-Montjoly, made with whatever the boats bring in, often acoupa, croaker or snapper, and eaten with rice and a sprinkle of couac. The fish is marinated in lime, garlic and pepper, then simmered briefly in a quick sauce of tomato, onion, chives and plenty of hot pepper until just cooked. Overcooking is the main mistake: the steaks only need a few minutes in the sauce, or they dry out and break up. Chef's tip: marinate the fish in the fridge for at least 30 minutes; the lime firms the flesh so it holds together in the pan.
- Total time
- 40 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
For the marinade
- 1 ¾ lb firm white fish steakssuch as snapper, croaker or hake, about 2.5 cm thick
- 2 limesjuiced
- 3 cloves garliccrushed
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ tsp ground black pepper
For the sauce
- 3 tbsp vegetable oil
- 2 onionssliced
- 2 cloves garlicchopped
- 4 tomatoeschopped
- 1 tbsp tomato purée
- 1 scotch bonnet chillifinely chopped
- 1 bunch chives or spring onionchopped
- 2 sprigs fresh thyme
- ¾ cup water
- 1 handful flat-leaf parsley (optional)chopped
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Method
0/5 doneStep 1: Rub 1 ¾ lb firm white fish steaks with 2 limes, 3 cloves garlic, 1 tsp salt and ½ tsp ground black pepper. Cover and leave in the fridge for 30 minutes.
30 minStep 2: Heat 3 tbsp vegetable oil in a wide pan over a medium heat and fry 2 onions until soft and golden, 8 minutes.
8 minStep 3: Add 2 cloves garlic, 1 scotch bonnet chilli and half of 0.5 bunch chives or spring onion for 1 minute, then 4 tomatoes, 1 tbsp tomato purée, 2 sprigs fresh thyme and ¾ cup water. Simmer until the tomatoes collapse into a thick sauce, 8–10 minutes.
10 minStep 4: Lay the fish in the sauce with any marinade, spoon sauce over, cover and simmer gently for 6–8 minutes, until the flesh is opaque and flakes easily at the bone.
7 minStep 5: Scatter with the rest of 0.5 bunch chives or spring onion and 1 handful flat-leaf parsley and serve with rice.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 270 kcal
- Protein
- 37 g
- Carbs
- 10 g
- Fat
- 10 g
- Fibre
- 3 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does pimentade de poisson 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.
- Is it very spicy?
- It has some heat. Use less chilli for a milder version, or more if you like it hot.
- 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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