Fish Stew
Overview
Nigerian fish stew is the same red pepper base that underpins beef stew and jollof, cooked with tilapia rather than meat, and the change of protein changes how the dish is handled more than how it tastes. The base is the constant of West African cooking: blended tomatoes, red bell peppers, onion and chilli, fried down in oil until the water drives off and the oil separates. Everything else in the Nigerian stew repertoire is built on that, and fish stew is simply one branch of it. What is specific to fish is timing and handling. Fish cooks quickly and breaks apart easily, so it is usually fried or seasoned and set aside, then returned to the finished sauce near the end rather than simmered through it. Cooked the way beef would be, tilapia disintegrates and the stew turns cloudy. Tilapia is the usual choice, widely farmed, affordable and firm enough to hold together, though catfish, mackerel and croaker are all used. It is served with white rice, with any of the swallows, or alongside a vegetable soup such as efo riro.
AFN Heritage Note
Nigerian fish stew shares its foundation with the wider family of West African stews built on a blended tomato, pepper and onion base fried down in oil, differing chiefly in the handling required by fish.
Ingredients
Dietary tags are provided by contributors as a guide, not verified by AFN, and they depend on the products you buy. If you have a serious allergy, check every ingredient yourself. Cooking, allergies and your own judgement
Directions
- 1
Cut and salt the fish to taste.
- 2
Heat the oil and fry the fish and set aside.
- 3
In a saucepan, on a medium heat, add the blended tomato, onion and cook for 20 mins.
- 4
Add the tomato paste, oil (water to the consistency desired). Cook for 10 min.
- 5
Add water if needed, oil, garlic, ginger, crayfish, peppers, potash, the fried fish, cube, salt, pepper and fry for another 20 minutes.
- 6
Serve your sauce with your main dish.
- 7
Enjoy your meal!
Africook’s Notes
- Fry or sear the fish separately and add it to the sauce at the end. Simmering it through breaks it up.
- Season the fish before it meets the pan. It cooks too fast to take seasoning from the sauce alone.
- Cook the pepper base until the oil separates before the fish goes anywhere near it.
- Handle it as little as possible once the fish is in, stirring is what breaks it apart.
Questions cooks ask
Why does my fish fall apart in the stew?
Almost always because it was cooked in the sauce from the start. Fish needs a fraction of the time meat does, so the usual method is to fry or sear it separately and return it to the finished sauce for the last few minutes. Stirring after that point will break it up too, so move the pot rather than the spoon.
Which fish works best?
Tilapia is the standard, affordable, widely available and firm enough to hold its shape. Catfish, mackerel and croaker are all used and all work. Softer white fish will taste fine but is more likely to disintegrate, so handle it even more carefully.
What is it served with?
White rice most commonly, or any of the Nigerian swallows. It is also served alongside a vegetable soup such as efo riro, where the stew supplies the protein and the greens supply the rest. Boiled yam and plantain are both common too.
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