INGREDIENTS:
2 red snapper fillets (skinned and deboned)
1 orange
1 lemon
1 lime
2 spring onions (finely chopped)
½ teaspoon salt
freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons chopped coriander
1 fresh jalapeno chilli (seeded and finely chopped)

DIRECTIONS:
Cut the snapper into small chunks and place in a large non-reactive bowl. Zest and then squeeze out the juices of the orange, lemon and lime and place everything into a bowl. Whisk in the olive oil, spring onion, salt, pepper, coriander and jalapeno. Pour this marinade over the fish and stir well. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1½ hours. Remove from the fridge and stir the fish well, then refrigerate for a further 1½ hours.

SERVING:
Spoon out the fish into pre-chilled bowls or glasses with a little of the marinade and serve immediately.

I first tasted this in a lovely little Brazillian restaurant in Edinburgh about 8 years ago. I didn’t even know what it was until recently when I tasted it again here in Sydney. It is a delicious fish stew from Brazil that goes by the exotic name of moqueca. The flavours are delicious. Try it.

RECIPE:

INGREDIENTS:
750g red snapper, cut into 2-inch pieces (you can use any white fish)
1 onion (chopped)
1 onion (sliced)
5 medium tomatoes (roughly chopped)
2 tomatoes (sliced)
1 tablespoon minced garlic
2 colves garlic (whole)
5 tablespoons chopped fresh coriander leaves
2 teaspoons salt
3 tablespoons fresh-squeezed lime juice
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup Piri Piri (see below)
400ml can coconut milk

*PIRI PIRI: (makes more than you need)
1 tablespoon, plus 1/2 cup olive oil
5 cloves garlic, smashed
4 red chille peppers (seeds removed and chopped)
1/4 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon salt

PIRI PIRI DIRECTIONS:
Heat a small pan over medium-high heat.
Add 1 tablespoon of the olive oil to the pan. Once the oil is hot, add the
garlic and peppers. Fry for about 3 minutes, stirring constantly, until the edges of
the garlic start to turn brown. Stir in the lemon juice and remove from the heat.
With a hand blender or in a food processor, blend the contents into a smooth paste. Add salt and the 1/2 cup of olive oil and blend again til well combined. This will make more than you need, but you can store it in an airtight container in the fridge and it’ll keep for ages. (Try using a little as a kind of salsa with a grilled chicken burger)

DIRECTIONS:
With a hand blender or in a food processor, blend together the 2 cloves of garlic, coriander, salt, and lime juice. Pour this over the fish fillets and coat well. Cover and leave in the fridge for 1 hour.
Heat a large, deep frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil, and once hot, add the sliced onions and fry for about 5 minutes until soft and golden brown. Add the minced garlic and fry for 30 seconds. Pour the fish and the marinade into the pan and add the remaining teaspoon of salt, the Piri Piri, and the coconut milk and stir to combine. When the liquid comes to a boil, dot the top of the pan with the sliced tomatoes and cover with a lid. Reduce the heat to medium-low and continue to cook until the flesh starts to flake, about 10 minutes.

SERVING:
Serve hot with some steamed rice. Delicious!