A simple Brazilian Fish Stew called Moqueca made with your choice of firm white fish simmered in coconut milk with onion, tomatoes, chilies, and lime. Easy, fast, and full of flavor! Serve with rice. Video.
This simple Moqueca recipe (pronounced “mo-KEY-ca”) is easy to make, takes about 35 minutes, and is perfect for busy weeknights and elevated enough for entertaining.
I love making Moqueca when I have guests over because it’s one of those recipes that’s truly simple to make but feels very elevated. You can make part of it ahead of time and finish it up quickly right before serving.
This recipe is a family favorite it's so versatile. It appears at request, every year at our Christmas eve dinner party, as a base for mussels. We make it throughout the year, with cod, or salmon, or shrimp and sometimes a combination. It is well loved.
Why you’ll love this Moqueca recipe!
Quick and easy! What I love about this Brazilian Fish Stew is how fast it is to prepare, and it’s made with simple, familiar ingredients. Ready in 35 minutes, it’s quick enough for weeknights, yet special enough for Sunday supper.
Bold, Brazilian flavor. Made with your choice of white fish, aromatic veggies, jalapeño for heat, savory tomatoes, cooling coconut, and fresh lime, this stew is layered in satisfying flavors!
Makes delicious leftovers. The flavor of the stew gets even better the next day. Leftovers keep for a few days, or you can freeze it! If making this ahead, leave out the fish and nestle it in when reheating.
What is Moqueca?
Moqueca is a Brazilian fish stew with coconut milk, tomatoes, and peppers. The dish is traditionally served over rice with lime and cilantro.
This version hails from Salvador, a bustling city on the coast of Brazil, just north of Rio de Janeiro, that offers up delicious seafood prepared using African influences and techniques. This part of Brazil is known for pairing fish with spicy chilies, lime, and cooling coconut milk, a lovely combination.
Ingredients in Moqueca
- White fish: Use halibut, black cod, sea bass, cod, or escolar. Thicker cuts are best. Even shrimp or shellfish (clams or mussels) would work here.
- Lime: You’ll need both lime zest and lime juice to season the fish and the broth.
- Oil: My preference is Dende, a Brazilian red palm oil, for the best flavor. But coconut oil or olive oil works well too!
- Vegetables: Onion (red, white, or yellow), carrot, red bell pepper, garlic cloves, and jalapeño are sautéed for savory, aromatic flavor and subtle heat.
- Tomato paste and diced tomatoes: Freshly diced tomatoes are preferred for their juicy texture and fresh flavor.
- Spices: Paprika and ground cumin (or whole cumin seeds) add depth and warmth.
- Stock: Use fish or seafood stock, or chicken stock.
- Coconut milk: Use both the liquid and the solids.
- Fresh herbs: Finish with chopped cilantro, scallions, or Italian parsley.
The best fish for Moqueca
Use firm white fish that will hold their shape and not disintegrate in the liquid. Here are the best fish (and seafood) to use in this recipe and soups and stews in general!
- Halibut
- Pacitid Wild Cold or Haddock
- Sea Bass
- Black Cod
- Escolar
- Red snapper
- Scallops or Shrimp
Where to find the best fish
If you’re looking for a good source of wild-caught, sustainably-raised fish or seafood with no antibiotics, I highly recommend Seatopia!
How to make Moqueca
1. Season the fish. Rinse the fish and pat it dry thoroughly. Cut into 2-inch pieces and place in a bowl. Add salt, zest from half a lime, and 1 tablespoon lime juice. Massage the seasoning lightly into the fish to evenly coat all pieces.
2. Sauté vegetables. In a large sauté pan, clay pot, Dutch oven, or other large pot, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add onion and salt, and sauté 2-3 minutes. Turn the heat down to medium, add carrot, bell pepper, garlic, and jalapeño, and cook 4-5 more minutes.
3. Simmer. Add tomato paste, spices, and stock, and mix. Bring to a simmer, then add tomatoes. Cover and simmer on medium-low for 5 minutes, or until carrots are tender. Add coconut milk, taste, and add more salt if needed.
4. Add fish. Nestle the fish in the flavorful coconut stew, pouring the remaining marinade over the fish and into the stew, and either continue cooking on the stovetop, spooning the flavorful liquid over the fish for about 4-6 minutes (or until desired doneness), or for thicker cuts, place in a 350F oven for 8-10 minutes.
Once done, the Moqueca will have thickened beautifully.
5. Season and serve. Taste and adjust, adding salt and lime as needed. Serve over rice, sprinkle with fresh cilantro, scallions, or Italian parsley, and garnish with a wedge of lime.
Chef’s Tips
- Use firm, thick-cut fish. Choose sturdy fillets, like halibut, cod, or sea bass, and cut them into large chunks so they hold their shape and stay tender.
- Pat the fish very dry. Removing excess moisture helps the seasoning adhere better and prevents watering down the broth.
- Use full-fat coconut milk. For the best texture and flavor, don’t substitute light coconut milk. It won’t give the same silky, luxurious broth.
- Don’t overcook the fish. Gently nestle it into the simmering stew and cook just until opaque and flaky. Overcooking will make it tough and dry.
- Spoon the flavorful broth over the fish as it cooks. This keeps the fish moist and infuses it with all the flavors of the stew.
- Use dendê oil if you can find it. It adds authentic color and a distinctive depth that really defines traditional Moqueca.
Serving Suggestions
Serve Moqueca over cilantro lime rice, basmati rice, black rice, or everyday quinoa. We enjoyed this with a simple green salad, dressed with lemon, olive oil, and salt.
Crusty bread makes a nice vehicle for leftover pan juices. Trust me, you won’t want to waste this! So much flavor!
Storage
Leftovers will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. You can also freeze the stew for up to 3 months. If planning to make ahead, prepare the stew without the fish. When reheating, nestle the fish in to cook just before serving.
Please let me know what you think of this Moqueca Recipe in the comments below!
More Seafood Recipes You Might Like
- Tuna Tostadas
- Simple Authentic Cioppino Recipe
- Broiled Miso Salmon
- Mediterranean Baked Cod
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- Jambalaya
- 100+ Low-Carb Recipes
- 100+ Cozy Soup Recipes
Happy week, friends! xoxo Sylvia
Watch How to make Moqueca
⭐️ After you try this Moqueca recipe, let us know how it turns out in the comments below. Your review will help other readers, too! Sign up here to join our community and receive our latest recipes and weekly newsletter! xoxo Sylvia
Moqueca Recipe (Brazilian Fish Stew)
- Prep Time: 15
- Cook Time: 20
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 4 1x
- Category: 30 minute Dinner, easy dinner, entertaining, fish, healthy dinner, Main
- Method: stovetop
- Cuisine: American, South American
- Diet: Gluten-Free, Keto, Low-Carb
Description
Brazilian Fish Stew (Moqueca) with coconut milk, lime and jalapeño – a flavorful seafood stew that the whole family will love.
Ingredients
- 1 – 1 1/2 pounds firm white fish- Halibut, Black Cod, Sea Bass ( thicker cuts are best)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- one lime- zest and juice
- 2–3 tablespoons coconut or olive oil (or use Dende – Brazillian Red Palm oil for the best flavor!)
- 1 onion- finely diced ( red, white or yellow)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup carrot, diced
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 4 garlic cloves- rough chopped
- 1/2 jalapeno, finely diced
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 2 teaspoons paprika
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin (or whole seed)
- 1 cup fish or chicken stock
- 1 1/2 cups tomatoes, diced ( preferably fresh)
- 1 14 ounce can coconut milk ( liquid and solids)
- more salt to taste
- 1/2 cup chopped cilantro, scallions or Italian parsley
- squeeze of lime
Instructions
- Prep the fish. Rinse and pat dry the fish and cut into 2 inch peices. Place in a bowl. Add salt, zest from half the lime and 1 tablespoon lime juice. Massage lightly to coat all pieces well. Set aside.
- Saute. In a large saute pan, heat the olive oil over medium high heat. Add onion and salt, and sauté 2-3 minutes. Turn heat down to medium, add carrot, bell pepper, garlic and jalapeno and cook 4-5 more minutes.
- Simmer. Add tomato paste, spices and stock. Mix and bring to a simmer and add tomatoes. Cover and simmer gently on medium low for 5 minutes or until carrots are tender. Add the coconut milk and taste and add more salt if necessary.
- Nestle. Nestle the fish in the stew and simmer gently until it’s cooked through, about 4-6 minutes. Spoon the flavorful coconut broth over the fish and cook until desired doneness or longer for thicker pieces. ( You can also finish this in a 350F oven).
- Season. Taste and adjust salt and squeeze with lime.
- Serve. Serve over rice, sprinkle with cilantro or scallions and a squeeze of lime. Drizzle with a little olive oil if you like.
Notes
Serve with rice or crusty bread to mop up all the juices.
If making this ahead, I recommend making the stew ahead (without fish), refrigerating it for up to 3 days, reheating it, and then nestling it in the fish to cook right before serving.
Leftovers will keep up to 3 days in an airtight container in the refrigerator or can be frozen for up to 3 months.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 4 ounces fish plus ¼ of the stew
- Calories: 290
- Sugar: 4.2 g
- Sodium: 429.9 mg
- Fat: 17.4 g
- Saturated Fat: 9.3 g
- Carbohydrates: 11.4 g
- Fiber: 2.3 g
- Protein: 23.5 g
- Cholesterol: 50.1 mg
My husband is Nigerian and I want to make this recipe for him, just wondering if I can use frozen Titus Fish from the local african market? Not sure if it’s a white fish or not. (It usually doesnt fall apart when he cooks it in his stews and soups.)
I’m not familiar with that fish? If it holds its shape I think it should be ok. Take the skin off if possible. 🙂
And coincidentally, my mom served as a midwife there in Nigeria for 5 years, before I was born.
Looks simple and clean. Similar in ways to Thai dishes I’ve made. Do you think Red Curry paste would work in this?
I do, flavor-wise, but it would totally change the dish. Still tasty though. 😉
Great recipe! Very simple and super flavorful!
Awesome, thanks so much and glad you like it! 🙌
Citrusy Manzano pepper subbed beautifully for the jalapeño, if you can find them. Thanks for this lovely recipe.
Awesome, thanks so much and glad you like it! 🙌
Sounds yummy. Would Red Snapper work?
Yes, it should work fine. Thicker pieces are best. 😉
Love love loved it!! Used habanero instead of jalapeño. Cod, shrimp, and little necks. Recently watched Below Deck on Bravo and the chef made it a few times. Excellent. Thank you!
Thanks!
Hey Yeimy, that’s exactly where I saw this dish too — on Below Deck!! I loved that Kiko. If he’d have made moqueca EVERY charter, his job would have been safe! 🙂
Is there a substitute for the coconut if someone is allergic?
The coconut really makes it. I guess you could add a little heavy cream?
The pics and ingredients don’t match up. You have onion as an ingredient yet it is clearly red onion in the pic. Cherry tomatoes (red and yellow) but not listed. One pic shows grain rice in the pan? Please clarify the recipe. It sounds great but if I don’t have the correct ingredients it may not be.
Please follow the recipe card. The photos were re-shot, using similar ingredients, but not exact.
Thank you I can’t wait to try it!
Love this recipe! Just made it for the second time. We like a little more spice so I sub serranos for the jalapeños, and I’ll put about 3 in there depending on the size. Also will add some cayenne to taste after adding the coconut milk. I’ve done it with both cod and halibut. The halibut can withstand cooking in the broth a bit more. I’m thinking about trying scallops next time. Thank you for the new staple in my household!
Scallops sound so tasty! Thanks for sharing!
Beautiful ♥️
This was delish and easy! The coconut milk made the broth luxurious. Yummm
Love your blog.
Thanks Jackie!
Created this recipe and it was delicious! In the end I opted for slihjtly chunkier veg (+ some zuchini) for texture. Will definitely make again. Thank you.
I made this dish with halibut and it was absolutely delicious. The only ingredient I didn’t have was jalapeno peppers so I used pepper flakes instead. The chopping of the ingredients took the most time but this is something you can do ahead of time. Because this dish is so rich (coconut milk I think was 14 grams of fat) I don’t think I would make it very often only now and again. So if you want something fun and different and you like coconut flavor this dish is a winner. I used basmati rice and cooked it in a rice cooker so it was ready ahead of time but stayed nice and moist.
Thanks David!
The fat in coconut milk is so very healthy. It actually helps to activate your metabolism, and the fiber is great for digestion. The combo of coconut milk that has cool property combined with warming spices is a perfect balance.
I made this once and it was awesome! Unfortunately, the cod that I used was somewhat overcooked and too chewy. Obviously, this was my fault. How does one best assess when the fish is ready but not overdone? 🙏
It just begins to flake. It really only takes a few minutes, especially with thin or small pieces.
We really enjoyed this meal… cooked this evening… will try with fresh local Kota Kinabalu catch next time rather than frozen… but was excellent. Going to try your sour dough starter this week also!
Hi Sylvia!
Firstly, thanks for all your wonderful recipes!
I just returned to this one and was wondering – have you updates the recipe recently, or have I got it mixed up? I recall different pictures and can’t for the life of me remember carrots in the recipe 😀
/Marsha
New pictures but the recipe is the same. 🙂
This recipe came out perfect!!!! I admit I was a bit apprehensive making my first fish stew; however, if you follow step-by-step you will be amazed at how flavorful Sylvia’s recipes truly are! Extra points for adding the nutrition facts, as well! Sylvia, you are the best!!!
Thanks so much!
Sylvia – my family loves that I’ve found your site even more than me! Quarantine meals are so important for getting my teenagers to the table and talking. I’ve always been a good cook, but your recipes make me look great. This was so delicious, easy, made with ingredients I normally have on hand and healthy too. I also love your quotes. Thank you for the work you do here.
Thanks so much Kathryn. xoxo
This dish is excellent ! I normally don’t leave recipe reviews, but I was so inclined. It is super easy to prepare, healthy, and quite delicious. I added red pepper flakes for a little spice. Thanks for the recipe !
Thanks so much- appreciate the comment!
hi Sylvia, I am planning to make this tonight for dinner. I was kinda confused with the measurements as we use ml instead of ounce. 1 14 ounce, how much ml would that be? Could you please help me on that? Thank you!
414 ml.
I made this this week and used Pacific Cod. It was delicious, it had a lot of flavor. I did not have a jalapeño pepper, but I did have a poblano, so while it did not have a spicy kick, it was still quite tasty. I had leftovers, and while I normally don’t recommend leftover fish this was was actually even better the second day after the flavors melded together more. This will be a go to for me.
Great to hear!
Absolutely delicious! I used frozen wild cod and results are spectacular. Thank you so much!
I made this yesterday and it was wonderful! A big hit in my family!
I have one question—is the fish cooked in a separate pan before being added to the soup? It wasn’t clear to me how that all came about but whatever I did was delicious!! Thanks Sylvia!
I see how that was unclear and fix it- thanks!
It was absolutely amazing! My family and I like heat, so I used serrano peppers instead of jalapeños. Unfortunately, because I de-seeded the serranos, I could not detect any heat. Next time I’ll keep the seeds or use Thai chilis. Regardless, this recipe is phenomenal.
Hi my son is allergic to coconut milk, can you suggest another option please.
I guess you could use cream? I haven’t tried this though.
It was delicious