What to Stew

Wow.  I feel like the last few weeks have been a little nuts.  I have been making dinner and trying a few new things but haven't had a chance to put it all together to share.  Then I remembered the Mexican Fish Stew that I've been meaning to tell you about.  As I have probably mentioned before, when the girls and I get together we almost always end up on the food topic at some point and almost always if fish comes up, one or more will mention that they want to eat more fish but just don't know what to do with it.  I am always glad to find a new good (and of course easy) fish recipe to pass along.  Once again this is courtesy of Food TV Magazine.

This recipe calls for tilapia fillets.  We, for what ever reason are just not huge fans of tilapia so Nels picked up some other variety of mild white fish from our favorite local fish market, Fins and Tails.  I should also mention that the amount of fish in this photo (is what we used) is excessive.  So, to get started, you put the fish in a dish and season with some salt, pepper and lime and set it aside.

Then you're going to cook up some potatoes and corn on the cob in  salted water until tender.

While those are cooking you are going to (make the house smell awesome when you) cook up some onion and thyme, garlic, chile powder and cilantro and eventually a can of diced tomatoes.

Next, you add the potatoes, corn and a little of the cooking water.  Add the fish and it's marinade to the skillet and simmer while spooning the sauce over the fish to help it cook.  Again, the fish in this picture is a bit excessive.  Your pan won't be this crowded, I'm sure.

So that's that.  Not too difficult and only takes 30 minutes.  Not bad.  We really liked this, and I will make it again for sure.  It does have a chowdery sort of feel,  might work well on the clam bake scene this summer.  Give it try, see what you think.

Mexican Fish Stew (Food Network Magazine)

4 6-oz tilapia fillets, each cut into 4 pieces

Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

3 limes (2 juiced, 1 cut into wedges)

1/2 lb new potatoes, thickly sliced

4 small pieces frozen (or fresh) corn on the cob

2 Tbs extra virgin olive oil

1 large onion finely chopped

1/2 tsp dried thyme

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 Tbs chile powder (calls for ancho or New Mexico but I used whatever was in the cupboard)

1 bunch cilantro, leaves and tender stems coarsely chopped

1 15-oz can no salt added diced fire roasted tomatoes

Put the fish in a shallow dish and season with salt and pepper.  Add the lime juice and toss; set aside.  Put the potatoes in a saucepan, cover with water and season with salt.  Bring to a boil; add the corn and cook, covered, until vegetables are tender, about 8 min.  Reserve 1 cup of cooking water, then drain.

Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.  Add all but 1/3 cup of chopped onion along with the thyme and cook until soft, about 2 min.  Add the garlic, chile powder and half of the cilantro and cook, stirring, about 2 min.  Add the tomatoes and cook, stirring occasionally, until slightly reduced, about 4 min.  Add potatoes, corn and reserved cooking water.

Add the fish and lime marinade to the skillet and simmer, spooning sauce over the fish, until cooked through, about 5 min.  Season with salt and pepper.  Serve in bowls and top with remaining cilantro and onion and a wedge of lime.

Hasta la vista amigos!