Peanut Fish Stew 

Recipe from Ricky Moore

Adapted by Brigid Washington

Published December 20, 2022

  • Kelly Marshall for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Roscoe Betsill.
Media 1 of 1
Total Time
30 minutes
Rating
4(608)
Comments
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Luscious and delicate from coconut milk, with distinguishable nuttiness from ground peanuts and peanut butter, this fish stew would be a welcome addition to the comfort food repertoire for every home cook who isn’t allergic to the namesake ingredient. This recipe from Ricky Moore, the chef at Saltbox Seafood Joint in Durham, N.C., comes together quickly with an approachable ingredient list. It also has deep, penetrating notes from ginger and garlic that give this stew subtle yet superlative depth. The diced tomatoes are an essential ingredient: Their acid cuts the creaminess of the dish and their color imparts a warm reddish hue. This stew is best served with rice and topped with spiced pickled celery. —Brigid Washington

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Ingredients

Yield:6 to 8 servings 

  • 2 pounds skinless cod, mahi-mahi or other firm-fleshed white fish, cut into 2-inch cubes

  • 2 teaspoons kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal), plus more as needed 

  • 1 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper 

  • ½ cup unsalted raw peanuts, plus more coarsely chopped peanuts for garnish 

  • 1 medium yellow onion, roughly chopped 

  • 1 (14-ounce) can diced tomatoes, drained 

  • 7 large garlic cloves 

  • 1 (3-inch) piece fresh ginger, peeled and roughly chopped

  • 2 small serrano chiles, halved, deseeded and deveined 

  • 1 teaspoon smoked paprika 

  • 2 tablespoons neutral oil, such as canola or vegetable 

  • 1 tablespoon chicken bouillon powder (such as Maggi)

  • ½ cup creamy peanut butter 

  • 1 (14-ounce) can unsweetened coconut milk 

  • 1 large red bell pepper, halved and thinly sliced 

  • 1 large yellow bell pepper, halved and thinly sliced 

  • ½ cup chopped fresh parsley 

  • Cooked rice, for serving

  • Spiced Pickled Celery, for serving

  • Lime wedges (optional)

Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (6 to 8 servings)

22 grams carbs; 57 milligrams cholesterol; 458 calories; 10 grams monosaturated fat; 5 grams polyunsaturated fat; 13 grams saturated fat; 29 grams fat; 4 grams fiber; 742 milligrams sodium; 32 grams protein; 5 grams sugar

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Season the fish with 1 teaspoon of salt and ½ teaspoon pepper and set aside. In a blender, combine the peanuts, onion, tomatoes, garlic, ginger, serranos and paprika, plus the remaining 1 teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon black pepper. Blitz until smooth, 1 ½ to 2 minutes.

  2. Step 2

    In a large high-sided skillet, heat the oil over medium until shimmering. Pour in the paste directly from the blender, sprinkle with the bouillon powder and cook until fragrant, 8 to 10 minutes, stirring and scraping the bottom of the pan to ensure that the paste doesn't scorch. Add the peanut butter and coconut milk, using a whisk (or fork) to break up the peanut butter until smooth and well incorporated. Add the bell peppers and cook for another 3 minutes.

  3. Step 3

    Gently place the fish into the sauce, nestling them so that there’s a good amount of space between each piece. Allow the fish to poach in the sauce until just firm and well-coated in the sauce, about 5 minutes; adjust seasoning as desired. Garnish with fresh parsley and chopped peanuts. Serve with rice and pickled celery, plus lime wedges, if you like.

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Ratings

4 out of 5
608 user ratings
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Comments

Nancy Lub.

Can you substitute unsalted roasted peanuts for the raw peanuts?

Trish

Made for dinner last night, and five hungry people gobbled it up entirely, no leftovers. Used a Nutribullet to blend the sauce, but needed to add a little water to get it going, then it worked perfectly. (Not sure why it says to drain tomatoes?) Didn't have paprika, didn't miss it. Was worried I wouldn't have enough sauce, so doubled the (low fat) coconut milk and 1.5X peanut butter. Should have doubled the tomatoes. Added thinly sliced mushrooms and a little fish sauce for kicks. Yum!

Lore

Made this today with few adaptations (salmon instead of white fish, sweet potato instead of bell paprika, therefore no rice) - the paste is delicious, though very garlicky and intense, we definitely should've made some rice to balance it out. Also my blender didn't get it fine enough, so it had a bit weird texture. Boyfriend liked it and it's versatile, so we'll definitely have this again.

better than scrubs

Delicious. I have a spice phobic family so used a single green chili. I had palm oil so used that for more authenticity.. Agree that fish needs longer to cook. Fried peanuts on top were delicious. Served with basmati rice

Ella

Outstanding, with a number of modifications in keeping with the spirit of the dish. Halved the recipe but kept the original aromatics, more or less. Rotel fire roasted tomatoes with chiles, used half a can in the paste and then added the other can whole with the bell peppers. Added a good hit of fish sauce and some msg instead of bouillon powder, and some extra coconut milk and water for consistency. Most importantly: habañero instead of one of the serranos and it was great!! Wants to be spicy!!

Sheerah

Thought this was delicious and relatively low effort. I doubled the tomatoes and used 3 lbs of tilapia and made a ton of stew. The lime squeeze goes really well.

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Credits

Adapted from Ricky Moore

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