 Tom McCorkle for The Washington Post; food styling by Carolyn Robb for The Washington Post | Did a friend forward this to you? Sign up here. Brazilian flavorsThe first time I heard Brazilian Portuguese I was so enchanted that I missed my subway stop. Melodic and rhythmic, it must be the most sensual language, spicy and sweet. The country sounds even more bewitching in a piece that historian and author Jessica B. Harris wrote for Food & Wine this year. Harris first visited Salvador, the capital city of Bahia, on Brazil's eastern shore in the late 1970s. There, she found a state of flux: growing tourism, an old city in rough shape, and a thriving art and music scene. "I discovered the Cantina da Lua, a hangout for artists and locals of all stripes, where owner Clarindo Silva read poetry over a loudspeaker every night at midnight. The grit was, for me, a part of the charm and the fascination," Harris writes. "This was the Bahia in which the works of novelist Jorge Amado, whom I would later meet, came alive before my eyes." Harris goes on to fall in love with the people and food of Bahia, which combines the cuisines of three continents into one. "I discovered Africa in the New World in Salvador. From street vendors selling black-eyed-pea fritters like those I knew from West Africa to the sugarcane-based cachaça that had hints of Southern moonshine, this was a world that combined Africa, the Caribbean, and the traditions that I knew from my grandmothers," Harris writes. "It was a mysterious and magnificent mix of everywhere else I'd been in the African Atlantic world and yet its very own place." A week or so before I read Harris's piece, I had made this fish, a recipe from author and chef Leticia Moreinos Schwartz's 2010 book, "The Brazilian Kitchen." I immediately moved Brazil up on my to-travel list. (You have a list like this, right?) Schwartz's fish dish starts with a mixture of softened bell peppers, their sweetness enhanced by shallots and thyme. A sauce of sauteed shallots, ginger, garlic, white wine, fish stock and coconut milk forms quickly while you dredge and quickly fry fillets of sole, tilapia, turbot or another white fish. Colorful and elegant, it captures the playful, sensual spirit of Brazil.  | Today's recipe | Fish With Coconut Ginger Sauce - This recipe starts with a lot of chopping, but you can speed things up by using the pulse mode on your food processor.
- You can use just one color bell pepper instead of all three.
- Feel free to use onions or leeks instead of the shallots.
- I don't always have a bottle of wine open for cooking, so I'll usually use a few tablespoons of white wine or champagne vinegar and water instead.
- I never have fish stock on hand; fortunately a quick dashi or miso broth works, too.
- I love the coconut milk in this, but if you can't have coconut, almond milk might be nice.
- Ask your fishmonger for fresh, firm fillets — preferably locally caught if you live near the water.
- It's perfectly fine to skip the dredging if you're gluten-free or don't want to make a floury mess on your counter. Just pan-fry the fish in butter (or olive oil!) until it's lightly browned.
- The fish with the peppers and sauce is great on its own, but if you're especially hungry, a pot of rice or bowl of tender greens might be nice on the side.
For easy printing and scaling, view this recipe in our Recipe Finder. Servings: 4
Total time: 45 mins Ingredients - 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- 1/2 medium red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded and chopped (about 1/2 cup)
- 1/2 medium yellow bell pepper, stemmed, seeded and chopped (about 1/2 cup)
- 1/2 medium green bell pepper, stemmed, seeded and chopped (about 1/2 cup)
- 4 to 5 medium shallots, chopped (about 3/4 cup), divided
- 4 medium cloves garlic, chopped, divided
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves or 1 teaspoon dried
- Fine sea salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh ginger (about a 3- to 4-inch piece)
- 1/4 cup dry white wine
- 1 1/2 cups fish stock
- 1 cup coconut milk
- 4 skinless sole, tilapia or turbot fillets (about 6 ounces each)
- 1 cup all-purpose flour, for coating the fish
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
Steps1. In a large skillet over medium heat, heat 2 tablespoons of oil until shimmering. Add the bell peppers and 1/2 cup of the shallots and cook, stirring frequently, until soft, 3 to 5 minutes. Add half of the garlic and cook until aromatic, about 1 minute. Stir in the thyme, and season to taste with salt and pepper. Remove from the heat.
2. To make the sauce, in a medium saucepan over medium heat, heat the remaining olive oil until shimmering, Add the remaining shallots and cook, stirring frequently, until the shallots are soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. 3. Add the ginger and the remaining garlic and cook stirring, until aromatic, about 2 minutes. Add the wine and bring to a boil; cook until the liquid in the pan has reduced by about three-quarters. Add the fish stock, increase the heat to medium-high and bring to a boil. Stir in the coconut milk, reduce the heat to medium-low and cook until the sauce becomes thick, stirring frequently. Strain through a sieve into another saucepan and discard any solids. Season to taste with salt and pepper and keep warm.
4. While the sauce is cooking, pat the fish dry with a towel and liberally season both sides with salt and pepper. Place the flour on a plate, lightly dredge the fish in it and shake off the excess.
5. In a large skillet over medium heat, melt the butter. When the butter foaming subsides, add the fish fillets; they should sizzle lightly. Cook the fillets without moving them, until golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Using a metal spatula, gently flip the fillets and cook on the other side until golden brown, another 2 to 3 minutes. 6. Place a fish fillet on each plate and top with the warm pepper mixture. Spoon the sauce around the fish and serve. Adapted from "The Brazilian Kitchen," by Leticia Moreinos Schwartz (Kyle Books, 2010). Tested by Jane Touzalin. Nutrition information per serving: Calories: 561; Total Fat: 39 g; Saturated Fat: 18 g; Cholesterol: 118 mg; Sodium: 303 mg; Carbohydrates: 15 g; Dietary Fiber: 1 g; Sugars: 2 g; Protein: 38 g.  | Dessert | 🎧 "More Than a Woman" by the Bee Gees.
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