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TL;DR (Quick-Answer Box)
- What it is: A classic Portuguese seafood stew featuring cod, clams, mussels, and linguiça sausage simmered in a rich, saffron-infused tomato and fish broth.
- Why you’ll love it: Brimming with authentic, layered flavors, this hearty, satisfying meal is perfect for sopping up with crusty bread on a cozy evening.
- How to make it: Sauté leeks and onions, simmer with stock and tomatoes, then add sausage and shellfish until they open. Serve over pan-seared cod.
It’s said every Portuguese recipe begins with a splash of olive oil, half-moons of onions, and a heavy-handed toss of garlic. This Portuguese fisherman’s stew, or caldeirada de peixe, is no exception. It’s a briny, brothy bowl of comfort straight from the eastern Atlantic coast.
This stew showcases some of Portugal’s iconic ingredients: blindingly fresh fish and shellfish, smoked Portuguese sausage, and sun-ripened tomatoes. It’s perked up with white wine, saffron, and the scent of oregano.
But, to me, it’s more than just a dish. It’s a story. A sensory postcard. A potful of saudade— that untranslatable yearning for a time or place that no longer exists. Except, mercifully, in recipes like this.
More Authentic Portuguese Recipes
Caldo Verde ~ Portuguese Green Soup
1 hr 5 mins
Portuguese Carne Assada
6 hrs 30 mins
Pastel de Nata ~ Portuguese Custard Tarts
2 hrs 30 mins
If this fisherman’s stew causes you to have saudades for a full-on Portuguese feast—and between us, why wouldn’t it?—I’ve got you. Start with a soul-warming bowl of traditional Portuguese kale and sausage soup, which is practically a hug from a Portuguese grandmother. For the main event, you simply must try the iconic surf-and-turf combo of pork and clams from the Alentejo region. Or, for something a bit more hands-off, consider my mom’s fantastically flavorful and tender Portuguese pot roast. And for the grand finale? Well, there’s nothing left to do but surrender to the world’s most famous flaky, blistered Portuguese custard tarts.
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Portuguese Fisherman’s Stew
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup dry white wine
- generous pinch saffron threads
- 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- 1 1/4 cups coarsely chopped leeks
- 1 cup coarsely chopped onion
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 3 cups fish stock, or bottled clam juice
- one (14.5-oz) can diced tomatoes with their juice
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 6 ounces linguiça, or spicy sausage, cut diagonally into 1/4-inch-thick slices
- 20 mussels, scrubbed and debearded
- 12 littleneck clams, scrubbed
- four (5-ounce) cod fillets
- salt and freshly ground pepper
- yellow cornmeal, for dredging
- 1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
Instructions
- Bring the 1/4 cup dry white wine to a simmer in a small saucepan. Add the generous pinch saffron threads. Remove from the heat, cover, and let the pan stand for 15 minutes.
- Heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a heavy, large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the 1 1/4 cups coarsely chopped leeks and 1 cup coarsely chopped onion and sauté until tender, about 8 minutes.
- Add the 1 tablespoon minced garlicand sauté for 1 minute. Add the 3 cups fish stock, one (14.5-oz) can diced tomatoes with their juice, 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano, and the saffron-wine mixture. Bring to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes to allow the flavors to meld.
- Add the 6 ounces linguiça, 20 mussels, and 12 littleneck clams. Cover and increase the heat to high. Boil until the shellfish open and spill their liquor, about 5 to 8 minutes. Discard any that do not open.
- Meanwhile, pat the four (5-ounce) cod fillets dry. Sprinkle generously with salt and freshly ground pepper. Place the yellow cornmeal on a plate and dip one side of each fillet in the cornmeal to coat.
- Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over high heat. Add the fish, cornmeal side down, and cook until the bottom is golden brown, about 4 minutes. Turn the fish over. Ladle 1 cup of the broth from the stew over the fish. Cover the skillet and simmer until the fish is just cooked through, about 4 minutes more.
- To serve, transfer a fish fillet, cornmeal side up, to each of 4 shallow bowls. Arrange the clams, mussels, and sausage around the fish. Carefully ladle the remaining broth and vegetables over. Sprinkle with 1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley and rush to the table.
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Nutrition
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Just had this dish for lunch at the King of Prussia PA Restaurant and was blown away. Obviously a smaller portion for lunch but with the fabulous garlic bread, the abundance of linguiça, with two Lagers to wash it down…WOW! Excellent wait staff, clean inviting place with its own vibe; and after only my first visit to Legal Seafoods, I’m hooked!
Thanks, Bud.