CALDEIRADA

Three versions are presented: one using only seafoods, one with seafood and meat and a third with mixed meats.

Although elaborate, they can conveniently be prepared the day before and only need reheating.

Scallops

Crabs (cut into quarters, in their shells)

Fish (any firm-fleshed fish like ling), coated lightly in flour

Squid

Prawns

Clams or mussels

1 medium cabbage

2 large onions finely chopped

2 cloves garlic finely chopped

2 cans of stewed Italian tomatoes

A few glasses of white wine

2 tbsp tomato sauce

Sugar to taste

Salt and pepper to taste

Chopped parsley to taste

Olive oil

Vegetable stock

A bit of tomato paste

Black olives to garnish

SEAFOOD

Wash and clean all seafood and shallow-fry before putting into the sauce.  Always coat fish with plain flour before sauté.

Chop onions and sauté in olive oil then add garlic.  Add two cans of stewed tomatoes and tomato sauce.

Season with salt, pepper and sugar. 

Add a few glasses of white wine, simmer over low heat until tender.

Add chopped parsley.

Taste and add more sugar if needed.

The sauce can be made a day before; on the day of serving add the sautéed seafood, including the crab claws and prawn head which enhance the taste.

CABBAGE

Wash and cut cabbage to bite sizes.  Sauté in olive oil and a sprinkling of water and cook until tender.

To serve, put the cabbage on the bottom of the serving dish and top with seafood and gravy.

SERVE

Serve piping hot and garnish with black olives and drizzle with a good quality olive oil.

Serve with hot garlic bread so that you can dip the bread into the sauce.

Best served with chilled white wine.

fried fish
corned beef
stock from pork bones
tomatoes
cinnamon
whole cloves
butter
shrimps(1)
lobsters
crouton of bread
olive oil
garlic
onions
oysters
white wine
hard-boiled eggs, diced
potatoes

⁽¹⁾     In some countries these would be called prawns – shrimps would be small crustaceans.

Shell the shrimps, boil in water and strain the stock.

Heat oil in a saucepan and fry the garlic till brown; add onions and only half cook them, then add tomatoes and fry well. Then the shrimps, lobsters, oysters, etc., should be put in the pan with the stock from the shrimp heads. When the mixture starts boiling add salt and pepper according to taste, then put in the corned beef cut in pieces.

20 minutes before serving throw in the fish and wine and serve with croutons of fried bread. Garnish with diced boiled eggs and serve with boiled potatoes⁽²⁾.

⁽²⁾     The original recipe did not specify how the potatoes were to be cooked.  Presumably they would be added to the stew when the corned beef was almost done.

1 chicken
300g beef
300g pork, Chinese sausage or piece of ham
4 Chinese sausages cut in pieces, or 1 pé de presunto (ham hock)
12 slices fried bread
4 hard boiled eggs
6 large tomatoes, cut in eighths and seeded
4 large onions, cut in eighths
4 quartered potatoes

Put the chicken, beef and pork in a pot and cover with water. Bring to the boil and simmer until the meats are half tender, then add the sausages. (If using a ham hock boil it separately some hours beforehand as it may take rather long to tenderise; also cook the potatoes separately.

Cut the meats in pieces.

In a separate pan fry the onions and tomatoes until just moist, season, add all the cooked meats and simmer.

Before serving add a wineglass ⁽¹⁾ of white wine.

Spread the fried bread on a dish, cove with the meat and decorate the top with hard-boiled eggs.

⁽¹⁾ This would probably have been the size of port or sherry glass (2-3 oz | 60-90ml) rather than a glass or red or white wine (5-8 oz | 150-240ml).