Seafood stew over quinoa (the savory)

We’ve covered quinoa as a breakfasty sort of thing. Now let’s talk about quinoa in a more savory capacity. I’m telling you, folks, it’s good no matter what you do with it!

So, a little backstory. I got off on the wrong foot when I started trying to cook fish at home years ago. My first few forays into the fish world were less than successful and left me feeling pretty discouraged. So, I just stopped cooking it at home. But that’s no fun, now is it? So, in the last six months or so, I decided to give it another try.

I’m not sure what’s changed, but things are definitely going better than they did back in the day. I’m no longer afraid to cook fish at home and, as my confidence continues to build, I want to do it more. Consequently, one of the things I want to focus on in the new year is incorporating more fish and seafood into our diet. Not only is it quick, it’s healthy, and it’s a nice change to our usual staples.

Enter seafood stew…

We’re still trying to detox a bit from all of our holiday eating, so this is a great, healthy choice. It’s perfect as-is, served up in a bowl with a piece of crusty bread. But layer it over quinoa (yes, I’m obsessed) and it’s even better.

Not too fishy, but packed full of shrimp, tilapia, tomatoes, potatoes, and onions, this is a hearty cool weather food. If you want to play with the recipe a bit, you can certainly add whatever seafood you like as well as a host of other veggies.

Seafood Stew
(adapted from Sunset)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 can crushed tomatoes
1 can diced tomatoes
1 1/2 cups water
1/2 pound red potatoes, quartered
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
cayenne pepper to taste
1 pound peeled and deveined shrimp, rinsed
2 medium (approx. 4 ounces each) tilapia fillets, rinsed and cut into 1 inch pieces
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
Cooked quinoa (cooking instructions HERE)

Heat oil in a 5- to 6-quart pan over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic and 6 to 8 minutes. Add tomatoes, 1 1/2 cups water, potatoes, cumin, chili powder, salt, and cayenne. Increase heat to high and bring to a boil. (If cooking quinoa, start it now.) Reduce heat, cover, and simmer until potatoes are fork tender, approximately 20 to 25 minutes.

Stir in seafood. Cover and simmer until shrimp and fish are opaque but still moist-looking in the center of thickest part, approximately 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in parsley. Spoon quinoa onto rimmed plates and top with stew.

Serves four.