Comoros: M’tsolola

Name: Comoros: M’tsolola
Cuisine: Comoros
Ingredients: Hot Chile Peppers: 2-3; Salt: 1 Tbsp; Garlic Cloves: 3; Lime Juice: 1/4 cup; Tuna Steaks: 2 lbs; Green Plantains: 4 large; Yuca: 2 lbs; Water: 2 cups + more as needed; Red onion: 1 small; Full fat coconut milk: 2 13.5 oz cans

Fish, Green Plantain & Coconut Milk Stew

Cuisine:

Comoros

Ingredients

2-3 Hot Chile Peppers
Such as habaneros of jalapenos - I deseeded them and wished the soup had a little more heat.
1 Tbsp Salt
3 Garlic Cloves
1/4 cup Lime Juice
2 lbs Tuna Steaks
4 large Green Plantains
2 lbs Yuca
I could not find yuca, so I substituted a white sweet potato
2 cups + more as needed Water
1 small Red onion
diced
2 13.5 oz cans Full fat coconut milk

Directions

M’tsolola is a very traditional dish from Comoros, a small island nation between Mozambique and Madagascar. Plantains, a staple of Comorian cuisine, are used to stretch a little fish a long ways in this simple coconut milk stew. I actually used quite a lot of fresh tuna – two pounds to be precise.

I made a few adaptations – namely I substituted a starchy white sweet potato for yuca, which I couldn’t find at three separate grocery stores (wise during a pandemic, I know). I was okay with that, because the recipe is already an adaptation of how it would be made in Comoros, where it would be a much more labor intensive process to prepare. Forget the food processor – or likely even the stove – this would likely be prepared over a fire and served in a wide dish called a sinia.

This stew was the perfect comfort food on a cold night when all of us here in D.C. were in need of a little comfort after watching an insurrection on our capitol building by MAGA terrorists. While I didn’t go the fire route, we did enjoy this dish fireside – shared with dear friends, the way it’s meant to be consumed.

Recipe Source: In Bibi’s Kitchen

Steps

1 Done	Place the chiles and salt in a mortar and pestle (or a food processor) and grind to a paste. Add the garlic, one clove at a time, and grind it into a chile paste. Stir in the lime juice. Place the fish in a large bowl or plate and add the chile paste and rub it all over the fish. Cover and set aside for 30 minutes while you prepare the remaining ingredients.
2 Done	Prepare the plantains by trimming the ends and peeling the skin off, then cutting in half length wise and then in quarters cross wise (you'll end up with eight pieces per plantain - math!) Place in a large bowl and cover with cold water while you prepare the yuca. (Note: I used a starchy white sweet potato because I couldn't find yuca). Regardless of whether you're using yuca or sweet potato, remove the skin and thinly slice. Add to the bowl with the plantain, drain and set aside.
3 Done	Place half the plantains and yuca in the bottom of a large dutch oven. Place the fish in an even layer on top and then sprinkle with diced red onion. Cover with the remaining plantains and yuca. Add the coconut milk - if it doesn't cover the top layer of plantain/yuca you may need to add a bit of water. Bring it to a boil and then lower to a medium simmer and cook about 20 minutes, until everything is soft - but not so long that the fish becomes tough (I learned this one the hard way!) Serve over rice.