Recipes Dinner Seafood Main Course Fish Main Course Goan Curried Fish Stew 4.0 (1) 2 Reviews This fish stew gets bright flavor from lemon juice and heat from chiles, all balanced by creamy coconut milk. By Emily Ziemski Emily Ziemski Emily Ziemski is a recipe developer, editor, and food writer with a focus on sustainability and wellness. Previously a senior food editor at Well+Good and food editor at Food52, she's best known for the creation of the Dirty Martini Salad Dressing (for which she apologizes). Food & Wine's Editorial Guidelines Updated on August 25, 2026 Save Rate PRINT Share Close Credit: © Melanie Acevedo Total Time: 45 mins Servings: 4 Yield: 4 Jump to recipe Sole simmers in a coconut milk sauce infused with ginger, coriander, cumin, turmeric, and chile for a fragrant, gently spicy stew.A brief lemon-and-salt marinade gives the fish a bright, tangy counterpoint to the coconut-based sauce.The stew takes about 45 minutes from start to finish, making it an easy introduction to the bold flavors of Goan cooking. From Goa, a tropical area on the southern coast of India where coconut palms are plentiful and fresh seafood abundant, comes this fish stew. Goans traditionally use a local flatfish called pomfret and serve the stew with plenty of rice. This version calls for readily available sole, but if you can find pomfret, it’s an excellent choice. If you’ve never tried Goan cuisine, this is the place to start. The stew is delectable. 33 Indian Recipes From Maneet Chauhan, Madhur Jaffrey, Chintan Pandya, and More Experts Where to find pomfret Pomfret can be harder to find than the sole called for in this recipe, but it’s available frozen at some Indian and Asian grocery stores and through online specialty grocers. If you’d like to use the traditional fish, look for silver or white pomfret; availability will vary depending on where you live. Notes from the Food & Wine Test Kitchen Marinate the sole in the lemon juice and salt for 10 to 30 minutes in a glass or stainless steel container. The acidic lemon juice can affect the texture of the delicate fish if left to marinate much longer. For the best texture, add the fish only after the coconut sauce has reached a gentle simmer. Sole cooks quickly and needs just a minute or two to become tender. Try serving this dish over a hearty grain like rice, perfect for catching every bite of the flavorful sauce. Suggested pairing The spiciness and creaminess of this stew will be best accompanied by either beer or a bottle of acidic white wine with enough flavor to stand up to the coconut milk and heat. Try a Vouvray or other wine made from Chenin Blanc from the Loire Valley in France. Keep Screen Awake Ingredients 1/2x 1x 2x Oops! Something went wrong. Our team is working on it. This recipe was developed at its original yield. Ingredient amounts are automatically adjusted, but cooking times and steps remain unchanged. Note that not all recipes scale perfectly. Original recipe (1X) yields 4 servings 2 pounds sole fillets, cut into 1-inch pieces 1/4 cup lemon juice (from about 1 lemon) 1 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt, divided 2 garlic cloves, smashed 4 teaspoons chopped fresh ginger 1 cup canned unsweetened coconut milk 1 tablespoon ground coriander 1 teaspoon ground cumin 1 teaspoon brown sugar 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 1/4 teaspoon turmeric 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper 3 tablespoons cooking oil 1 onion, chopped 1 tomato, chopped 4 jalapeño peppers, seeds and ribs removed, minced 3/4 cup water Directions In a glass or stainless steel container, combine the sole, lemon juice, and 1/2 teaspoon of the salt. Let marinate at least 10 minutes. In a blender, puree the garlic, ginger, coconut milk, coriander, cumin, brown sugar, black pepper, turmeric, and cayenne. In a large saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onion; cook, stirring occasionally, until golden, about 5 minutes. Add the tomato and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the coconut mixture, jalapeños, water, and the remaining 3/4 teaspoon salt and bring slowly almost to a simmer, stirring frequently. Add the fish and 1 tablespoon of the marinade. Bring to a simmer and continue simmering until the fish is just done, 1 to 2 minutes. This recipe was first published in Food & Wine’s 1997 cookbook, Quick From Scratch Fish & Shellfish; the text was written in part by Emily Ziemski. Cook this recipe and more in the MyRecipes app. Get the App Save Rate Print Loading shell for RecipesUgcThreaded1 Vue component in Globe.