Chef Isabel
Caldo de Millo Canario
Caldo de Millo is the Canary Islands' clear corn-cob broth: piñas de millo, papas, calabaza, and cilantro simmered gently until the cobs sweeten the water and the bowl stays light.
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Caldo de Pescado Canario
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Caldo de Pescado Canario is the Canary Islands' clean fish broth: fresh white fish, papas, a small sofrito, saffron, and the old island habit of finishing the bowl with mojo verde and gofio.
Soups & Stews
Spanish
Comfort Food
One Pot
Special Occasion
25 min
Active Time
55 min cook•1 hr 20 min total
Yield4 to 6 servings
Caldo de Pescado Canario belongs to the Canary Islands, and it tastes of their coast before it tastes of anything else: fresh firm fish, papas, onion, tomato, saffron, coriander, and a broth clear enough to show you didn't bully it. Vieja is the beautiful fish for it when you can get it, cherne is another island choice, and the bowl is finished the Canarian way, with mojo verde and a spoon of gofio stirred in until the broth gains body.
The method that decides it is simple: build the base first, then poach the fish gently and briefly. Cook the onion, pepper, garlic, and tomato until the sofrito, the slow vegetable base, loses its raw edge and turns sweet. Then let the papas cook in that broth before the fish goes in. If you boil the fish hard, you get dry flakes and a cloudy pot. If you let it tremble quietly, the fish stays whole and the broth tastes of the sea, not of overcooking.
If you're far from a Canarian market, no hace falta haber pisado España. Use a firm white fish with bones if you can: grouper, sea bass, hake, cod, or snapper. Fillets will work, but the broth will be lighter, so ask the fishmonger for heads or bones and simmer them first. Gofio is worth finding because it changes the dish from soup into Canarian spoon food. Without it, the broth is still good, just less itself.
Serve the fish and papas in deep bowls with the golden broth poured over, mojo verde on the side, and gofio for each person to stir in as they like. Pésalo, no lo adivines, especially the salt, because fish and stock can fool you. Siempre sale, si lo sigues.
Caldo de pescado is coastal Canary Islands home cooking, shaped by islands where fishing boats, papas, coriander, saffron, and toasted grain all belonged to the everyday table. Vieja, parrotfish, is especially prized in the islands for its firm white flesh and sweet flavor, while cherne gives a deeper broth when the fish is larger and bonier. Gofio, toasted grain flour inherited from the islands' older foodways, is stirred into soups and broths at the table, thickening the bowl and making a light fish broth into a proper meal.
The technique, the tradition, and the story behind every dish.
Discover Culinary ExplorerIngredients
firm white fish with bones, such as vieja or cherne
Quantity
1.2kg
cleaned and cut into large pieces
white fish bones or heads (optional)
Quantity
400g
rinsed
waxy potatoes
Quantity
900g
peeled and cut into 4cm chunks
onion
Quantity
1 large (about 200g)
finely chopped
green pepper
Quantity
1 (about 150g)
finely chopped
garlic
Quantity
3 cloves
finely chopped
ripe tomatoes
Quantity
2 (about 300g)
peeled and grated or finely chopped
extra virgin olive oil
Quantity
80ml
bay leaf
Quantity
1
saffron threads
Quantity
0.2g
lightly crushed
sweet pimentón
Quantity
1 teaspoon
water
Quantity
1.8 litres
fresh coriander
Quantity
15g
stems tied, leaves chopped
coarse sea salt
Quantity
10g, plus more to taste
freshly ground black pepper
Quantity
to taste
mojo verde
Quantity
120ml
to serve
gofio de millo or gofio de trigo
Quantity
60g
to serve
lemon (optional)
Quantity
1
cut into wedges
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| firm white fish with bones, such as vieja or chernecleaned and cut into large pieces | 1.2kg |
| white fish bones or heads (optional)rinsed | 400g |
| waxy potatoespeeled and cut into 4cm chunks | 900g |
| onionfinely chopped | 1 large (about 200g) |
| green pepperfinely chopped | 1 (about 150g) |
| garlicfinely chopped | 3 cloves |
| ripe tomatoespeeled and grated or finely chopped | 2 (about 300g) |
| extra virgin olive oil | 80ml |
| bay leaf | 1 |
| saffron threadslightly crushed | 0.2g |
| sweet pimentón | 1 teaspoon |
| water | 1.8 litres |
| fresh corianderstems tied, leaves chopped | 15g |
| coarse sea salt | 10g, plus more to taste |
| freshly ground black pepper | to taste |
| mojo verdeto serve | 120ml |
| gofio de millo or gofio de trigoto serve | 60g |
| lemon (optional)cut into wedges | 1 |
Equipment Needed
- •Wide heavy pot, 5 to 6 litres
- •Fine skimmer
- •Ladle
- •Small bowl for serving gofio
Instructions
- 1
Salt the fish
Sprinkle the fish pieces with 5g of the salt and leave them in the refrigerator while you start the pot, 20 to 30 minutes. This short salting firms the flesh so it holds together later. If you're using fish heads or bones for extra broth, keep them separate and do not salt them heavily.
Use fish with bones if you can. A boneless fillet cooks, yes, but bones give the broth the clean sea taste this dish needs. - 2
Cook the sofrito
Warm the olive oil in a wide pot over medium-low heat. Add the onion, green pepper, and the remaining 5g salt and cook for 12 to 15 minutes, stirring now and then, until the onion is soft and pale gold. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute, then add the grated tomato and cook another 10 minutes, until the tomato has lost its raw smell and the oil shines around the edges.
- 3
Season the broth
Stir in the pimentón for 20 seconds, just until it smells sweet, then add the water, bay leaf, saffron, and tied coriander stems. If you have fish bones or heads, add them now. Bring the pot just to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer gently for 20 minutes. Skim the surface if foam rises.
- 4
Cook the papas
Lift out and discard the fish bones or heads if you used them, then add the potatoes. Simmer gently for 18 to 22 minutes, until a knife enters a potato chunk with only a little resistance. The potatoes should be almost done before the fish goes in, because the fish will not wait for them.
- 5
Poach the fish
Rinse the salted fish pieces quickly and pat them dry. Lay them into the pot in one layer if you can, spooning broth over the top. Keep the heat low so the surface only trembles, and poach for 6 to 10 minutes, depending on thickness, until the flesh turns opaque and lifts from the bone in broad, moist flakes. Do not boil it hard. That is how good fish becomes dry and sulky.
- 6
Rest and serve
Turn off the heat and let the pot stand 5 minutes. Taste the broth for salt and pepper, then scatter in the chopped coriander leaves. Serve fish, papas, and broth in deep bowls, with mojo verde at the table and gofio for each person to stir in a spoonful at a time. The broth should turn lightly thicker, not pasty.
Chef Tips
- •Vieja is the island fish to use when you can find it, sweet and firm. Cherne is excellent too. Far from the Canaries, choose grouper, sea bass, hake, cod, or snapper, and ask for bones or a head for the broth. Without bones, the soup will be cleaner but less deep.
- •Do not rush the sofrito. The onion, pepper, garlic, and tomato must cook until sweet before the water goes in, or the broth tastes thin and raw no matter how fine the fish is.
- •Gofio is not a garnish. It is toasted grain flour, usually maize or wheat, and it thickens the bowl at the table. Add it slowly and stir well; too much at once turns the broth heavy.
- •Mojo verde belongs beside this broth: coriander, garlic, cumin, vinegar, olive oil, and salt. Keep it bright and sharp. The fish is mild, so the mojo does the lifting.
Advance Preparation
- •The mojo verde can be made a day ahead and kept covered in the refrigerator; bring it back to room temperature before serving so the olive oil loosens.
- •The sofrito can be cooked up to 24 hours ahead and refrigerated. Rewarm it gently before adding the water, saffron, and potatoes.
- •Do not cook the fish ahead if you can help it. Make the broth and papas first, then poach the fish shortly before serving so it stays moist.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nutrition Information
1 serving (about 800g)
Calories
620 calories
Total Fat
30 g
Saturated Fat
4 g
Trans Fat
0 g
Unsaturated Fat
25 g
Cholesterol
80 mg
Sodium
1100 mg
Total Carbohydrates
50 g
Dietary Fiber
7 g
Sugars
6 g
Protein
39 g
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