[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":431},["ShallowReactive",2],{"recipe:colombian-cazuela-de-mariscos":3,"recipe:country:colombia":201},{"slug":4,"title":5,"nativeName":6,"pronunciation":7,"countrySlug":8,"region":9,"emoji":10,"summary":11,"intro":12,"story":13,"whyThis":14,"tips":19,"substitutions":26,"variations":39,"serveWith":49,"storage":51,"faq":52,"equipment":68,"baseServings":72,"prepMinutes":73,"cookMinutes":73,"difficulty":74,"course":75,"diet":77,"mainIngredients":79,"ingredients":85,"instructions":154,"nutrition":178,"images":184,"keywords":194,"publishedAt":199,"updatedAt":199,"authorSlug":200},"colombian-cazuela-de-mariscos","Cazuela de Mariscos (Cartagena Coconut Seafood Casserole)","Cazuela de mariscos","kah-SWEH-lah deh mah-REES-kohs","colombia","Caribbean coast","🦐","Cartagena's clay-pot seafood stew: shrimp, squid, white fish and mussels in a lightly thickened coconut and hogao sauce, each one dropped in at its own moment.","Cazuela de mariscos is a coastal Colombian seafood stew, thicker than a soup and richer than most, built on coconut milk cut with fish stock and a tomato-scallion base. Shrimp, squid, mussels and firm white fish go in at separate moments so that nothing overcooks, and the sauce is thickened just enough to cling — velvety rather than heavy, sweet from the coconut, savory from the shellfish liquor, sharpened at the end with lime. It comes to the table in a clay bowl still bubbling, with coconut rice and patacones alongside. Total cooking time is half an hour; the whole difficulty is the order in which things go into the pot.","This is Cartagena restaurant food more than home food — a dish of the walled city and the beachfront places along the Caribbean coast, where a cazuela is the thing you order when you want to eat everything the boats brought in at once. The name refers to the vessel: a cazuela is an earthenware pot, and the stew is cooked and served in one, which keeps it hot long enough that the last spoonful is as warm as the first.\n\nCoconut is the signature of the Colombian Caribbean and the clearest line between its cooking and the Andean interior. Where Bogotá thickens with potato and finishes with cream, the coast reaches for coconut milk, and it appears in rice, in fish stews, in sweets and in the sauce here. That preference has roots in the region's Afro-Caribbean population and its trade links across the sea, and it means a coastal cook and a highland cook can look at the same fish and produce dishes with nothing in common.\n\nThe stew is also unapologetically a restaurant construction. Nobody's grandmother in Barranquilla was buying four kinds of seafood on a Tuesday; households cook one fish, fried whole, with coconut rice and patacones. The cazuela concentrates the coast into a single bowl for people eating out, and coastal cooks are relaxed about it — the sauce is traditional even where the abundance is not. What matters is that the shellfish is fresh and that nothing in the pot is cooked a minute longer than it needs.",[15,16,17,18],"Staggered additions with times for each species, because shrimp, squid, fish and mussels do not cook at the same speed.","Mussel liquor is saved and used, which gives the sauce a depth that plain stock cannot.","A light roux instead of cream overload, so the coconut still tastes of coconut.","Ready in half an hour, with all the fiddly work done before the pot ever gets hot.",[20,21,22,23,24,25],"Prepare and portion every piece of seafood before you start cooking. Once the sauce is ready, the additions come minutes apart.","Use full-fat tinned coconut milk. The thin cartons sold as a drink split under heat and taste of almost nothing.","Keep the pot below a simmer once the coconut milk is in — a hard boil will break the sauce into oily beads.","Squid has two doneness windows: under two minutes, or over forty. Anything in between is rubber, so add the rings at the very end.","Discard any mussels that stay shut after steaming, and any that were already open and did not close when tapped.","Season at the end, not the start. Mussel liquor is salty and how salty varies wildly between batches.",[27,31,35],{"original":28,"swap":29,"note":30},"Mussels","Clams, or an extra 200 g of shrimp","Clams behave the same way and bring an even saltier liquor. If you use neither, replace the reserved shellfish liquid with an equal amount of fish stock.",{"original":32,"swap":33,"note":34},"Flour and butter roux","2 tsp cornstarch slaked in cold water","Stir the slurry in at the end and simmer briefly. This keeps the dish gluten-free and gives a slightly glossier sauce.",{"original":36,"swap":37,"note":38},"Fresh seafood","Good-quality frozen seafood, thawed slowly in the fridge","Frozen is often better than tired fresh. Pat everything thoroughly dry before it goes near the pot, since surface water thins the sauce.",[40,43,46],{"name":41,"description":42},"Cazuela with cream cheese","Many Cartagena kitchens melt a couple of spoonfuls of cream cheese into the sauce for extra body. It makes the dish noticeably richer and slightly tangy.",{"name":44,"description":45},"With lobster or crab","Add lobster tail medallions or picked crab meat in the last minute of cooking. This is the expensive restaurant version and it is worth it when the shellfish is good.",{"name":47,"description":48},"Cazuela de camarones","Shrimp only, which is what most home cooks on the coast actually make. Same sauce, one ingredient, ready in twenty minutes.",[50],"Coconut rice (arroz con coco), patacones for scooping, and lime wedges.","This is a dish to eat the day it is made. Refrigerated it keeps 24 hours, but reheating cooks the seafood a second time and the squid and shrimp turn tough — warm it very gently, only to steaming, and accept a small loss. It does not freeze: the coconut sauce separates on thawing and the shellfish texture collapses. If you need a head start, make the coconut and hogao sauce up to two days ahead and cook the seafood into it fresh.",[53,56,59,62,65],{"question":54,"answer":55},"Why did my squid turn rubbery?","Squid toughens between roughly two and forty minutes of cooking and only relaxes again after long braising. In a quick stew like this it must go in last and cook for no more than 90 seconds to two minutes, just until the rings turn opaque and spring back when pressed. If it has gone tough there is no rescue short of simmering it for another half hour, which would destroy everything else in the pot.",{"question":57,"answer":58},"Can I use frozen seafood mix?","Yes, and it is a sensible option far from the coast, though a bagged mix tends to be cut small and overcooks quickly. Thaw it overnight in the fridge, drain it thoroughly and dry it on paper, then add the whole lot in the final two minutes rather than in stages. Buying species separately gives a much better result if you can.",{"question":60,"answer":61},"Why did my coconut sauce separate?","Coconut milk splits when it is boiled hard or held at a rolling boil for long. Keep the heat low enough that the surface only trembles, add acidic ingredients like lime at the very end and off the heat, and use full-fat tinned coconut milk, which is far more stable than the drinking cartons.",{"question":63,"answer":64},"Do I need an actual clay pot?","No. The cazuela gives its name to the dish and holds heat beautifully at the table, but any wide heavy pan will cook the stew identically. If you do use unglazed earthenware, soak it first and heat it gradually, as clay cracks when it meets a fierce flame from cold.",{"question":66,"answer":67},"Is this dish spicy?","No. Colombian coastal cooking uses coconut, garlic, scallion and lime rather than chile heat, and the sauce here is mild and slightly sweet. Serve ají or hot sauce on the side for anyone who wants heat, which is how it works in Cartagena too.",[69,70,71],"Wide heavy pan or earthenware cazuela","Lidded pot for steaming mussels","Fine sieve",4,30,"medium",[76],"main",[78],"pescatarian",[80,81,82,83,84],"shrimp","squid","mussels","white-fish","coconut-milk",[86,91,94,97,99,103,106,111,115,118,122,125,129,133,137,139,142,146,150],{"ref":82,"qty":87,"unit":88,"name":89,"group":90},500,"g","mussels, scrubbed and debearded","For the seafood",{"ref":80,"qty":92,"unit":88,"name":93,"group":90},300,"raw shrimp, peeled and deveined",{"ref":81,"qty":95,"unit":88,"name":96,"group":90},250,"squid, cleaned and cut into 1 cm rings",{"ref":83,"qty":92,"unit":88,"name":98,"group":90},"firm white fish, in 3 cm cubes",{"qty":100,"unit":101,"name":102,"group":90},100,"ml","dry white wine",{"ref":104,"qty":73,"unit":88,"name":104,"group":105},"butter","For the sauce",{"ref":107,"qty":108,"unit":109,"name":110,"group":105},"onion",1,"piece","onion, finely chopped",{"ref":112,"qty":113,"unit":109,"name":114,"group":105},"scallions",3,"long scallions, finely sliced",{"ref":116,"qty":108,"unit":109,"name":117,"group":105},"bell-pepper","red bell pepper, finely diced",{"ref":119,"qty":72,"unit":120,"name":121,"group":105},"garlic","clove","garlic, minced",{"ref":123,"qty":113,"unit":109,"name":124,"group":105},"tomato","ripe tomatoes, grated",{"ref":126,"qty":108,"unit":127,"name":128,"group":105},"cumin","tsp","ground cumin",{"ref":130,"qty":131,"unit":127,"name":132,"group":105},"achiote",0.5,"achiote or Colombian color powder",{"ref":134,"qty":73,"unit":88,"name":135,"note":136,"group":105},"flour","plain flour","or 2 tsp cornstarch for a gluten-free version",{"qty":92,"unit":101,"name":138,"group":105},"fish stock",{"ref":84,"qty":140,"unit":101,"name":141,"group":105},400,"full-fat coconut milk",{"ref":143,"qty":108,"unit":109,"name":144,"group":145},"lime","lime, juiced, plus wedges to serve","To finish",{"ref":147,"qty":131,"unit":148,"name":149,"group":145},"cilantro","cup","cilantro, chopped",{"qty":151,"unit":152,"name":153,"group":145},null,"to taste","salt and white pepper",[155,159,163,167,171,175],{"title":156,"text":157,"timerSeconds":158},"Steam the mussels","Tip the mussels into a lidded pot with the white wine over high heat and cook 4 minutes, shaking once, until the shells have opened. Strain the liquor through a fine sieve and keep it; pick most of the mussels from their shells, leaving a few whole for the top, and throw away any that stayed shut.",240,{"title":160,"text":161,"timerSeconds":162},"Start the sauce base","Melt the butter in a wide pan over medium-low heat and cook the onion, scallion and bell pepper for 8 minutes until completely soft and translucent, with no crunch left in the pepper. Add the garlic, cumin and achiote and stir for a minute until fragrant.",480,{"title":164,"text":165,"timerSeconds":166},"Cook down the tomato","Add the grated tomato and cook for 10 minutes, stirring now and then, until the mixture has darkened to a deep orange and reduced to a thick paste that holds its shape when pushed to one side of the pan.",600,{"title":168,"text":169,"timerSeconds":92,"tip":170},"Thicken and add coconut","Sprinkle in the flour and stir it through for a minute so it loses its raw smell. Pour in the fish stock and the reserved mussel liquor a little at a time, stirring until smooth, then add the coconut milk. Bring to the point where the surface just trembles and hold it there for 5 minutes until the sauce coats a spoon.","From here the sauce must never boil. Hard heat splits coconut milk into oily beads that will not come back together.",{"title":172,"text":173,"timerSeconds":174},"Add the fish, then the fast-cooking seafood","Slide in the fish cubes and poach them for 3 minutes without stirring, then add the shrimp and cook 2 minutes more, until they curl into loose C shapes and turn coral. Finally add the squid rings and the picked mussels and give it 90 seconds — the squid should turn opaque and spring back at a touch.",330,{"title":176,"text":177},"Season and serve","Take the pan off the heat, stir in the lime juice and half the cilantro, and taste for salt, remembering that the mussel liquor has already brought plenty. Top with the reserved mussels in their shells and the rest of the cilantro, and serve straight from the pan with coconut rice and patacones.",{"calories":179,"protein":180,"carbs":181,"fat":182,"fiber":113,"estimated":183},560,46,21,31,true,[185,188,190,192],{"src":186,"alt":187},"\u002Fimages\u002Frecipes\u002Fcolombian-cazuela-de-mariscos\u002Fhero.jpg","Earthenware pot of creamy coconut seafood stew with shrimp, mussels in shell, squid rings and cilantro",{"src":189,"alt":187},"\u002Fimages\u002Frecipes\u002Fcolombian-cazuela-de-mariscos\u002Fhero-16x9.jpg",{"src":191,"alt":187},"\u002Fimages\u002Frecipes\u002Fcolombian-cazuela-de-mariscos\u002Fhero-4x3.jpg",{"src":193,"alt":187},"\u002Fimages\u002Frecipes\u002Fcolombian-cazuela-de-mariscos\u002Fhero-1x1.jpg",[195,196,197,198,80,82,81],"cazuela de mariscos","cartagena","coconut seafood stew","colombian caribbean","2026-08-20","dishroute-kitchen",{"items":202,"total":301,"page":108,"limit":429,"hasMore":430},[203,233,262,289,296,316,339,363,388,409],{"slug":204,"title":205,"nativeName":206,"countrySlug":8,"region":207,"baseServings":208,"prepMinutes":209,"cookMinutes":210,"difficulty":74,"course":211,"diet":213,"mainIngredients":215,"images":221,"keywords":225,"publishedAt":199,"updatedAt":199,"authorSlug":200},"ajiaco-santafereno","Ajiaco Santafereño (Bogotá Chicken and Three-Potato Soup)","Ajiaco santafereño","Bogotá and Cundinamarca",6,25,70,[212,76],"soup",[214],"gluten-free",[216,217,218,219,220],"chicken","potato","corn","capers","avocado",[222],{"src":223,"alt":224},"\u002Fimages\u002Frecipes\u002Fajiaco-santafereno\u002Fhero.jpg","Deep bowl of thick pale Colombian potato soup with shredded chicken, a half corn cob, cream and capers",[226,227,228,229,230,231,232],"ajiaco","guascas","bogota","potato soup","colombian soup","papa criolla","chicken 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bread","griddle",{"slug":263,"title":264,"nativeName":265,"countrySlug":8,"region":266,"baseServings":72,"prepMinutes":267,"cookMinutes":268,"restMinutes":162,"difficulty":74,"course":269,"diet":270,"mainIngredients":271,"images":277,"keywords":281,"publishedAt":199,"updatedAt":199,"authorSlug":200},"bandeja-paisa","Bandeja Paisa (Antioquian Mixed Platter)","Bandeja paisa","Antioquia",40,150,[76],[],[272,273,274,275,220,276],"pork-belly","ground-beef","plantain","rice","eggs",[278],{"src":279,"alt":280},"\u002Fimages\u002Frecipes\u002Fbandeja-paisa\u002Fhero.jpg","A wide tray holding red beans, white rice, ground beef, chicharrón, chorizo, fried egg, plantain, arepa and avocado",[282,283,284,285,286,287,288],"bandeja paisa","colombian beans","antioquia","chicharron","medellin","frijoles","colombian platter",{"slug":4,"title":5,"nativeName":6,"countrySlug":8,"region":9,"baseServings":72,"prepMinutes":73,"cookMinutes":73,"difficulty":74,"course":290,"diet":291,"mainIngredients":292,"images":293,"keywords":295,"publishedAt":199,"updatedAt":199,"authorSlug":200},[76],[78],[80,81,82,83,84],[294],{"src":186,"alt":187},[195,196,197,198,80,82,81],{"slug":297,"title":298,"nativeName":299,"countrySlug":8,"region":300,"baseServings":72,"prepMinutes":301,"cookMinutes":302,"difficulty":240,"course":303,"diet":304,"mainIngredients":305,"images":307,"keywords":311,"publishedAt":199,"updatedAt":199,"authorSlug":200},"changua","Changua (Bogotá Milk and Egg Breakfast Soup)","Changua","Bogotá and the Boyacá highlands",10,12,[244,212],[246],[306,276,112,147],"milk",[308],{"src":309,"alt":310},"\u002Fimages\u002Frecipes\u002Fchangua\u002Fhero.jpg","Bowl of Colombian changua with a poached egg floating in milky broth over soaked bread and chopped cilantro",[297,312,313,314,228,147,315],"colombian breakfast","milk soup","poached egg","andean",{"slug":317,"title":318,"nativeName":319,"countrySlug":8,"region":320,"baseServings":72,"prepMinutes":321,"cookMinutes":209,"restMinutes":73,"difficulty":74,"course":322,"diet":325,"mainIngredients":327,"images":328,"keywords":332,"publishedAt":199,"updatedAt":199,"authorSlug":200},"colombian-empanadas","Empanadas Colombianas (Fried Corn Pastries with Potato and Beef)","Empanadas colombianas","Nationwide, strongest in Antioquia and Valle",45,[323,324],"street-food","snack",[214,326],"dairy-free",[248,217,273],[329],{"src":330,"alt":331},"\u002Fimages\u002Frecipes\u002Fcolombian-empanadas\u002Fhero.jpg","Golden deep-fried Colombian corn empanadas, one broken open to show potato and beef filling, with green ají",[333,256,334,335,336,337,338],"colombian empanadas","aji","street food","fried empanadas","potato beef filling","gluten free",{"slug":340,"title":341,"nativeName":342,"countrySlug":8,"region":343,"baseServings":344,"prepMinutes":321,"cookMinutes":95,"restMinutes":345,"difficulty":346,"course":347,"diet":348,"mainIngredients":349,"images":351,"keywords":355,"publishedAt":199,"updatedAt":199,"authorSlug":200},"lechona-tolimense","Lechona Tolimense (Stuffed Roast Pork with Yellow Peas)","Lechona tolimense","Tolima",8,720,"hard",[76],[214,326],[350,272,126,112],"pork-shoulder",[352],{"src":353,"alt":354},"\u002Fimages\u002Frecipes\u002Flechona-tolimense\u002Fhero.jpg","Sliced rolled pork roast with blistered golden crackling revealing a yellow split pea and pork stuffing",[356,357,358,359,360,361,362],"lechona","tolima","roast pork","crackling","yellow split peas","colombian festival food","ibague",{"slug":364,"title":365,"nativeName":366,"countrySlug":8,"region":367,"baseServings":344,"prepMinutes":301,"cookMinutes":73,"restMinutes":368,"difficulty":240,"course":369,"diet":371,"mainIngredients":373,"images":377,"keywords":381,"publishedAt":199,"updatedAt":199,"authorSlug":200},"natilla-colombiana","Natilla Colombiana (Christmas Panela and Cinnamon Pudding)","Natilla","Antioquia and nationwide at Christmas",180,[370],"dessert",[246,214,372],"nut-free",[306,374,375,376],"cornstarch","brown-sugar","cinnamon",[378],{"src":379,"alt":380},"\u002Fimages\u002Frecipes\u002Fnatilla-colombiana\u002Fhero.jpg","Squares of caramel-brown Colombian natilla dusted with cinnamon on a tray, with buñuelos alongside",[382,383,384,385,386,376,387],"natilla","colombian christmas","panela","milk pudding","cornstarch dessert","bunuelos",{"slug":389,"title":390,"nativeName":391,"countrySlug":8,"region":392,"baseServings":72,"prepMinutes":238,"cookMinutes":393,"difficulty":240,"course":394,"diet":395,"mainIngredients":397,"images":398,"keywords":402,"publishedAt":199,"updatedAt":199,"authorSlug":200},"colombian-patacones","Patacones (Colombian Twice-Fried Green Plantains)","Patacones","Caribbean and Pacific coasts",20,[243,324,323],[396,246,214,326,372],"vegan",[274,119],[399],{"src":400,"alt":401},"\u002Fimages\u002Frecipes\u002Fcolombian-patacones\u002Fhero.jpg","Golden twice-fried green plantain rounds with cracked lacy edges, piled beside a bowl of tomato hogao",[403,404,405,406,407,408,338],"patacones","tostones","green plantain","colombian side","twice fried","caribbean coast",{"slug":410,"title":411,"nativeName":412,"countrySlug":8,"region":413,"baseServings":72,"prepMinutes":238,"cookMinutes":321,"restMinutes":238,"difficulty":240,"course":414,"diet":415,"mainIngredients":416,"images":418,"keywords":422,"publishedAt":199,"updatedAt":199,"authorSlug":200},"colombian-sudado-de-pollo","Sudado de Pollo (Colombian Braised Chicken with Potato)","Sudado de pollo","Andean interior",[76],[214,326],[216,217,417,123],"cassava",[419],{"src":420,"alt":421},"\u002Fimages\u002Frecipes\u002Fcolombian-sudado-de-pollo\u002Fhero.jpg","Pot of braised chicken pieces in thick orange tomato sauce with chunks of potato and cassava and chopped cilantro",[423,424,425,426,417,427,428],"sudado de pollo","hogao","colombian chicken","braise","yuca","weeknight stew",24,false,1787360050741]