Moqueca Fish Pie with Ixta Belfrage

Food writer and cook Ixta Belfrage is Andi’s guest, and her One Dish is actually one of her own invention: a historic and important Brazilian fish stew - Moqueca - adapted into a British-style potato-topped fish pie. Ixta shares the history of Moqueca, and how it evolved from an indigenous Tupi Brazilian dish to contain ingredients like coconut milk and azeite de dende (red palm oil) which arrived in Brazil with enslaved people from Africa and Portuguese colonisers. Andi explores the history of pies being made with potato tops rather than pastry cases.

This dish is emblematic of Ixta’s approach to cooking; she grew up in Italy and England with a Brazilian mum and English dad, and has a strong family connection to Mexico too. The astonishing family history that she recounts is reflected in how she uses ingredients in dishes like this Moqueca fish pie. Plus, Kimberley Wilson has a fascinating science segment on a key element of Ixta’s dish: the heat from Scotch bonnet chili.

Food Scientist: Kimberley Wilson Food Historian: Neil Buttery Producer: Lucy Dearlove Exec Producer: Hannah Marshall Sound Design: Charlie Brandon-King Assistant Producer: Bukky Fadipe

A Storyglass production for BBC Radio 4