Treasures of Colombia: Cazuela de Mariscos (Colombian Food)

Cazuela de Marisco – Colombian Seafood Dish (seafood soup)

Are you a seafood lover?

Yes? Great!

Then the Colombian seafood dish Cazuela de Mariscos or seafood casserole (seafood soup) is for you. It is one of my personal favorites!

As a Jamaican, I really do enjoy seafood of every kind- from shellfish to crustaceans. My favorite places to eat seafood in Jamaica are at Gloria´s in Port Royal, Hellshire beach and of course, at the corner at Kings Street where the ladies sell from their baskets filled with succulent bright orange colored peppered shrimps.

Treasures of Colombia – Cazuela de Mariscos (Colombian street food)

By: Stacey-Ann Smith

Colombia is bordered by the Atlantic and the Pacific Ocean, and so, of course, there is an abundance of seafood available throughout the country.

The origin of the Cazuela de Mariscos is said to have come from the coastal region (la costa) of Colombia; however, many people posit that its true origin is from Spain.

This dish is highly sophisticated and you will definitely pay a pretty penny for it.

The Cazuela de Mariscos is not a street side meal, it can only be found in top-notch restaurants, seafood restaurants and on beachside restaurants where there is a high consistency of tourists.

Ingredients

The dish includes :

Squid
Calamari
Fish filet
Octopus
Snails
Clams
Lobster
Shrimps to name a few;

All these ingredients are cooked in coconut milk with special spices such as Coriander, parsley, garlic, onion, salt, pepper, and cheese is also added to the finished product.

I really love this seafood dish with its diversity and unique flavor; however, I must warn you though that if you should visit Colombia and want to try this dish, you must be mindful of the fact that there are some restaurants that will want to sell you the “watered down version”.

I visited two restaurants and they filled the traditional earthenware bowl in which the Cazuela is often served with too much fish filet and only a sprinkle of other seafood.

The dish must have a diverse amount of seafood mentioned above ratio by ratio. So when you visit please make sure to point this out to the chef so that you can get a fair and great experience with this dish.

As mentioned, it is a bit pricey, but worth it.

The prices range anywhere between one thousand two hundred (1200) and one thousand five hundred (1500) JMD per plate. This is accompanied by a small portion of white rice and fried green plantains (patacones).

The best Cazuela de Mariscos I ate was when I was on vacation in Medellin, Antioquia.

An Extraordinary dish that won’t disappoint!

*****

About the writer:

Stacey Ann Smith is from Kingston, Jamaica. She is an alumna of Camperdown High School and she graduated from The Shortwood Teachers’ College having earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Modern Languages, Spanish and French. Presently, Stacey is an English teacher at a University in Colombia. She describes herself as a vivacious and loving person who also has a passion for traveling, taking pictures, her son Nicholas and Ashley, her adorable feline.