Oil Down - Grenada's National Dish

Throughout the Caribbean one can find dishes similar to Oil Down. In Guyana, Mettagee quickly comes to mind. In Trinidad and Tobago, they make Oil Down too, the colour of their dish coming from the use of annatto seeds/achiote. In Jamaica, Run Down, a stew made of salted mackerel or fresh fish, and yams, cooked with fresh seasonings in lots of coconut milk, is served alongside dumplings and boiled breadfruit. Regardless of where you are in the region, these dishes are different yet similar; they are familiar but distinct, like us. To read more, about this dish and for a recipe, click on this link; the recipe is at the bottom of the page. Feel free to shoot me an email if you have questions.

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Barbados @ 50 - Soup

Caribbean soups are hearty fare. Ground provisions along with a variety of meats and some type of peas/beans/lentils and dumplings complete the ingredients for a large pot of soup. Thyme is a key seasoning and flavour ingredient in these soups. In Barbados, this type of hefty soup is referred to as "blup blup soup". Blup-blup referring to the sound of the very thick soup as it bubbles in the pot.

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Guyana @ 50 - Mettagee

This one-pot meal of Ground Provisions (roots and tubers) cooked in fresh-squeezed coconut milk, onions, fragrant herbs, hot peppers, and sometimes seasoned with salt fish cooked IN the pot or salted pig-tail or beef, is what I call soul food. Mettagee, or Metem for short, fills and satisfies you in such a way that once eaten, you feel like all will be well.

As with most one-pot dishes there is a certain skill and technique to staggering some of the ingredients so that everything finishes cooking at the same time without one ingredient being overcooked or turning to mush.

Mettagee ©Cynthia Nelson

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Guyana @ 50 - Boil 'N Fry

"Boil 'N Fry" is a two-step cooking method employed in Guyana to cook a variety of dishes, especially ground provisions (root vegetables). The vegetables are peeled, cut into large chunks or left whole and boiled in salted water. Once drained, they are fried (sautéed) with aromatics and fresh herbs such as onions, garlic, tomatoes, thyme, celery, parsley and hot peppers.When cooked this way, root vegetables are enjoyed as breakfast, lunch or dinner meals. They often are, and can be eaten alone, or be accompanied by meat or seafood dishes. Fried "sautéed" salt fish is a regular accompaniment.

Boil 'N Fry Cassava ©Cynthia Nelson

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Guyana @ 50 - Foo-foo

Foo-foo - boiled and pounded ground provision is a direct influence of Africa in Caribbean cuisine. The ground provision mixture, pounded smooth, is rolled into balls and can be dropped into soups, eaten as is or most often with a meat or vegetable stew with lots of flavourful gravy/sauce.

Low in fat and full of fibre, ground provisions are also an excellent source of complex carbohydrates. It is food that keeps you full for a long time providing energy throughout the day.

Foo-foo Meal ©Cynthia Nelson

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Patacones "Buns" For Sandwiches

The bun for your next sandwich does not have to be made with any type of wheat flour, not when you can sandwich your filling between two pieces of patacones (twice fried green plantains), which are also known as tostones, chatinos, and fritos verde in various parts of the Spanish-speaking Caribbean.

The principle is the same as I have explained in my previous post on Breadfruit Tostones, only this time, you are using green plantains - which are not to be confused with green bananas.

Once the plantains are peeled, cut then in half (across) and then cut each half in two, cutting lengthways. Each plantain will give you 4 pieces which will be enough for 2 sandwiches, top and bottom. Pan-fry the plantains in oil heated over medium, cooking for 1 to 1 1/2 minutes total. Mash the fried plantains to a flat disk and then fry again until cooked through and the edges crisp.

For my sandwich, I used beef steak which I cut thinly and then using a meat mallet, pounded thinly (between plastic wrap), and grilled it up quickly over very high heat, almost smoking hot. Season with salt and pepper just before removing it from the grill and let it rest until you are ready to assemble the sandwich.

I made a fire-roasted salsa. The tomatoes, onions, garlic and hot pepper were all roasted and charred over open flames. Salt, a squirt of fresh lime juice and chopped cilantro were added to the mix and left to rest for 1 hour for the flavors to meld.

This sandwich is perfect when you have friends over for a casual get-together. I would suggest prepping everything before everyone arrives. For the plantains, fry and mash the plantains before they arrive and do the last stage of frying while everyone is there so that they can have their sandwiches nice and hot and the plantains soft and toasty.

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Breadfruit 'Tostones'

Tostones are twice fried green plantains and are very popular in Latin American cuisine. I love plantains in all stages - green, turning, ripe and over ripe - and making tostones is one of my favourite ways to enjoy green plantains.

Last year, while watching Andrew Zimmern visit St. Croix (one of the US Virgin Islands) on his show Bizarre Foods, a family with South American roots prepared a feast at their home. Among the many things they made were pickled green bananas and breadfruit tostones. While I use breadfruit to make many things from breads to puddings, to chips, to curry, I had never thought of twice frying them in the form of tostones. Since watching that episode I have been making breadfruit tostones often. Shhh, don't let the green plantains know, but I think that I might secretly love the breadfruit tostones more than the traditional plantain tostones! Whhaaaat?

The breadfruit tostones stay tender when cooled to room temperature unlike the green plantain tostones. The green plantain tostones when made should be eaten immediately if not they become a little dry and chewy.

To make breadfruit tostones, start by getting yourself a nice full, heavy breadfruit, peel, core it, cut into wedges and then into large chunks. Meanwhile heat some oil in a frying pan for shallow frying - the oil should come up about 1/2 inch in the pan.

Fry the breadfruit in batches until golden and the outside is firm. Transfer them to a cutting board or work surface and use a heavy pan such as a cast iron skillet or some other thing that is heavy with a flat surface. Press down on the hot, fried breadfruit to smash it. Repeat until all are smashed.

Working in batches, fry the smashed breadfruit in the same heated oil until golden and crisp on the outside. Drain on paper towels. Season with salt immediately when you remove them from the pan. Serve as a snack or side dish. If serving as a snack, condiments such as pepper sauce, hot sauce, ketchup and mayo will work but honestly, they are good on their own. If I make this in the evening, I eat it without condiments along with a big cup of tea.

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Breakfast SWEET POTATOES

These little bite-size roasted sweet potatoes are a treat - at breakfast, as a snack or as a side dish. Most of the times when I make them this way, I serve them in place of English breakfast potatoes.

The 'recipe' is a no-brainer.

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Take out a rimmed baking sheet and drizzle with a neutral-flavoured oil.
• Wash and scrub the sweet potatoes, pat them dry and then cut into 1-inch cubes/pieces. 
• It is not necessary to season these sweet potatoes, you can cook them as is but I like to give them a little spice so I use a favorite all-purpose seasoning mix that already has in a little salt. Sprinkle with seasoning and toss well.
• Spread in an even layer on the baking sheet. Drizzle some oil over the sweet potatoes and roast for 25 - 30 minutes.
• Remove from oven, let cool for 5 - 10 minutes in pan before removing and serving.

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Roast Breadfruit & Pigtails

The Caribbean has a long history with breadfruit. It all started with Captain Bligh in the days of colonialism. Today, breadfruit is synonymous with Caribbean cuisine. For many, it is soulfood. There are many stories, some happy and some sad that many people can tell about breadfruit. I think almost every Caribbean person has a personal story to tell about their experience with breadfruit - from climbing the tree, to cooking and eating breadfruit. Personally, my love for breadfruit was only realized after moving to Barbados over a decade ago, and for the first time, eating fire-roasted breadfruit that was cooked in the yard on a bed hot coals.

There are so many trees around thus facilitating fruiting for year-round availability of breadfruit. Salt meat - salted pigtails, salted beef, salt fish, smoked fish - has always been associated with breadfruit. The two compliment each other very well. Most people prefer their breadfruit with salt fish but I prefer mine with salted pigtails.

To make this platter of breadfruit and pigtails is easy cooking. Here's what you will need:

• 1 full/ripe breadfruit
• 2 - 3 salted pigtails
• Vegetable oil
• Freshly ground black pepper

Here's what to do:

1. Cut the breadfruit into quarters from the stem down. Remove the stem and its core and peel each piece.
2. Add the breadfruit to a large pot and cover with water (the breadfruit will float to the surface). Rinse and cut the pigtails at their joints and add to the pot with the breadfruit. Cover the pot and bring to a boil on medium high heat. Cook until a knife inserts easily into the breadfruit. The breadfruit should be soft but not mushy. Drain the breadfruit and pigtails well.
3. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
4. Cut the the breadfruit into large chunks, brush or toss with oil and arrange on a baking sheet. Sprinkle with black pepper. Add the pigtails either at one side of the pan or dispersed in-between the breadfruit.
5. Roast for 25 minutes then flip the breadfruit and roast for another 20 minutes or until golden and firm on the outside.
6. Remove from oven let cool for about 10 - 15 minutes before serving.

NOTES

• There is no need to season the breadfruit with salt, boiling it with the salted pig tails will season it.
• You can dress up the pigtails if you like by sautéing it with onions and herbs. 

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Back With a Favourite Breakfast

It was not like me to disappear unannounced but it happened and I apologise. It was one of those situations where you missed a scheduled posting and then it stretched into a longer period of time. I ditched Facebook and Twitter for the same period of time too. I ain't gonna lie, though I missed you, I enjoyed being away :-)) But I am back and slowly getting into the rhythm of blogging again.

The MY FOOD Project has been ongoing behind the scenes but the interviews will continue to be posted effective from next week Wednesday.

Today I am sharing with you one of my all-time favourite ground provisions - cassava (aka yucca). This is the veggie version, it can also be cooked with salt fish. Yum! This method of preparation is called 'boil & fry'. The cassava is first peeled and boiled then 'fried' really meaning a sauté. I did something a little different  this time around - I let the tomatoes cook low and slow until they became pulpy and sauce like. I also wanted the flavour of garlic to be more pronounced so instead of crushing and finely chopping, I grated the garlic making it a paste. Add it (the garlic paste) the same time with the tomatoes so that it can cook through well. The recipe is here, just leave out the salt fish.

Talk to you again, soon!

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Cassava Patties

June's edition of the newsletter - TASTESMONTHLY features creamy cassava, seasoned and prepared two ways using ground meat. Both versions are types of patties - one is stuffed and the other combines the two ingredients. Each is equally delicious.

Inbox me for a free copy of the newsletter. You can also subscribe, it's free.

Have a great week!

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Boil & Fry: A Caribbean-cooking technique

Boil & Fry is a two-step method of cooking that is used in certain countries in the Caribbean. It is very popular in my birth country, Guyana, particularly when cooking ground provisions. The boiling is self-explanatory but the "frying" really refers to a saute. Read more about Boil & Fry here.

Of all the ground provisions that can be boiled and fried, cassava and green plantains are my favourites. They work great for a savoury breakfast, lunch or dinner.

Sometimes I like my boil and fry plain - meaning just the cassava or plantain with lots of onions, herbs and tomatoes and sometimes I prefer the deluxe version. The deluxe version for me is when my "fry" includes salt fish. So good!

Fried (sauteed) salt fish or smoked herring are two much-loved side dishes that accompany many ground provision meals and they work great with boil and fry.

Boil & Fry Cassava with Salt Fish

INGREDIENTS

• 2 pounds cassava
• Water
• Salt to taste
• 3 tablespoons oil
• 1 cup diced onions
• Minced hot pepper to taste
• 1/2 cup diced tomatoes
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh herbs (thyme, marjoram, parsley)
• 1 heaped cup flaked, de-salted salt fish (you can use smoked herring too)
• 1/4 cup sliced green onions (white & green parts)

DIRECTIONS

1. Peel cassava, cut into large pieces and put into pot with water that covers the cassava. Cover the pot, place on high heat and bring to a boil. When the pot comes to a boil, add salt to taste.
2. Cook cassava until it cracks and a knife inserts easily. Drain, shaking off excess water.
3. Heat oil in a pan until very hot.
4. Add onions and saute for 1 minute; add hot pepper, tomatoes, garlic, herbs and salt to taste. Saute for 2 minutes.
5. Add salt fish and toss to mix and let cook for 1 minute.
6. Add cassava, reduce heat to medium low and toss with salt fish and aromatics to ensure that the cassava is properly coated.
7. Let cook for 4 - 5 minutes.
8. Sprinkle and stir in green onions, remove pan from heat and serve as is.
9. If the boil and fry was made plain, serve with sauteed salt fish, smoked herring, fried fish or serve as is.

NOTE

You can make this recipe using green plantains, sweet potatoes, yams, eddoes or a combination of ground provisions.

Enjoy!

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Cassava (Yuca) Fries & Book Signing Pics

It seems as if I am in the mood for fries these days. The one saving grace is that I have been making fries with ground provisions. Last week it was Sweet Potatoes and this week it is Cassava (Yuca). I'd had cassava chips before - the cassava sliced thinly and fried like crisps. This is the first time I've had them like this - thick fries (though I've heard of it so often).

I love cassava, and so having it this way was exciting. It gives a whole new meaning to the term "boil and fry". In Guyana when we talk of a "boil and fry" we are referring to ground provisions that are boiled and then sauteed with aromatics such as onions, garlic, fresh herbs and tomatoes.

Making these cassava (yuca) fries is easy.

INGREDIENTS

2 lbs cassava

Oil for deep frying

Freshly ground black pepper

DIRECTIONS

1. Peel cassava, cut into 4 inch pieces, lengthways. Put cassava into a large pot, cover with water and bring to a boil. When the water comes to a boil, add salt to taste; boil until cassava is fork tender. Drain well.
2. When cassava is cooled completely, cut into half lengthways; remove the stem from the middle. Cut the halved cassava into thick cut strips.
3. Heat oil in a deep frying pan until smoking hot. Working in batches, fry cassava until gently browned, sprinkle with black pepper immediately when finished cooking. Serve warm. You can opt to add a sprinkling of salt.

This week I will be heading to Trinidad to promote my book. There will be a book launch on April 1 at Normandie Hotel and then on Saturday, April 2, a book signing at Nigel R. Khan Bookstore - West Mall Branch.

Speaking of book signings, here are some photographs of the book signing that took place last Saturday on behalf of Cloister Bookstore here in Barbados. There was another book signing on Wednesday at the University of the West Indies - Cave Hill campus. I'll post those pics when I return from Trinidad.

As a result of my travels, I will not post next week but I'll be back to posting the following weekend. Until then, do be good to yourself and have a great weekend and a productive week.

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Show Me The Soup!

I know that it is very cold where many of you that read this blog live and I know that any one of these soups will warm you up good and proper. If you are in the tropics like I am, well, let's just say that the soups will lighten your eating in a fulfilling way.

This week, rather than just tell you about the soups over at About.com, I thought that I'd show it to you... entice you... Tuty, I did this post just for you. (smile)

Click on the links beneath the each photograph for the recipe.

TRIPE SOUP

CHICKEN NOODLE SOUP

HAM & SPLIT PEA SOUP

BEEF SOUP

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Caramelized Perfection & Giveaway Winner!

Like I said in my column, I had a different idea planned but it got tossed the minute I popped one of these babies into my mouth. I am not going to say much, I'll let the photographs do the talking and give you the opportunity to head over to the column, get the recipe and make these as soon as possible.

Be warned, you will have to have to restrain yourself from eating way too many.

Eat one now...

And immediately have another... and another, and another...

TEA SPOT GIVEAWAY WINNER

Thanks everyone for participating in the giveaway and sharing your thoughts on tea and preferences. The random generator picked Pat of Mille Fiori Favoriti as the winner of a Tuffy (loose tea steeper) and three cans of loose tea of her choice! Congratulations Pat! I'll be in touch to get your mailing info. Thanks again for playing along everyone.

Happy Thanksgiving to all my American friends and readers!

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Raisin Bread for Mom

When you live overseas, one often thinks of their parents back home, particularly as they get older... My mom and I chat on the phone every week, and last weekend when she told me she felt like eating raisin bread, I wished I was there to bake it for her. Read this week's column to find out how I like to have raisin bread and for the recipe. My mom is not nearby but perhaps you can make it for your mom?

This week on ABOUT.com, it is not too soon to start gathering recipes and ideas for the upcoming holidays - Thanksgiving or Christmas. Try my Sweet Potato Salad recipe instead of the usual potato salad.

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Negotiating & Bargaining

If you're anything like me, when it comes to eating certain foods, you negotiate and bargin with yourself. When I find myself in such a situation, it is quite a sight because you would swear that I have gone mad. I pace. I stop and stare at nothing in particular while the wheels in my mind roll, bounce and tumble; and yes, I talk to myself - in whispers and aloud. Let me take you through my most recent episode. And when you're done, be sure to check out my friend Mike's effort to eat healthy. Oh the lengths we go to and the things we say to justify our choices. I'd love to hear how you bargain and negotiate when you want to indulge or feel guilty having indulged.

Clockwise: skinless fried chicken, steamed corn, steamed okra, tomatoes & green plantain fries

Whenever a fruit or vegetable has just come into season, the first way I prefer to have it, is prepared simply, or, as some cases require - eaten as is. Steaming the corn may sound bland, but it isn't if you have fresh sweet corn. The kernels plump up and burst in your mouth letting out all its natural juice. It will have you knawing at the cob long after the kernels are gone.

There was a time in Guyana when a lot of imported items such as English potatoes were banned (that's a story for another time). The local fast food outlets then started making green plantain fries to go along with the fried chicken they would sell. It was a hit. Actually a friend of mine who was visiting the other day says that prefers to have his chicken with plantain fries.

Beautifully golden and very easy to make; these are best eaten while still warm. They are hearty and really compliment fried chicken or fried fish. Try it sometime.

Green Plantain Fries

INGREDIENTS

2 large green plantains
Oil to shallow fry
Salt

DIRECTIONS

1. Peel plantains and cut in half crossway; now cut each piece in half lengthways then cut into fries by further cutting each half lengthways into 3 each strips/wedge
2. Heat oil on medium heat
3. Fry plantain in batches until golden; drain on paper towels and immediately sprinkle with salt

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Anatomy of a Food Label - Part 2

When you look at the Nutrition Facts Table on food labels, do you know what it means when you see calories from fat? What about Percent Daily Value (% Daily Value)? Do you understand that? It's explained in this week's column. Many of us make decisions based on the Health Claim or Nutrient-Content Claim of food labels... what are those? Read this week's column where that and much more is discussed. Does the label on your Canola or Vegetable oil bottle say: Cholesterol Free? If it does, it is a sales gimmick! Read why in the column. This concludes the 2-part series on the Anatomy of a Food Label. The column is full of tons of easy-to-understand information that I am sure you will be copying and saving.

Just one important note - click here to see and read an enlarged version of diagram mentioned in the column. Once there, dependenting on your browser, you may have to click open or download to view the diagram. Sorry for the inconvenience.

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As many of you know, I am not really a breakfast person but for the past few months I've been trying to eat breakfast because I know that it's an important meal of the day. During the week, I eat oat bran and alternate with cornmeal porridge with a sprinkling of cinnamon and then on weekends, when I have a little more time, I prepare a meal-like breakfast such as the one shown after the cornmeal porridge.

CORNMEAL PORRIDGE

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup finely ground cornmeal
• 1/3 cup room temperature water
• 1 cup water
• Sugar and milk to taste
• Dusting of freshly ground cinnamon

Directions

1. Add cornmeal and 1/3 cup water to a bowl and let soak for 5 minutes
2. Heat 1 cup water and bring to a boil on medium heat. When the water comes to a boil, pour in soaked cornmeal (scrape the bowl to get everything)
3. Stir with a whisk immediately to avoid lumps. Reduce heat to low and let cook for 4 - 5 minutes
4. Sweeten with sugar and milk to taste, pour into a bowl, dust with ground cinnamon and eat hot

FRIED PLANTAIN & EGGS

Ingredients

For fried plantain:

• 1 large green plantain
• Oil for shallow frying
• Salt to taste

For scrambled eggs:

• 2 large eggs
• 2 tablespoons whole milk
• 1 tablespoon oil
• Sliced green onions (white & green parts)
• Sliced (or minced) chilies to taste
• Salt to taste
• (use a non-stick pan & flat rubber spatula)

Directions

For fried plantain:

1. Remove the top and bottom tips of the of the plantain (about 1/2 - 1 inch both sides), peel the plantain, cut in half (crossway), then slice down the middle (lengthwise) and then cut in half lengthways to create wedges
2. Heat oil in pan on medium-high heat until hot but not smoking. Fry plantains for about 5 - 6 minutes turning once. Remove from pan, drain on paper towels and immediately sprinkle with salt. Set aside in a warm place

For scrambled eggs:

1. Crack eggs in a bowl along with the milk and whisk to mix. Do not over beat the eggs, you just what to break up the yolks and mix the yolks, whites and milk together
2. Add oil to cold pan on medium - low heat; pour eggs into cold pan and let start to cook. You will need to shake the pan and stir and break up the eggs as they cook gently. Tip: I ususally remove the pan from the heat at various intervals and then put it back over the heat, this is to ensure that the eggs do not over cook or get scorched.
3. When eggs are about done, season with salt and then toss in the green onions and chilies. Fold to incorporate
4. Serve hot with fried plantains and a huge cup of tea or coffee

Before I go, I want to thank all the readers of my blog and column for understanding what it is that I do. Thank you very much. Have a good weekend everyone!

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Disappointing Cassava balls

I love a good cassava ball - creamy, well seasoned and coated with a hint of batter. When done right they are so good and you do not necessarily need sour to accompany them.

I went to the market this morning and bought some from a Guyanese vendor. I was so excited to eat it that I did not even wait to get home, I started to eat it in the car.

I bit in to the cassava ball only to find myself having to bite down hard, then I had to tear the piece in my hand away from my mouth. Strange I thought. I continued to chew. The thing was chewy! I swallowed, it had no taste, it was bland. I decided to carefully examine the remaining piece of bitten "cassava ball". As I pulled it apart, it stretched like dough! The cassava ball was made with flour! and a hint of cassava!

I wanted to show you all so I took some close-up pics. Pay attention to the texture. I used a serrated knife to saw through the cassava ball! (LOL)

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