Deboned Salted Mackerel with Peppers and Onion

This is a classic Jamaican dish. Whether be it breakfast pr dinner, this one is sure to pop up on the dinner table in Jamaica at least once a week. I was always a fan of "Salt Mackerel." My favorite accompaniment was breadfruit or boiled green bananas. The Sunday morning tradition was to go to the neighbor's for my bowl of roasted breadfruit and some red herring or salt mackerel.  Man, those were the good ole days. Angela, I will never forget the many times you fed me on the weekends. Onto the recipe :)

Ingredients

1 lb Salted Mackerel  (Can be found at Asian Markets)

1 Medium Yellow Bell Pepper (Chopped)

1 Large Tomato (Chopped into big chunks)

1 Onion (Chopped)

3 Sprigs of Thyme

2 Tablespoon of Olive Oil

Sea Salt and Pepper

Crushed Red Pepper (Optional)

 

Method

Add water to a medium sized pot and bring to boil. Cut fish in two pieces and add to boiling water. Ensure that there is enough water to cover the fish completely. Cook for 15 minutes and then remove from pot and allow to cool. You can add a cup or two of cold water to help speed up the cooling process and to also remove excess salt. The boiling process usually removes the majority of the salt so do not leave the cooked fish in the cold water for too long.

When cooled, carefully pull pieces of the fish apart and remove all of the bones. Repeat until you get through all of it. The center bone is easy but you have to get into the sides for the tiny little bones.Once you have all of the fish deboned, give it a taste to see if it is still too salty. If it is, rinse with cold water, drain and set aside. Meanwhile, add olive oil to a saucepan. When hot, add the peppers, onion and thyme and sautee until onion becomes translucent. Add fish pieces, salt and pepper, crushed red pepper and tomato chunks, cover and cook for 10 minutes on medium heat. Stir and taste and if needed, add more seasoning.

 

Since I didn't have breadfruit handy, I served this with boiled purple potatoes, Coco Malanga (similar to dasheen) and some Jamaican Sweet Potatoes. Very easy to make. All pure ingredients added and there you go, another dinner on the table in no time.

Jamaican Peanut Porridge

I am long over due for a yummy breakfast recipe. I made delicious Chai Pancakes and Bacon on Saturday and decided to do a full blown Jamaican breakfast the next day. There a few recipes out there that has more of everything else, than the peanuts, so I went in a direction that I remember my friend Nicole went with hers (I guess it is a old country style of cooking) with ingredients that I could get. Not much to talk about with this one besides the fact that it is not for everyone. If you have a problem with textures (my partner....clears throat) you probably won't lick the bowl. It's packed with protein, vitamins and deliciousness so that's key for me, and I love textures, the nuttier or chunkier the better.

The stuff

And then I had to bring out the tool...

Ingredients

1 Lb of Raw Peanuts

1 Can of Coconut Milk

1/4 Cup of Sugar

2 Packets of Oatmeal

2 Tbsp of Condensed Milk

1 Tsp of Vanilla

1 Tsp of Nutmeg

1/2 Tsp of Cinnamon

Pinch of Salt

Method

Blend the two packets of oatmeal, the peanuts and 4 cups of water. Meanwhile, bring a cup of water to boil in a deep pot and add the blended mixture to it. Cook for about 15 minutes and then add the coconut milk and cook for another 15 minutes.

Adding some yummy coconut milk

Sweeten with sugar and condensed milk and spice it up nutmeg (THIS IS A MUST), cinnamon, vanilla and a pinch of salt. If it is too thin, mix a Tbsp of cornstarch in cold water and add to porridge, and cook for an extra minute while you stir. Mine was a little too thin and I had to use the cornstarch. If you had a green plantain, you could blend it with the oatmeal and peanuts as this would work as another flavorful thickening agent. Nicole used this in her recipe, for the record.

Nice bowl of Peanut Porridge:

Jamaican Peanut Porridge

Give it a try, it's very filling, nutty, and nutritious.

BNW~

The Best Jamaican Indian Chicken Curry

Story time: We cook a lot of curries in Jamaica. Shrimp, crab, goat, fish, chicken, you name it, we've probably curried it. Our techniques and ingredients are different from the Indian and Thai curry, but today, I decided to add some Indian spices to my Jamaican dish. This is the best curry I have ever made. Seriously. So good. This dish got me extra kisses, and an A+ grade for presentation and taste. Give it a try and rack up some brownie points.

Ingredients

2lbs of Chicken Legs and Thighs

2 Tbsp of your favorite Curry (I used the Jamaican Grace brand)

1 Tbsp of Cumin 

1 Tsp of Cumin

1 Tsp of Whole Cumin

1 Tbsp of Fresh Ginger Root

2 Tsp of Thyme 

6 Stalks of Scallion

1 Bell Pepper

1 Lg Onion

1 Jalepeno- remove seeds

Cilantro - 4 stalks, and 1 for garnish

1 Pkt Powdered Chicken Bouillion 

2 Tbsp of Garlic Salt

2 Potatoes - diced

2 Tbsp Coconut Oil

Method

Remove skin from meat and season with garlic salt, 1/2 onion, 1/2 bell pepper, 3 stalks of scallion, 1 tsp of thyme, chicken bouillon and let marinate overnight. Remove from fridge an hour before you're ready to start cooking. Add curry, 1 Tbsp cumin powder and seeds, Jalepeno, ginger and 2 stalks of cilantro and stir to evenly distribute these new flavors. After an hour, heat coconut oil and pour in meat with seasonings and cover. I always do this to allow the seasonings to sweat and just get happy with each other. Turn the meat after 5 minutes and slightly brown the other side, then add enough water to cover. Allow to cook for 15 minutes and then turn each piece and cook for another 15 minutes. Add potatoes, remaining pepper, scallion, onions, and thyme, cumin and cilantro and let simmer on medium heat for 15-20 minutes. Potatoes will dissolve and start to thicken the sauce and the new layer of flavors please your taste buds before you even get to the meat. 

I served this with coconut rice. I replaced 1 cup of water with a rich 100% coconut milk, not the half milk half water one. I used Texmati rice but any fragrant rice will work. 

Scoop two cups of rice onto the center of a plate and top with this delicious chicken. Garnish with fresh cilantro and pucker up!

Happy eating!

BNW~

Jamaican Breakfast-Brown Stewed Chicken

I had dinner with some friends last month and we started to chat about food. They asked what was my favorite breakfast, lunch and dinner foods. Without hesitation, I told them dasheen, boiled green bananas, dumplings and brown stewed chicken for breakfast. I cooked it the next day, so here is the recipe for you to try. Jess and Violeta, this one is also for you ladies.

Ingredients

1lb Chicken Thighs, chopped

1/2 Green Bell Pepper

1/2 Onions

2 Carrots(chopped)

1 Large Potato (diced)

1 Cap Tastefully Simple Garlic Garlic

1 Packet of Chicken Bouillon

1 Tsp Onion Salt

1Tbsp Browning Sauce

1Tbsp Brown Sugar

Olive Oil

4 Stalks Scallion 

Thyme

Flour

Green Cooking Bananas

Dasheen

Salt

Method

Season meat with chicken bouillon, onion salt, pepper,onion, garlic garlic, scallion and thyme and let marinate for at least an hour. Add browning sauce (picture below) and stir to distribute evenly over the meat. Transfer seasoned meat to heated olive oil and simmer for 5 minutes. Add carrots, potato, 1 cup of water and sugar and let cook for 25-30 minutes on medium heat. Stir half way to ensure that the meat cooks evenly. 

In a separate pan, bring salted water to boil. Peel dasheen (picture below), banana and make a dough with flour, salt and water and boil all 3 three for 20 minutes. 

Jamaican Oxtail Stew -Crockpot and Pressure Cooker Recipes

Sunday Dinner

Check out my new blog called Jamaica Mixed In for more fun and exciting recipes, along with this amazing crockpot stew.www.jamaicamixedin.com

This is my most popular recipe so far so I am including a step by step process as it does require some TLC to get a great tasting finished dish. Growing up in Jamaica, this was prepared on Sundays and definitely a dinner to look forward to, we love oxtail. Similar to Osso Bucco, the meat surrounds a center bone and falls off tender when properly cooked. Unlike the other recipes, this will take a while to prepare, but if you have a slow cooker you are in good shape. You will need a full 7-9 hours to make this dish. If you have a pressure cooker, there is also a quicker recipe below. You will cut down the time significantly. This stew is best served with rice and peas (kidney beans). See recipe for this Rice and Peas dish and some Coleslaw to add some crunch and color to your dish.

Ingredients: 
3lbs of Fresh Oxtail
Powdered Steak Seasonings
All Purpose Seasoning (Goya has good ones)
1 Bunch of Scallions
2 Tomatoes
1 Green Pepper
2 Large Onions
Thyme (fresh is best, but I used dried in this recipe)
16 Ounces of Beef Broth
Seasoned Salt
8 Cloves Garlic
Black Pepper
1 Tablespoon Vinegar
10 Pimento Berries (Allspice)
1 Can Butter Beans
2 Tablespoon Browning Sauce

Methods:

Crock Pot Bath:

Add beef broth, thyme,  1/2 scallion, pimento berries, green pepper,  4 cloves of garlic, 1 onion sliced or chopped and allow to heat. Wash meat with vinegar and water. Generously season with salt, pepper, steak and all- purpose seasonings. Let marinate for at least an hour, covered in a Tupperware. Heat oil in a frying pan, and add browning sauce to meat. Transfer meat to pan and brown on each side for about 4 minutes. Once all of the pieces have been browned for color and texture, transfer to the crock pot "bath." Cook on high for 5 hours or on low for 9 hours using all of the seasonings you used to marinate the meat. Re-season with tomatoes, onion, steak seasoning, remaining scallion and garlic, thyme, seasoned salt, and pepper to taste. Add butter beans and cover; cook on high for another 45-60 minutes. Test the meat for tenderness, it should be falling off the bone tender.

Pressure cooker method:
Follow the steps above for seasoning, marinating and browning the meat, and Instead of transferring to a crockpot after it has been browned, add to pressure cooker along with beef broth and two cups of water and cook for 1 hour. Remove lid after you’ve carefully allowed the pressure cooker to cool down. Re-season with onion, butter bean, steak seasoning, scallion, thyme, green pepper,  seasoned salt, garlic and pepper to taste and cook for another 20 minutes until the sauce is thick. Use with a regular pot cover, as you do not need to pressure the meat any further. Your meat should look like the pictures below for the re-seasoning and for the big ending.