September 2010 - CaribbeanPot.com

Aloo Choka, A Unique Twist On Garlic Mashed Potato.

March 5, 2012September 24, 201026 Comments

In true Caribbean style, we have our own twist on the classic North American dish, garlic mashed potato. If you’re new to the site or you’re not familiar with the cuisine of Trinidad and Tobago (and wherever else in the Caribbean where there’s an Indian influence), aloo is just another word for potato. I fell in love with garlic mash when I first moved to North America many moons ago and it’s one of those sides I always get whenever we go out for a steak dinner. Maybe it’s one of those things I connected with, that reminded of the Aloo Choka I enjoyed as a boy.

Though they’re pretty similar, the aloo choka is a bit more explosive when it hits your taste buds, as the garlic is raw and not roasted as in garlic mash and the extreme heat (you can control this of course) from the habanero or scotch bonnet peppers adds a new dimension to the overall dish.

You’ll need…

4 large potatoes
3 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 onion sliced thin
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 clove garlic
1/4 green hot pepper (I used habanero)

* Optional – Add 1 clove sliced garlic to the oil heating process.

Peel, wash and cut in halves the potatoes, then place in a deep pan and cover with water. Bring to a boil and cook until tender (when a fork or knife can go through them without any resistance). While this boils… in a bowl, place the garlic, salt and hot pepper and crush to a smooth paste.

I like using a green hot pepper as the flavor is a bit different than a fully ripe one. Plus the green specks in the finished dish give sit some character. After the potato is cooked, drain and add to the bowl with the crushed garlic, pepper and salt. Then mash the entire batch until it’s smooth and free of any lumps.

With the use of salt in the pepper paste we made, there wasn’t any use for salt when you’re boiling the potato. But do check at the end in the event you need to add additional salt (depends on your taste). The final 2 steps are to… top with the thin slices of onion (don’t mix or stir)

Heat the oil until it’s hot (just about to smoke), then pour the oil directly onto the slices of onion on top of the mashed potato. This will semi cook the onion and most importantly it will release some of the distinct onion flavours into the bowl. Now give everything a good stir and serve.

Here it is with some curry stew chicken and sada roti.

Note: Traditionally I’ve seen people add a clove of garlic (sliced thin) into the frying pan with the hot oil to cook for a minute, before adding to the bowl with the mashed potato. But that gives it a bit of a smokey taste that I’m not a huge fan off.

ENJOY! Don’t forget to leave your comments below – it’s appreciated (even if you just to say hello) and don’t forget to join us on Facebook by clicking on the image below.

Fried Chicken From The Islands.

May 27, 2025September 18, 201053 Comments

If you’ve been following the updates on the Facebook Fan page, you would have seen where I was asking for suggestions for a fried chicken recipe, as I had a severe craving and didn’t feel like KFC or Popeye’s! I wanted chicken that had that strong home-fried taste, texture and smell. I wanted to control the spices I used as well, since the goal was to recreate the same sort of chicken I enjoyed as a boy growing up on the islands. I still recall my mom saying “yuh have to let it cool down”, ignoring that and feeling the pain of steaming hot chicken.

Thanks to everyone who left me their suggestions and family secret recipes. Rather than use one, I combined some aspects of all and the end product was simply amazing. When all you see are bones on a plate after your children had their dinner, you know you’ve struck gold with that particular recipe. So again.. thanks to everyone who contributed.

You’ll Need…

For seasoning the chicken:

5-6 LBS chicken pieces (I used legs and thighs)
1 teaspoon peppersauce (hot sauce – use as much as you can tolerate)
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon ginger (powder or as I did – fresh grated)
1 teaspoon green seasoning (see notes below if you don’t have green seasoning)
1 lime / lemon or 3 tablespoons of vinegar to wash the chicken pieces before seasoning.
1 1/2 teaspoon salt

For the dusting:

1-2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

* oil for frying. I shallow fried, so I used about 2 1/2 cups vegetable oil.

* if you don’t have the green seasoning (<< click there for the recipe) mince fine:
– thyme
– scallions
– shado beni or cilantro
– parsley (flat leaf)
– 2 cloves garlic

* You’ll also need 2 eggs.

Start off by trimming of fat and excess skin, but I left a fair amount of skin on the chicken ( you can remove it while you’re eating). I find that the skin give the meat a sort of protection and prevents it from drying out while frying. Then I pour the lime or lemon juice over it (you can also use vinegar). Rinse with water and strain dry. Then it’s on to seasoning the chicken (btw I used dark cuts of meat and I tried to keep them all the same size). In a large bowl use the ingredients mentioned above to season the chicken. Make sure to stir well, cover and allow to marinate in the fridge for about 2 hours.

In a heavy pan, heat the oil on medium/high heat and while this heats up, lets do a couple things.

1. Crack the two eggs into a small bowl and whisk… then add to the bowl with the seasoned chicken and give it a good stir. Try to get all pieces of the chicken coated with this egg mixture.

2. Pour the flour onto a plate and add the paprika and black pepper and mix well.

The next step is to dust the pieces of chicken into the flour mixture we just made. Be sure to cover all pieces and shake off any excess flour before placing into the hot oil. My pan was not very large, so I did 3 pieces at a time, as I didn’t want to crowd the pan and have it go soggy from the reduction in the oil’s temperature. Depending on how big the pieces of chicken you have and the cut (dark or white meat), the cooking time will vary between 15 and 20 minutes. In my case it took about 18 minutes and I flipped each piece every 4-5 minutes, since I was shallow frying. If you find that the outside is going brown too fast, it’s an indication that your oil may be too hot. Adjust accordingly.

Remember that it’s hot oil that you’re working with so be very careful. Have a wire tray or paper-towel lined basket ready to place the cooked pieces of chicken to drain off any excess oil. Continue doing in batches and remember to give it a few minutes to cool down before serving.

Give this a try and I’m sure you’ll be amazed at how tasty, moist (without being “wet”) and crispy at the same time. I’d really appreciate it if you leave me a comment below, even if it’s just to say hello. And for those of you who assisted with this recipe on Facebook, thanks. BTW, if you’ve not already connected with us on Facebook, do so NOW by clicking on the image below.

Creamy Eddoes Talkari.

March 5, 2012September 14, 201015 Comments

Here’s a another dish our mother could not get us to eat as kids. Our reason being.. “it eh have no colour”. On the islands we tend to do a lot of eating with our eyes and we expect everything cooked to have some “colour” to it or it’s automatically unappetizing for us. But like with many dishes I now enjoy, adulthood really opened my eyes and taste buds. This is a nice side (talkari) to hot sada roti and with a few pieces of lime peppersauce… you’re set!

You’ll Need…

1 tablespoon olive oil or vegetable
5 medium eddoes peeled / cubed
1 medium potato peeled / cubed
2 cloves garlic crushed
1/4 hot pepper sliced thin – remember to leave out the seeds to control the heat
1/2 medium onion sliced
4 tablespoon of salted cod pieces
1/4 teaspoon salt (the salted cod will also add some salt to the dish)
1 teaspoon each chopped fine:
– thyme
– Spanish thyme
– celery leaf
– chives
(or you can use scallions + cilantro + thyme) basically any sort of fresh herbs that you may have.

* The potato is optional, but I love the added texture it gives to the overall dish.

Start by prepping everything. This means peeling, slicing and cube the potato / eddoes pieces the same size so they cook uniformly. I also soak the pieces of salted cod in hot water for a few minutes to rehydrate them and to release most of the salt (drain).

Now heat the oil on medium/high heat and add the pieces of salted cod, then followed by the onion. Cook this for a couple minutes, then add the pieces of potato and eddoes. Stir well and cook for a minute or two, then top with all the other ingredients, including the water. Cover the pot, bring it to a boil, then to a gentle simmer.

Allow this to cook for about 25 minutes, or until the eddoes is tender and the dish gets a sort of thick soupy consistency (see pic below). To make this into a full vegetarian dish, ignore the part where I added the pieces of salted cod, but do taste at the end, in the event you have to add more salt. Remember the salted cod fish pieces will add additional salt to this dish.

Simply and tasty… my kinda dish! Don’t forget to leave your comments below, even if it’s just to say hello – it’s really appreciated. And while I have your attention, please join us on Facebook – you’ll love the community we’ve created. Simply click on the facebook image below to get started.

Extreme Caribbean Pickled Peppers.

May 28, 2025September 7, 201034 Comments

I grew up calling this cut-up pepper sauce, but I guess a better description for it would be pickled peppers since it resembles many of the pickled items I’ve seen in the grocery stores in North America. My mom would make this one exclusively with lime juice (no vinegar) and she would allow it to sit in the open sun for about a week or so before anyone was allowed anywhere near it. Supposedly the combination of the acid in the lime juice and the brilliant rays of the Caribbean sun gave it an extra kick and slightly cooked everything into the perfect pepper sauce. That also allowed the lime juice to become a bit thicker and the pieces of lime would become tender and absorb the heat of the peppers…. wicked stuff!

This is a modified version of that original recipe which I grew up enjoying, but it’s just as tasty and packs a real punch.

You’ll Need…

13-18 Habanero or Scotch Bonnet peppers (sliced – include seeds for more heat)
juice of 4 limes
1/4 small caraili (bitter melon) seeded and sliced thin
1 lemon or 2 ripe limes diced
3 cloves garlic crushed and sliced
1 cup of chili peppers (optional) – remove stems and leave whole
2 Cubanelle peppers (optional) – sliced
1 carrot (peeled and sliced into coins)
1 teaspoon salt
1-2 cups of vinegar (see notes below)
1 cup cubed green papaya

* If you don’t chili or Cubanelle peppers, you can use just about any other hot pepper you can source. For me it’s what I had in the garden at the time of making!

There’s no cooking involved with this recipe and it’s just a matter of slicing, dicing and assembling everything is a storage container (glass jar). So let’s get started…

Rinse the peppers under cool water and allow to drain/dry. Then peel the green papaya, remove the seeds on the inside and cube. Do the same for the caraili, but slice thin instead of cubing. (in the picture below you’ll see a lot of peppers, this was after I went through my garden and not all were used in the recipe)

The next step is to cube the lemon, slice the Cubanelle and the habanero peppers (remember to remove the stems). It’s very important that you use gloves when handling the hot peppers, or risk having you hands feel as if they’re on fire… not to mention if you mistakenly touch your eyes (or something else lol). Also peel and crush the garlic and slice any big chunks.

The final step is to mix everything in a large bowl, then add to a jar (with a lid) and pack down using a spoon. When the jar is full, top with the salt and squeeze the lime juice directly into the jar so it catches the salt on it’s way down into the bottle. Now top off with vinegar (you will not need all 2 cups, but it’s good to have that much just in case), close tightly and give it a good shake to make sure the salt is evenly distributed and the lime juice mixes with the vinegar. Allow this to cure for a couple weeks (if possible) before using… but there’s nothing stopping you using this immediately if you wish.

So the tips again…

– leave the seeds on the hot peppers for more heat

– use rubber gloves when handling the peppers

– allow to marinate for a couple weeks for best results.

With the use of vinegar this can last very long, even when not placed in the refrigerator. If you do decide to store in the fridge, remember that it will loose some of it’s heat (don’t know so I can explain why). WARNING! If you happen to notice the top going a bit frothy, spoon out that part and place the jar in the fridge.

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Trinbago Aloo Pie recipe.

March 5, 2012September 5, 201063 Comments

After many requests from readers I got my mom to help me with making this Aloo Pie recipe. Aloo is simply potato and though it’s called a pie, it’s not what most people outside Trinidad and Tobago envision when they hear the word pie. It’s basically potato filling in a dough, that’s deep fried and it’s one of the many quick delights you can buy at many of the street food vendors throughout the islands.

As I mentioned above, I had my mom’s help in making this dish as I find that I never learn to make dishes I don’t really like. As a kid on the islands, my thing was “doubles” and to be quite honest I can safely say that I’ve only had aloo pies about 4 times.

You’ll Need…

For the filling:

4 medium potatoes (boiled)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 clove garlic
1/4 teaspoon geera (cumin powder)
1/4 hot pepper (optional)

For the dough:

1 3/4 cups flour (all purpose)
pinch salt
pinch self rising yeast (makes for a lighter dough)

* Edit: It was pointed out that I forgot to list the amount of water needed for making the dough. Use between 1/2 and 3/4 cup of water.

About 2 cups oil for frying (vegetable works great)

You have two options when it comes to the potatoes. You can peel, cut in half and boil till tender. Or you can cut in half, boil and peel after it’s cooled a bit. Basically… put the potato into a pan with enough water to cover and bring to boil. Then allow to boil gently until you can pierce it with a knife without any real resistance. As the potato boils, lets prepare the dough.

In a bowl place all the ingredients mentioned above for the dough and add 1/2 of the water. Work well and add water as needed. You’re looking for a well worked dough, that’s smooth and somewhat firm. Allow this rest as least 15 minutes at room temperature and the bowl covered with plastic wrap.

The potato should be fully cooked now. In a bowl, add the salt, garlic and hot pepper and crush to a fine paste, then add the cooked potato and mash. The goal is to have a smooth texture (no lumps). The final step in preparing the filling is to add the geera and stir everything well. You can use a mortar and pestle to crush the garlic and pepper, then use a potato masher to mash the potato.

The next step is to make the dough ball we created 15 minutes ago into 4-5 smaller balls. Then dust your surface with flour and roll out with a rolling pin to form small circles about 6-8 inches in diameter. Add some of the potato filling we created to half of the circle (of dough), but leave room on the edges to allow us to seal the package. Flip the side that there’s no filling over and using a fork, press down to make a seal. You’re making 1/2 circle filled dough package (see pics below). When you seal with the fork, flip over and do the same thing on the other side, as you don’t want it opening during the frying process.

In a fairly wide pan, heat the oil on a medium high heat and then fry. Place into the oil (be careful) and within seconds, flip to the other side. This quick action helps achieve a perfectly shaped pie. Now cook for about 2-3 minutes on this side, then flip back to the side you started off on and cook for another 2-3 minutes. Basically you’re looking for a golden brown colour. If you find that it’s going dark fast, turn down the heat on the oil.

I think it’s the geera that’s in this recipe that prevents me from never really giving it much of a chance, as it’s one of those spices that I just have no love for. I recall lunch time during my school days in Trinidad the kids would rush out to the food vendors to get their aloo pie and they would get the vendors to cut them open and put curry channa (chick peas) and that was usually topped with some sort of chutney or pepper sauce. Usually the hit was tamarind sauce.

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