Dhal is one of those thick soup-like dishes we make in the Caribbean, especially those islands where there’s an East Indian influence. Basically split peas soup, enhanced with turmeric and in some cases… salted meats, as we’ll be using today. Very similar to the traditional dhal recipe and the lentil peas mixed dhal recipe I shared a while back, this one is just as tasty but not vegetarian as those two earlier versions.

Though nothing beats a good serving of dhal, rice and tomato choka, I do enjoy a hot bowl of  dhal, cooked with pieces of salted pig tail… especially when I’m home sick and miss my boyhood days on the islands.

You’ll Need…

1lb salted pigtail
2 cups yellow split peas
4 cloves garlic
1/2 teaspoon turmeric (saffron)
8 cups water
1/2 small onion
1/4 scotch bonnet pepper (I used 2 bird peppers)
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon toasted geera seeds (cumin) * See notes below
2 tablespoon vegetable oil

* Notes: You can soak the split peas overnight in cool water for faster cooking time. Traditionally at the end of cooking toasted geera (cumin) seeds are added to the dhal for an enhanced flavor. I’m not a fan of geera, so you’ll notice that I didn’t add any to my pot of dhal. The salted pigtial should be enough to ‘salt’ this dish, but do taste near the end of cooking and adjust accordingly.

The first thing we’ve got to do is to remove some of the salt from the pieces of pig tail (trust me, salted pig tails are very salty). BTW I cut the pieces of pig tail into 1-1.5 inch pieces, then placed them in a pot with water. As it came to a boil I reduced the heat and allowed it to go on a rolling boil for about 20-25 minutes. The idea is to get the pieces a bit tender and remove some of the salt it’s been cured with. Drain, rinse under cool water a couple times and get ready to add to the main pot with the other ingredients.

Now it’s time to prep everything else and get the dhal cooking as it will take a while to simmer and get tender.. unless you’re using a pressure cooker (I don’t own one).

In a deep pot, put the 8 cups of water to boil. As this comes to a boil, place the split peas in a bowl and rinse with cool water.. drain and repeat. Try to work the peas between your fingers (massage), as to remove any sort of grit.

The water should be boiling at this point, so gently add the washed split peas, pieces of salted pig tail which be pre-boiled earlier, turmeric, the sliced onion, black pepper, scotch bonnet pepper and 2 cloves of the garlic (sliced thin). Bring that to a boil.. as it boils you will notice some frothy residue form at the top of the pot. Skim that off and discard. Now reduce to a very gentle simmer, cover the pot (leave a small crack open) and allow to cook for at least 1.5 hrs. Be sure to stir every 10 minutes or so.

After 1.5 hrs you should have peas which are starting to melt away and create that thick goodness dhal is famous for. You can now use a whisk or as I did.. a swizzle stick and break down the full peas a bit (refer to the video below). I’m sure you can use one of those electric immersion blenders, but try not to over do it or risk the dhal going foamy/frothy. Additionally, you’ll have to remove the pieces of slated pig tail from the pot before using the electric blender.

You should now have a thick soup-like consistency, that’s ready for the final step. Turn off the burner as it’s done cooking now.

In a small frying pan, heat the oil until it’s about to smoke, then add the other 2 cloves of garlic (sliced) and allow to cook for a couple minutes. The garlic will go golden, then proceed to go a bit black.. that’s what were looking for. Here is where you would also add the cumin seeds if you want to give it that unique (traditional) flavor. Now (be careful as you’re adding hot oil to liquid) add the heated oil with the cooked garlic slices to the pot with the cooked split peas (should be off the burner now). I use the lid of the pot as a shield with one hand and pour the heated oil with the other.

This step of adding the hot oil with cooked garlic to the pot with the cooked split peas is called “chunkay”. Now you can tell your friends that you’ve chunkayed dhal (smile). Stir the pot good and pour yourself a big bowl.. you deserve it! Remember we didn’t add any salt to this dhal as the pieces of salted pig tail should have been enough to give it enough flavor. However your tolerance for salt will be different than mine.. so taste and adjust accordingly.

The pieces of burnt garlic will look a bit weird (if you’ve never had dhal before) floating on the surface of the pot, but I assure you that this is normal and you’ll love the extra roasted/smokey sort of garlic flavor for it all.

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This recipe is a take on the one our mom would do with left over stewed pork, which is still something I crave from time to time (queen cud real cook). After our last trip to the Asian grocery store out in Mississauga, these baby pak choi were in the fridge waiting for some love. With some left over stew chicken in hand, I thought I’d revise my mom’s recipe and use chicken instead of the pork. Stewed beef (Caribbean style)  also works great as well. BTW, I was asked “how does one have leftover stewed chicken?” by one of our friends out in the Netherlands… I fully understand what you mean, a pot of stew chicken goes very fast.

You’ll need…

Pak Choi (2-3lbs)
1 med onion
3 cloves garlic
2 tablespoon veg or olive oil
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 scotch bonnet pepper
fresh black pepper (pinch)

*  leftover stew chicken (see recipe here) (4-8 pieces)

Note: Do remember when using hot peppers that the majority of ‘heat’ is in the seeds and area surrounding them (sort of white membrane). So avoid using those if you don’t want to deal with extreme heat.

Wash and chop the pak choi into 1/2 inch pieces. I basically removed all the leaves from the main stem, gave them a good wash and then cut thin strips lengthwise. I then chopped those length pieces into the size I wanted. Remember to wash these good as you may find sand between the stems and trapped in the creases of the leaves. In the video below you’ll see exactly how I did everything.

As the rinsed pak choi pieces drain, chop the onion, garlic and pepper.

Heat the oil in a fairly deep pan on medium heat and add the slices of garlic and allow that to cook for 3-4 minutes on a low heat. We’re trying to release the flavors without burning the garlic. As soon as you see the edges go golden and the garlic soften, turn up the heat to med-high and start adding the cut pak choi to the pot.

Now add all the other ingredients (salt, pepper, black pepper, onion), except the leftover chicken to the pot and give it a good stir.

When this comes to a boil you will notice it will wilt down and spring a lot of it’s own natural liquid. Cover the pot and allow to simmer for 15 minutes on low heat.

After 15 minutes, remove the lid (do remember to stir ever 4-5 minutes) add the pieces of leftover stewed chicken and give it a good stir. There should still be a bit of liquid in the pot, so it’s time to burn that off. I like my pak choi with a little crunch, so I now turn up the heat and burn off any excess liquid before the pak choi overcooks. In 2-3 minutes the dish should be completely ready for partaking.

Check for salt and adjust accordingly. If you want to brighten this up a bit, you can ad some chopped tomato at the end for color. The infusion of the leftover stewed chicken (which had ginger and other goodness) will take this dish up to another level. I guarantee you!

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Stewed chicken with string beans was usually a “Monday” dish in our home back in the day. Leftover stewed meats (usually chicken) from Sunday’s huge lunch was used to enhance the flavor of boring string beans… probably the only way our mom would get us to eat beans. She would usually cook down the beans first and add the pieces of left over stewed chicken near the end, to finish the dish off. However, we’ll do things a bit different… we’ll stew the chicken first for that rich flavor and color, then add the trimmed string beans to the pot and allow it to enjoy married life (smile).

I’m not a fan of chicken breast (white meat) as it’s so easy to go dry. But I assure you the pieces of chicken will be juicy, tender and infused with the lovely goodness of ginger, the herbs we used and the overall stewing process.

You’ll Need…

2 Chicken Breast (about 1 1/2 – 2 lbs)
2 lb string beans (see note below)
3/4 tablespoon salt
2 tablespoon veg oil
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon grated ginger (see note)
1/4 hot pepper (habanero or scotch bonnet)
1 medium onion
1 tomato
3 sprigs thyme
2 scallions
2 cloves garlic
1 tablespoon ketchup
1 tablespoon golden brown sugar
juice of 1 lime or lemon (can vinegar as well)
2 leaves shado beni (or 2 tablespoon chopped cilantro)
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 1/2 cups water

Notes: Feel free to add additional herbs in seasoning the chicken (Spanish thyme, parsley and/or oregano). I used string beans, but you can also use french beans, bodi (yard beans) or any of your favorite green beans. I grated the ginger into the marinating of the chicken, but if you wish you can use a slice and remove it at the end of cooking if you’re worried about biting into the ginger. Remember when using hot peppers to keep away from the seeds and surrounding white membrane if you’re concerned about the heat.

I got boned chicken breast (on sale), so I had to debone and cut into 1 inch chunks. I then washed the pieces of chicken with the lime juice and rinsed with cool water.Then chop the onion, garlic, tomato, hot pepper, scallions, thyme and shado beni.

Add all the ingredients into the bowl with cubed chicken pieces except the brown sugar, water, string beans  and vegetable oil. Give it a good stir and allow the chicken to marinate for at least 15 minutes.

I had already prepped my beans, but this would be a good time to do so while the seasoned chicken marinates. Trim off the ends of each bean, then cut into 1-2 inch pieces length-wise. I then like to cut each piece down the middle as I find it cooks faster and really absorbs the flavors of the stewed chicken. It will take some time and best done using a small pairing knife (better control). Please refer to the video below to see how I trimmed each bean.

Let’s get ready to put this tasty dish together. If this is your first time ‘stewing’ meats as it’s done in Caribbean (almost like caramelizing) you can refer to the video below or follow along.. I’ll try my best to describe this step. Since we’ll be working with melted sugar at a high temperature be sure to use a dry cooking spoon with a long handle. It’s also recommended that you have the seasoned chicken close.

Heat a fairly large/deep pot on a med/high heat and add the oil. Now add the brown sugar and keep stirring. The sugar will start to melt and go a sort of caramel color.. that’s what we want. Allow it to start going frothy and it will get a rich dark color. Keep stirring as you want the entire batch of sugar to work evenly. As it get’s a rich dark color and frothy.. the pot will start to smoke so have a window open or the exhaust fan above your stove on. I’ve had the smoke detector go off a few times. With care, start adding the chicken. It’s ok if the pieces of onion, tomato etc goes into the pot. Sooner or later  they will reside there. Give it a good stir to coat the chicken in the lovely brown color.

* Be careful not to let the sugar go black or your dish will have a sort of bitter taste.

Turn down the heat to low, cover the pot and allow to cook for about 6 minutes with the lid on. After six minutes you should have some natural juices at the bottom of the pan. With the lid off, turn up the heat (remember to stir) and burn off that liquid. We’re building a rich flavor base and we enhancing the overall color of the dish.

With all the liquid gone, start adding the trimmed (don’t forget to wash your beans before trimming) beans to the pot and give it a good stir (heat still on high). Pour the water into the same bowl you marinated the chicken in to pick up any remaining marinade, then pour that water (the cup and a half) into the pot. Give that a good stir and bring to a boil.

When it comes to a boil reduce to a simmer, cover the pot and allow to cook for about 15 minutes. I like my beans to still have a slight crunch, so 15 minutes works great for me (stir occasionally). After 15 minutes (your kitchen will have a wonderful scent at this point), remove the lid and if you have liquid at the bottom of the pan (you will), turn up the heat and burn it off. You’re Done!

I love this with plain boiled rice (brown), but it’s just as tasty with roti and it makes a killer sandwich (trust meh). Yes the vibrant green color will be lost, but if you want to brighten it up a bit for presentation, you can add some chopped tomato near the end to just heat through.

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After the video shoot last week, we had some dasheen bush (leaves of the dasheen plant) left over so I decided to bring it home with me to share this dasheen bush bhaji recipe with you all. I was one of those strange kids who loved any sort of bhaji (Spinach) dish our mom would make for us as kids. Chorai (Jamaican callaloo), pak choi and lovely dasheen bush, especially if she added salted meats and coconut milk. Today I’ve added swiss chard, collard greens and north American style spinach to my diet.. I even plant the stuff in the little kitchen garden we have in the back yard every spring.

Traditionally this dasheen bush bhaji recipe is made without the coconut milk and okra, but I love that level of flavor you get by cooking with coconut milk so I just had to include it and the okra was left over from a soup I made a few days back, so I decided to include them. Moms would be proud that I didn’t waste them.

You’ll Need…

1 bundle of dasheen bush leaves (see note below)
12 small okras
1/2 hot pepper (Scotch bonnet or habanero)
4 cloves garlic
3/4 tablespoon salt
2 tablespoon olive oil
1 tomato (optional)
1/2 large onion
1 1/2 cups coconut milk (substitute with water)

Note: When shopping for dasheen bush leaves, ask your vendor for baby leaves (more tender) if you can and if you’re wondering… a bundle is about 15 leaves (with stems). I used coconut milk in my recipe, but you can water if you don’t have coconut milk.

Before we can getting cooking this tasty bhaji dish, we need to prep everything.  Slice the garlic very thin, chop the onion, tomato and hot pepper (remember to discard the seeds of the pepper if you don’t want that killer heat) and set aside.

Give the okra a rinse under cool water and trim off the stem and end tip and discard. Then cut each okra into 1 cm pieces (rough chop) and set aside.

You may have to refer to the video at the bottom of this recipe to see how I prepared the dasheen bush leaves as it’s a bit hard to explain and I may end up confusing you. All you’re doing is removing the stems by pulling on it while having a good grip on the leaf itself. A sort of string should pull away when you do… that is normal. Remember to wash each leaf and don’t discard the stems as they can be used as well. After you’ve trimmed each leaf, take about 5 and form into a bundle, with the part where the stems were attached at the top (again, see video please). Trim off that area and discard. Then with a tight roll, start cutting thin slices to sort of shred the dasheen bush leaves. Place the shredded leaves into a colander or bowl and rinse again.

Let’s now get cracking with cooking this bhaji… On high heat, in a large pot, heat the olive oil. Add the slices of garlic, but turn down the heat a bit so we don’t burn the slices of garlic. The idea is to cook it for a couple minutes so we can infuse the oil with that rich garlic flavor.

When the edges of the garlic starts to go golden, turn the heat back up to med/high and start adding the shredded dasheen bush. It will pile up and you wonder if you pot is big enough. Fear not… it will wilt down. Give it a good stir then add the salt, pepper, onion, okra and tomato. Give that a good stir, then add the coconut milk to the pot. Bring that up to a boil, then reduce to a very gentle simmer. Allow this to cook for about 35-40 minutes with the pot covered. Be sure to stir every 5-7 minutes.

For some reason or the other I find that the dasheen bush we get here in Ontario (imported of course) takes a bit longer to cook, so I had to cook it for the full 40 minutes. The idea is to get the dasheen bush to melt away and form a thick (especially with the addition of the okra) consistency. After 40 minutes I still had a bit of liquid in the pot, so I removed the lid, turned up the heat and cooked it for a further 5 minutes. Move the spoon around the bottom of the pot and you should see it dry… it may sick, so keep stirring.

 One of my favorite ways to have dasheen bush bhaji was with cassava dumplings but it also goes well with roti, rice and bread if that’s all you have. A wonderful creamy vegetarian dish, dasheen bush bhaji will surely excite your taste buds.

Before you go I invite you to leave me your comments below.. even if it just to say hello. It’s always appreciated. And don’t forget to join us on facebook and do check out the cooking videos.

Seim (see Hyacinth Bean if you don’t know what they are) was yet another dish my mom would cook occasionally, which she couldn’t even force us to eat as kids. She would add coconut milk, left over pieces of stewed meats and even pieces of salted cod to try and get us to eat it… no luck! As a grown man I still don’t have much of an appetite for it and it’s mainly due to the distinctive flavor it possesses. Though it’s cooked in the same manner as bodi, something which I really like, I just can’t fully appreciate that unique sort of flavor seim has. A flavor which is very difficult to describe… can a vegetable/bean be ‘gamey’?

This curry seim recipe is a wonderful vegetarian dish but you can also add pieces of meats as mentioned above, if you’d like to enhance the overall flavor.

You’ll Need…
1 pound seim (cleaned and trimmed)
1 tablespoon madras curry powder (Caribbean blend)
3/4 cup coconut milk
3/4 cup water
1/2 small onion
3 chilies (I had some bird pepper in the fridge)
2 cloves garlic
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon veg oil
dash black pepper
2 medium potatoes cubed (I like Yukon gold’s creaminess)

*3 tablespoons water for cooking the curry.

First up, we need to wash, clean and trim the seim (see video at the bottom of the post). Using a sharp pairing knife, strip the edges off the seim, then cut into 2 pieces. The edges will not cook down and will be stringy and tough, so we must remove them. Depending on the size of your seim, cut into 2 or 4 pieces and remember to keep the peas (seeds) as well. Prepare the potato, onion, garlic and pepper so we’re good to go when we get started.

In a fairly deep saucepan, heat the vegetable oil on medium heat, then toss in the madras curry powder, stir and allow to cook for a couple minutes. Then add the sliced onion, garlic and hot pepper so they release their oils and flavor the dish. Give that another minute, then add 3 tablespoons of water and allow to cook for about 3-5 minutes on a low heat. After which you can turn up the heat and allow the curry mixture to cook down completely.(you can also make a slurry with the curry powder, garlic, onion, pepper and water and add to the heated oil as well)

When the liquid dries down and the curry paste we just made starts to get darker and stick to the bottom of the pan, add the trimmed seim, potato chunks, salt, black pepper and give it a good stir.

Next up is to add the coconut milk and water. Bring that up to a boil by raising the heat. Now reduce that to a very gentle simmer, cover the pot and allow to cook for about 30 minutes.

Remember to stir occasionally while it cooks. After 30 minutes the seim should be tender and the potato should start to melt away to form a thick sort of gravy. If there’s a lot of liquid left in the pan, raise the heat so that can burn-off. I recall my mom making this very dry (no gravy), but I do like some gravy to eat with my roti or rice.

I just so happened to have some buss up shut roti in  he freezer which I reheated, along with some mango kuchela to round off my meal. This recipe should be enough for four people as a side dish in case you’re wondering.

Before you go I invite you to leave me your comments below.. even if it just to say hello. It’s always appreciated. And don’t forget to join us on facebook and do check out the cooking videos.

After posting the tambran (tamarind) ball recipe a couple days ago (sweet spicy sour tambran balls) , I realize that I still had some tamarind left back so I decided to share this recipe with you guys. Originally when I told my mom I purchased some tamarind in a box at the Asian store, she jokingly said “buh son, dais not the real thing” (gosh trinbago accent sweet eh!). So she got my dad to go out and get some of the ‘real thing” for me and sent it down with my sister (they live in Toronto and I’m in Hamilton). Sure enough it was the “tart” or sour type of tamarind we’re accustomed too in the Caribbean, but already out of the hard shell-like exterior.

This tamarind sauce is used primarily as a condiment or topping  for such things as saheena, aloo pie, pholourie and doubles. But I also recall (back to my school days again) a thicker version, with a sort of amchar massala undertone that was a hit with the kids at my primary school. Maybe I’ll post that recipe the next time I get some of the ‘real’ tamarind.

You’ll Need…

200 grams tamarind  pulp (about 7 oz)
3 cloves garlic
1 scotch bonnet or habanero pepper
1 1/2 – 2 tablespoon brown sugar
2-3 leaves shado beni
1 1/2 cup water

* add some salt and extra sugar if you find that the finished sauce is overly tart.

Before I go further I must let you know that there are 2 variations of this recipe. The first being the way I’ll show you below, where I’ll simmer the sauce on the stove for 10-15 minutes. The 2nd method you’ll use the same ingredients, except no cooking is involved. You simply add everything to a blender and give it a good pulse. I like to cooked version better as I find that the pungent ingredients like the shado bein and garlic is infused within the sauce and has a much milder after-taste.

The first step is to crush the pepper, garlic and shando beni into a sort of chunky paste. I give those things a rough chop and work it well in my mortar and pestle.

BTW, you’ll notice that my shado beni looks a bit starving… I’m just thankful I could get fresh shado beni here, so I’m not complaining. The next step is place the tamarind paste into a sauce pan with 1 1/2 cups water. Now using your fingers, (if you didn’t get seedless), work the pulp away from the seeds and try to crush the flesh between your fingers. It  will get a bit messy so you can wear disposable gloves if you wish.

Now remove the seeds and discard. Place the saucepan on medium heat, add the sugar (pinch of salt) and the crushed pepper/garlic/shado beni to the pot and bring to a gentle boil. Now turn the heat down to a gentle simmer and with the pot closed, allow to cook for about 10 to 15 minutes.

Stir every 2-3 minutes and if you find that it’s getting really thick, add a bit more water. You’re looking for a sort of thick tomato soup consistency (a little thinner than ketchup). Allow to cool before serving as the taste when it’s hot is totally different than when it’s cool. If when you taste it you find that it’s more tart (sour) than anything else, add a bit more sugar. It should be the perfect balance of tart, savory and spicy.

This tambran sauce rocks when you dip some saheena, aloo pie or pholourie into it!

Before you go I invite you to leave me your comments below.. even if it just to say hello. It’s always appreciated. And don’t forget to join us on facebook and do check out the cooking videos.

I almost forgot. I’m not sure how many of you saw the message I posted on Facebook, but I mentioned that if you’d like to post any cooking/food related questions to a certified chef, who’s traveled all over the world doing his culinary thing.. now is the time to do so. A couple weeks back we met with the Rhyming Chef (Philman George) for coffee and during that meeting he agreed to take time from his hectic schedule to answer any questions you guys may have. All you have to do is leave the questions in the comment section below and I’ll send them off to him. I’ll then post the answers on the website for everyone to participate in the discussion.

You can learn more about The Rhyming Chef at his site http://www.therhymingchef.com/ A super cool ‘soldier’ with a massive passion for the culinary culture and history of the Caribbean, especially his home island of Barbuda.

I urge you to post your questions below and do check out Philman’s website for some amazing tips and cooking videos.

I was hoping to be a bit more creative with the title of the post, but it is what it is. After posting a pic on the Facebook fan site asking everyone to guess what I had cooking on the stove, someone responded by saying it was corned beef hash. Rewind a few years back and we were on the Caribbean Princess cruise ship en route to Antigua when I had my first experience with corned beef hash.  Not until the person on Facebook said it looked like corned beef hash, did I clue in as to why I love it so much. I went every day after, up to the main buffet while on the cruise, hunting down corned beef hash. This fry aloo and corned beef was a hit of mine since I was a kid and that hash satisfied some serious craving.

Whenever my mom would have leftover corned beef from the day before, she would add it to the fry aloo the next morning for breakfast. I also recall she would add leftover, stew chicken, beef and/or pork… gosh those were some good days for sure!

With the leftover corned beef I saw sitting in the fridge, I knew the time was right to make this dish. For those of you who’ve been following my cooking exploits to date, will recall I did both at fry aloo and corned beef recipe a while back. And for those of you wondering what “aloo” is, it’s just another word for potato.

So here’s the Caribbean take on corned beef hash.

You’ll Need…

4 medium potatoes (I like using Yukon Gold to get that nice creamy texture)
1/2 onion sliced
2 cloves garlic (sliced thin)
dash black pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
5 table spoons vegetable oil (olive oil works great – adds a nice flavour)
1/4 scotch bonnet pepper (or any pepper you like using) * Optional but really completes the dish)
1/2 cup left over fry corned beef (see link above for that recipe)

Note: If you don’t have any left over corned beef, use  1/3 can of a good canned corned beef. My fave is Hereford, as it’s the least fatty of the ones I’ve tried in the past. Simply empty it into the fried potato and mix it in. No need for the other ingredients I used in the normal corned beef recipe.

Peel, wash and slice the potato in somewhat thin slices. I usually cut each in half (long way), then slice.  Give it a quick rinse under cool water to remove some of the starch. Then heat the oil in a pan and add the sliced onion, garlic and hot pepper and allow that to cook for a few minutes on medium heat. Until you start seeing golden edges.

Drain off the potato if you had it sitting in water to prevent it from going discolored and add the slices to the pan. Give it a good stir so everything gets coated with the onion and garlic. Turn down the heat to medium / low, cover the pot and allow that to cook for about 15-20 minutes. Keep an eye on this as it will start sticking to the bottom of the pan – that’s natural. So stir every 3-4 minutes and turn down the heat if you find that it’s sticking too much.

Those brown bits at the bottom of the pot is where the real flavor in this dish is. Trust me! After the 20 minutes or so, the potato should be falling apart and tender (see pic above). It’s time to add the left over corned beef, or a 1/3 of a new can. Give it a good stir and cook for another 5 minutes with the lid open. You don’t want this going overly soggy.

I can eat this all by itself, but it’s great with sada roti or fry bake , as a side for breakfast with eggs etc and you can always grab some bread (slice, hops, pita..etc) and make some sandwiches. Before you rush to the kitchen to whip up a batch of this, please leave me your comments below – even if it’s just to say hello. It’s appreciated!  Don’t forget to join the commess (chat) on facebook by clicking on the image on the right side (upper part of the page).

This dish takes me back to when I first moved to Canada and would hang out with my cousin and her husband. He’s the one who got me into lifting weights way back when. After work they would pick me up and head over to their place where we’d work out in their home gym and my cousin usually had this simmering on the stove for us after we were done working out. Our evenings consisted of working out, having dinner and playing a bootleg copy of Tetris. Good ole days!

You’ll Need…

4 lbs chicken  – cut into serving size pieces
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon ketchup
2 cloves of garlic – thinly sliced or crushed
1 teaspoon fresh  ginger – crushed/sliced
2 tablespoon vegetable oil (one that can withstand high heat)
1 medium onion – chopped
1 medium tomato – chopped
1 tablespoon brown sugar
3/4cup water
dash of black pepper
1/4 hot pepper (I used Habanero)
1 green onion or chive (scallion) – chopped
2 sprigs of fresh thyme (1 teaspoon dried)
1 lime or lemon or 3 tablespoons of vinegar
1/2 teaspoon green seasoning
1 can chickpeas (Channa) 540 ml/194 fl oz

* I used chicken legs since I love the flavor you get from dark meat. If using chicken breast, I would sill toss in a couple pieces of dark meat just to balance things a bit.

In a large bowl place the cut pieces of chicken and pour the vinegar/lime or lemon juice and work between all the pieces of chicken. Rinse with cool water and drain. Then add all the ingredients, except the oil, sugar, chick peas and water. Allow this to marinate in the fridge for at least 30 minutes or 2 hours to get best results.

In a large heavy pot – I used an enameled cast iron pot, as I didn’t want to dig for the iron pot I got in Trinidad a few years back. A heavy pot enables better distribution of heat and makes stewing the meat much easier. Heat the oil on high heat, then add the brown sugar and stir. This is a bit of a tricky process and it’s important you get it right. No worries, I have faith in you. You want the sugar to completely dissolve, then start going frothy and finally it will go to a rich dark brown colour. DON”T let it go black or really dark brown or it will give the dish a bitter taste. Follow with the pics below.

As soon as you get the rich dark brown colour, add the pieces of seasoned chicken and stir so every piece gets colored with the caramel we just made. Use a spoon with a long handle when putting the seasoned chicken into the pot, as the hot oil/sugar combo can cause some splattering.  Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium/low, cover the pot and allow that to cook for 15 minutes (stir occasionally).

If there’s any marinade left in the bowl – keep it. While this cooks, open and rinse the can of channa (chick peas). I like to rinse any canned beans I use as I don’t care for the liquid it’s packed in, plus it’s usually loaded in sodium. After a good rinse, empty it into to bowl with the left over marinade.

By this time the chicken should have a nice rich brown colour. Remove the lid and turn up the heat to cook off all the liquid which developed as the lid was on. The key is to burn off ALL that liquid.

As soon as the liquid burns off, add the leftover marinade and chick peas to the pot. Give it a good stir and add the 3/4 cup of water. Bring this up to a boil, cover the pot and reduce the heat to a simmer. Allow this to cook for about 12 minutes. Stir a couple times during this cooking period. After 10-12 minutes, check to see if the gravy is runny or thick. If you find that it’s too thin, turn up the heat and cook off some of the liquid. For me,, the perfect consistency is like a stew or thick soup as I usually eat this on a bed of rice and love thick gravy.

Give this one a try – it’s loaded with flavour and I’m sure it will be a hit with your family and friends! Please leave me your comments or questions below as it’s always appreciated. Even if it’s just to say hello. And don’t forget to check out the links at the side for the Cooking Videos,  connect with me on Twitter and to join our select group on Facebook. See the images on the right side of the page to get started. And before I go I’d like to invite you to check out our new store, stocked with everyday cooking items. Including the cast iron pot I used in making this recipe. Browse The Caribbean Store. Do check out the huge selection of pepper sauces (Hot sauces) while you’re there!

With the abundance of hot peppers I had in my garden this summer, you may have noticed that there are several recipes recently dedicated to the most classic of Caribbean condiments… pepper sauce (hot sauce). If you look at the very bottom of this post, there should be some links to some of the spicy sauces I’ve shared recently that I encourage you to try. As I’ve pointed out in the past, just about everyone on the islands swears that their pepper sauce is the best! Be it the heat, uniqueness of the ingredients used or overall flavor. Here’s one that follows most of the common principles of making a good pepper sauce, with a few personal ingredients I like to add. Be warned that this is very HOT!

You’ll Need…

15-20 hot peppers (scotch bonnet or habanero)
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups vinegar
10 leaves of Shado Beni or 1 cup cilantro
6 cloves of garlic
1/4 small green papaya
1 small bitter melon (caraili)
1 lemon or 2 ripe limes
Juice of 4 limes
8 pimento peppers – optional
1 carrot – optional (helps to balance heat from peppers)

Some notes:

a. u include the seeds of the pepper for added heat
b. add more vinegar if you like it less thick.
c. remember to remove the seeds from the lemon after cubing.

Are You A WINNER? Before we get to the recipe, I’d like to invite you to participate in this month’s contest immediately after the recipe.

I start off by rough chopping the shado beni, papaya and bitter melon to make it easier to puree in the food processor (remember to peel and remove the seeds from the papaya as well as the bitter melon – you don’t have to peel the bitter melon). I remove the skin off the garlic as well to have it prepped.

I then slice and cube the lemon and remove any seeds that I see.

I highly suggest you wear gloves for the next few steps, as the peppers can cause some pain if you handle them with your bare hands. I then remove the stems off the peppers and give them a rough chop. I retain all the seeds, but if want a milder sauce, do remove the seeds.

Now that I have everything prepped, it’s time to bring out the vintage (old) blender and put it to use. Basically all you’re doing is adding everything listed in the ingredients list to the blender or food processor and puree it until it’s a smooth consistency.You may need to add more vinegar as I pointed out above.

IMPORTANT : the amount of ingredients you’re seeing in the pictures above is not what I mentioned in the ingredient list. I’m making a bigger batch, but follow along with the ingredients I listed and you’ll be set. You’ll also notice that due to the big batch I’m making that I have a lot of bottles of finished sauce. You’ll have enough for one bottle when done.

Pour into a clean, dry bottle and store. It should be fine outside the fridge since we used vinegar, but you can certainly keep it in the fridge so it will last longer. Bear in mind that by placing it in the fridge, it will loose some of it’s heat. This is the batch I got when I was done. I have some lucky friends who’ll have their hands on the Ultimate Pepper Sauce when I see them next.

The CONTEST!

Win a copy of Hot and Spicy Kitchen Handbook: 200 Sizzling Step-by-Step Recipes for Cuisine and Fiery Local Dishes from India, Mexico, Thailand and Every Spicy Corner of the World

As with other contests I’ve posted on the site before, it’s free to participate. Here’s how…

1. Post a response in the comment section below and your name will be automatically entered into the draw.

2. For an added chance to win (get your name in the pool two times). Head over to the Cooking channel and leave a comment on the “The Ultimate Fried Chicken Recipe” and I will then add your name a 2nd time and give you an extra chance at winning. Say whatever you like (even hello) and that will qualify you for a 2nd time (providing you’ve already left a comment here). Here again is the direct link to the >>>>  cooking channel.

The contest is open from today (Oct 5) to October 31, 2010. Then all the names will be entered into a pot and 1 winner chosen. I will then contact that winner so I can send them the prize ( I will also cover all shipping expenses). So good luck and do give the pepper sauce recipe posted above, a try.

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This recipe is very similar to the Red Kidney Beans one I did a couple weeks ago, except we’re using dried lentils. Lentils are one of the best vegetable sources of iron. This makes them an important part of a vegetarian diet, and useful for preventing iron deficiency. I usually make lentils in batches, so I could enjoy some that day and freeze the rest for later use, especially since it takes a while to cook if you don’t have a pressure cooker. I’ve had frozen stewed lentils last up to 3 months in the freezer and once reheated it tastes the same as the day it was first cooked.

Now don’t get “tie-up” (confused) by this being a vegetarian dish and think it lacks flavour… trust me this one will be a hit for one and all. I love this so much, I even have it as a soup… but that’s when I add salted meats to it while cooking

You’ll Need…

2 cups of lentils (I used the small brown/green ones)
3 cloves garlic
2 sprigs thyme
3/4 teaspoon salt
dash black pepper
hot pepper (as much as you like) I used a small habanero
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 onion sliced
water (see in directions)
1/2 teaspoon Caribbean style “browning”
2 table spoon chopped shado beni or cilantro
1 scallion (diced thin)
1/2 tablespoon Golden Ray butter (optional, but adds that true island flavour so I could not leave this out)

You can also add the following ingredients during the slow cooking process to add a bit more body and flavour to the dish.

2 carrots diced
1 bell pepper diced
1 tomato diced

Get started by going through the lentils to ensure that there’s nothing foreign between it (I’ve seen little pebbles and twigs at times). Then pour the lentils into a bowl and wash with cool water (drain), after which I add enough water to the bowl to cover the lentils and allow to soak for a couple hours (overnight is best).

The next step is to pour the lentils and water into a deep pot and add additional water so everything is covered by at least 2 inches of water. Place the pot onto a medium heat, add the garlic, hot pepper, salt, thyme and if you’re using the additional ingredients, now is the time to add them. Don’t forget to add the black pepper as well. Bring this to a boil, then cover and reduce to heat to low so it simmers. Allow this to cook for about 45 minutes or until the lentils are tender.

After the lentils are tender (pay attention to the water level as you don’t want it to get too thick or all the water to burn off…. add a cup is you find that it’s starting to get overly thick) Get another pot and add the oil to it under medium heat, then add the sliced onions and cook for a couple minutes. Basically until it’s soft and start getting golden edges. Then (gently – we’re adding liquid to hot oil) add the cooked lentils to the pot (pour in everything).

Get a whisk or as I did with a swizzle stick, whisk everything to break down the lentils a bit… then add the browning, scallions, shado beni or cilantro and Goldenray butter and stir around. Allow this to cook for a couple minutes and then you’re done. Don’t forget to fish out the twig from the thyme before serving. You’re looking for a thick, soup-like consistency.

This is awesome as a side for rice dishes (must have stew chicken, beef or pork as well)  and I also like scoping with pita bread or roti as well.. plus as I mentioned earlier, it’s good as a simple soup as well. Don’t forget to leave me your comments below and remember to connect with us on facebook by clicking on the image below.

One of my favorite side dishes to eat with sada roti as a kid growing up on the islands was dasheen bush bhaji. But living in North America in the early years meant that we had to improvise in the ingredients we used in many of our normal dishes. Dasheen bush (leaves form the dasheen plant) was not readily available, we started using any other type of “greens” we could find. Like spinach and swiss chard to fill the need for some traditional food. Over the years things have changed a bit and we can now get dahseen bush and many of the other ingredients we couldn’t before. However they’re usually quite expensive and the quality lacks a bit. The long voyage from the Caribbean and the Far East takes it’s toll on the fruits and vegetables (even though there’s overnight shipping).

Here’s my version of bhaji made with baby spinach and cooked gently in coconut cream.

You’ll Need…

11 oz baby spinach (pre washed)
1 medium onion sliced thin
3 cloves garlic sliced
1/4 hot pepper (optional) I used habanero
dash of black pepper
salt to taste (I used a little less than 1/4 teaspoon)
3 tablespoon olive oil (I like using extra virgin – love the additional flavour)
1 can coconut cream (5.6 fl oz)

Even though I purchased the pre-washed spinach (please get baby spinach for best results) I still wash it before cooking. Blame our mom for that.. she believes in washing just about everything. Then in a wide sauce pan heat the olive oil on medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the sliced garlic and allow to cook for a few minutes to infuse the oil with the flavours of the garlic.

If you look closely at the edges of the garlic you’ll notice that it’s starting to go golden in color, this is a good indication that it’s time to add the spinach. Since we washed the spinach, make sure to drain it well before adding to the pan with the hot oil and garlic. At first you’ll doubt that the entire batch of spinach will fit in the pan, but as it wilts… everything will fit. Just keep adding as needed.

The next step is to add the black pepper, sliced onion, hot pepper and salt. As mentioned I used a little less than 1/4 teaspoon of salt, so I suggest you add a similar amount and at the end add additional if needed. TIP BTW, if you have a heavy hand and add more salt than necessary, feel free  to add a sliced tomato to the pot to try and diffuse some of that salty taste. I then pour in the coconut milk into the pan, cover, turn down the heat to low and allow to simmer for about 20 minutes. You’ll notice that the spinach released a lot of it’s own liquid. No worries.. we’ll burn all that off later.

After 20 minutes cooking with the cover on the pan, you’ll notice that there’s still a bit of liquid left in the pot. After-all we added coconut milk as well to the natural juices of the spinach itself. Remove the cover and turn the heat up to medium/high to cook off all that liquid. Keep a close eye.. if you notice the spinach starts to stick to the bottom of the pan, turn down the heat. It must cook off the liquid evenly.

Note: I like my spinach cooked as we do with dasheen bush bhaji.. melted to a sort of smooth paste. But if you prefer, you can cook this much faster with the lid off the pan for about 7-10 minutes (instead of 20) or until the liquid (coconut) milk dries off. On a higher heat setting. This way you’ll have a finished dish with more texture.

As the liquid dries off, you’re done. It will look a bit mushy, but trust me.. this is packed with flavour and healthy goodness.

I was cooking stew chicken with rice for our daughters, so I added the spinach bhaji to my plate. Still trying to get them to eat bhaji.

I’d love for you to leave me your comments and questions in the area provided below. Maybe you have a different way of preparing this dish?

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