Somehow it seems that Caribbean People always got some leftover rice in a ‘butter dish’ (any plastic reusable container) in the fridge. And after filming the Tantalizing Pepper Pork video demo, I thought.. why not a fried rice for lunch. BTW old school Caribbean use the term “butter dish” as back in the day, margarine and butter came in plastic containers with lids and we’re famous for repurposing such containers. There’s always one or 10 in my parent’s fridge with leftover food.
This is a very quick dish to put together, so may I recommend that you have all the ingredients prepared in advance.
Heat the oil on medium flame in your wok or frying pan, then add the onion and garlic, stir and cook until you start seeing brown edges on the garlic (1-2 minutes). The goal is to NOT burn the garlic.
Add he pork (cut into skinny small pieces) to the pot and stir to heat through and to take on more flavor from the garlic and onion.
I had a couple Wiri Wiri peppers left from cooking the Pepper Pork, so I added them to the pot (OPTIONAL) to give the dish more KICK!
3 minutes later add the sesame oil and oyster sauce and cook for 2 minutes. Toss in the rice and top with the mushroom soy sauce.
Mix everything well and heat through. Finish with the chopped scallions and enjoy.
Feel free to add cabbage, bell pepper, bean sprouts, carrots etc if you wish to use up what you’ve got in the fridge or to simply personalize this fried rice to your liking. The rice was cooked in salted water and chilled. Chilled rice will give you a more grainy fried rice and prevent the mushy texture so many of us dislike.
As the title of the recipe state, these are PEPPER WINGS! Yes, you can tailor the heat level to your liking and be sure to use peppers you can source or enjoy. While I did have access to more extreme peppers (watch the video), I used the peppers I know my family could handle with enjoyment.
You’ll Need…
5 lbs chicken wings (trimmed + cut into flats and drums) 4-6 cups veg oil for frying
BRINE: 4-5 cups cold water (divided) Ice (to chill things down) 2 tablespoon cane sugar (any sugar will work) 1 tablespoon coarse cracked black pepper 8 sprigs thyme 1 1/2 tablespoon sea salt 2 scotch bonnet peppers (sliced) 1 large shallot sliced (onion will work) 8 cloves garlic (smashed)
Pepper Element 1 cup corn starch 1 medium onion (sliced thin) 7 cloves garlic (diced) 1 teaspoon black pepper (coarse) 2 scallions (chopped) 4-6 sprigs thyme 2 scotch bonnet peppers (diced) 3-6 chili peppers
WARNING! This is meant to be spicy. Wear gloves and wash your hands with soap and water immediately after handling such hot peppers. If you want to control some of the heat, do not include any seeds or the white membrane surrounding the seeds of the peppers. If doing this recipe gluten free, please go through the list of ingredients to make sure they meet with your specific gluten free dietary needs.
In a large bowl or pot, add all the ingredients for the brine (not the water yet), and bruise with a whisk. This will allow us to get most of the flavor out of the ingredients. Now add 1 cup luke-warm water and whisk. The warm water will allow the salt and sugar to dissolve easily. Now top with ice cold water and stir.
The goal is the get the water cold so its safe for the raw chicken. Now add the prepared wings to the brine, stir and set in the fridge for 2 hours. I topped it with ice cubs to chill it down quickly.
Two hours later drain, rinse and pat dry with paper towels. Then toss with the corn starch and get ready to fry. I’m sure these will work in your air fryer if you so choose.
Prepare the other ingredients and set aside.
Create a frying station. The wings, wok (pot or frying pan) with hot oil and a draining area with a wire rack over a sheet pan. I don’t like draining fried foods on paper towels as they tend to go soggy. With the wire rack the air will circulate around them and keep them crisp.
Fry in batches (avg temp 375) 12 to 17 minutes, depending on how large your wings are. Set to drain on the wire rack and continue frying the remainder. TIP, stir after you place the wings in the hot oil so they don’t stick together since they’re coated with the corn starch.
Yes, you can use a deep fryer should you own one and prefer to go that route.
Take/use 5 tablespoon of the oil we fried the wings in, in a wide pot on a medium flame. Add the onion, thyme (just the leaves), garlic, scallions and scotch bonnet pepper. Turn the heat down to low and crack the chili peppers and add to the pot.
The goal is to flavor that oil with the FIRE from the peppers and flavors of the garlic, onion and thyme.
5 minutes later, add the pre-fried wings to the pot and toss well to coat with the fiery goodness we created.
I like doing this recipe outdoors for two reasons. the ‘fried’ scent will not be in my house and MOST IMPORTANT!… venting the fried peppers scent. If doing this indoors, do open a window and turn the fan on over your stove. The hot oil and fiery peppers is the perfect combination to choke you.
Here is where the corn starch will play it’s part, the flavors will stick to the chicken wings and you’ll get the banging flavors on the outside. The brine would have already added those similar flavors deep within the wings.
Finish with the black pepper, toss and get ready to serve. These are usually served with cold beer and enjoyed with friends.
Here’s one of those comforting dishes you and your family will enjoy on those cozy winter nights (yea I’m based in Canada where we get COLD winters). Steam/boil some rice and you’re golden. You may also cook this in advance and freeze, to just thaw/heat and enjoy when you don’t feel like cooking after a long day’s work. Maybe it’s a good idea to double up on the recipe so you can have leftovers to freeze?
You’ll Need…
3 chicken legs (back attached) 3 tablespoon coconut oil 1 teaspoon salt (divided) 3/4 teaspoon black pepper (divided) 1 medium onion (diced) 5 cloves garlic (smashed) 2 wiri wiri peppers (optional – if you like spicy) 1 scallion (chopped) 5 sprigs thyme 1 medium tomato (diced) 1 teaspoon grated ginger 1 tablespoon smoked paprika 1 tablespoon Caribbean Green Seasoning 1/2 cup white wine (your fave) 1 1/2 cup coconut milk 1/4 cup water 1 bay leaf 1 tablespoon parsley (chopped) 1/2 lemon (juice)
IMPORTANT! If doing this dish gluten free, please go through the full list of ingredients to make sure they meet with your specific gluten free dietary needs.
Trim the excess skin and fat off the chicken, but for the most part keep the skin that’s not hanging off. We’ll be finishing this in the oven and the skin will help to protect it. Season with 1/2 of the salt and the black pepper.
Heat the coconut oil on a medium flame in a heavy (oven proof) pot and add the chicken pieces. Turn the heat down to low and cook on each side for 4 minutes. We’re not trying to fully cook the chicken, but to just give it some color.
Remove the chicken and set aside, then remove 3/4 of the fat in the pot. Yes, it may double as the rendered chicken skin will release more fat into the pot. Do NOT toss this fat down your kitchen sink or you will run into plumbing issues. I usually tab it with paper towels and it goes into my green bin (rubbish).
With the heat on low, add the onion, garlic, thyme, remaining black pepper, scallion and wiri wiri pepper (should you use them, DON’T break them or the dish will become VERY spicy). Cook on low for about 3 minutes.
To help with balancing the overall flavor (acidity), add the diced tomato and stir well. (as this happens, preheat the oven to 425). Grate in the ginger, then add the smoked paprika and Caribbean Green Seasoning. Stir well.
After about 4 minutes after adding the tomato, it’s time to add the white wine (I used Riesling) and scrape the bottom of the pot to deglaze all that nice fond at the bottom. You can turn the heat to med/low to help burn off that wine. Add the remaining salt.
It’s time to add the coconut milk and bring back to a simmer. Add the water to thin the sauce down a bit.
As soon as it comes back to a simmer, add back the pieces of chicken to the pot and spoon on the gravy (with herbs etc) over them. Tuck in the bay leaf. Then into the oven on the middle rack (no lid).
35 minutes later and your chicken should be fully cooked, packed with flavor and ready to be enjoyed.
Top with the parsley and lemon juice as you remove it from the oven.
BLISS! When two culinary worlds collide, you get what I refer to as the Ultimate Comfort Food! Curry Stew Chicken and Pelau are two of my fav dishes out of the Caribbean. Anyone close to me will tell you that I can eat either on a daily basis. Such is my love for them. Served with a side/s of Tomato Choka, Coleslaw, Salad, even just sliced Avocado (zabouca) and/or cucumber.
You’ll Need…
3-4 lbs chicken 1 1/2 tablespoon Caribbean Green Seasoning 3/4 tablespoon salt (adjust) 1/2 teaspoon black pepper 1 1/2 tablespoon Curry Powder 1 teaspoon Worcestershire Sauce (optional) 1 med onion (diced) 1 med tomato (diced) 1 1/2 tablespoon golden brown sugar 1 tablespoon oil (I used olive) 1 teaspoon grated ginger 1 1/2 cups coconut milk 6-8 cups water 2 1/2 cups long grain par-boiled rice 1 scotch bonnet pepper (sliced) 2 pimento peppers aka seasoning pepper (optional) 2 tablespoon chopped shado beni (culantro) 1 stalk celery (diced) 1 medium carrot (diced) 1 can pigeon peas (1 1/2 cups)
Season the chicken (cut into serving sized pieces) with the Caribbean Green Seasoning, salt, black pepper, curry powder, onion, tomato, Worcestershire Sauce, pimento peppers and scotch bonnet pepper. Allow this to marinate for at least 2 hours. Overnight in the fridge may give best results.
Tips! Wash you hands with soap and water after handling such spicy peppers. Do not use the seeds and white membrane of the pepper if you’re overly concerned about the raw heat. Yes, use you fav spicy pepper if you cannot source Scotch Bonnet. If you’re doing this gluten free pay attention to the ingredient list on the curry powder and Worcestershire Sauce you use. Some curry powder may have flour as a thickener and filler.
Please watch the video below to follow along with this step. Heat the oil on a med/high flame on a deep and heavy pot (one with a lid). Then add the brown sugar and stir (dry spoon). I suggest stirring as some spots in your pot may have HOT spots and the sugar may BURN there. The goal is to NOT BURN the sugar or you’ll end up with “bitter” tasting Pelau.
The sugar will melt, go frothy, then a dark amber color. This is when you’ll add (be careful when adding) the seasoned chicken to the pot. Add about half the seasoned chicken, stir well, then add the rest. The goal is to coat the pieces of curry-seasoned chicken with this lovely caramelized sugar. Do NOT get the sugar black. Should this happen, turn off the stove, cool the pot completely, wash and start over. NO this is NOT a sweet dish.
Now place the lid on the pot and bring to a boil. In the meantime, add 6 cups of the water to the same bowl where you marinated the chicken in, to pick up any remaining marinade which may be in there. Set aside for later.
3-4 minutes later and it will come to a boil and start sprouting it’s own natural juices. Now it’s time to develop that rich color. Remove the lid and allow that liquid to burn off. Here’s where I like adding my grated ginger and stir well.
As the liquid burns off, add the pigeon peas (rinse and drain), followed by the celery and carrot. Stir to coat with the ‘stew’ niceness and continue cooking on high to burn off that liquid. Takes about 5-6 mins in total.
Add the coconut milk (stir), followed the water we reserved in the bowl earlier and bring to a boil.
Wash the rice (see the video below), drain and add to the pot (as it comes to a boil), stir well and bring back to a boil.
Turn the heat down to a simmer and allow the rice to fully cook, go plump and soak in all the stew/coconut goodness. BTW my lid was on but slightly ajar. Add more water should the rice not fully cook at this point. In the ingredient list I mentioned we’ll need 6-8 cups of water.
Couple things, should you want a more wet and creamy pelau I’d suggest stirring the pot a few times. This will brake down the rice and it will release more starch. Should you want a more grainy pelau (team dry), don’t stir too much.
25 minutes later and it’s time to personalize things. 1. Taste and adjust the salt to your liking. 2. You need to decide if you want a ‘wet’ or ‘dry’ pelau. For a more wet (creamy) pelau you may need to add a bit more water and cook longer. For team dry, burn off that liquid, cover the pot completely (after you turn off the stove) and let it sit in it’s own residual heat to dry-up. Flake/fluff with a fork after about 20 minutes and serve.
Top with finely chopped shado beni (culantro), should you not have access to culantro, you may use cilantro or parsley.
SERVE PIPING HOT! No, but I do enjoy a massive plate as soon as its off the stove. One of those things you got to suck air in as you eat, to help cool it down or you risk 2nd degree burns in your mouth. (smile.. I’m just a greedy) Add a little kuchela on the side if you want a little extra heat or spice flavor.
After posting the stove-top version of this classic Soy Sauce Fried Chicken a while back, there were many requests via Instagram for a more healthier version. While there’s no replacing what hot oil can do to chicken (when to comes to taste), the oven version is very close to perfection as well. The simplicity of this Chinese influenced dish makes it even more attractive to rookies and pros alike, in the kitchen.
I used a whole chicken which I cut in half and trimmed off he excess fat, but kept the skin.. you want that! Feel free to use chicken legs, wings or any part of the chicken you enjoy.
watch the video to see how I parted the chicken.
For the marinade, it’s very simple. Basically all you do is put all the ingredients mentioned, in a bowl and stir well. Yes, the mushroom soy sauce makes a HUGE difference in the overall taste.
Rub this marinade all over the chicken and allow it to marinate for at least 4 hours in the fridge.. overnight may give you best results.
Remove from the fridge about 30 minutes before you go into the oven so the chicken comes back up o room temperature.
Set your oven to 425 to preheat. Now place the seasoned chicken on a wire rack over a baking sheet. TIP! Spray some cooking spray on the wire rack to prevent any sticking. Also, line the baking sheet with foil to make clean up easier later. Onto the middle rack of the oven.
55-60 minutes later and you’re done. However, this depends on how large your chicken was. Cook longer if you have a massive bird.. also you’re looking for that deep rich color and a somewhat crispy skin. Turn on the broil setting for a couple minutes if you want the chicken darker (providing it’s fully cooked).
Allow it to cool, then chop into serving sized pieces.. ENJOY! An excellent side dish for fried rice or stirfried vegetables and leftovers makes for excellent sandwiches. I’ve seen many bar (rum shop) patrons in Trinidad and Tobago snack on juicy pieces of this chicken, served with fiery pepper-sauce on the side as they enjoyed their adult beverages of choice.
Pepper Anything and I’m there. There’s a special place in my heart for spicy dishes, especially those where I get to use peppers I grow in my garden during the summer months. Yes, this is meant to be a spicy or fiery dish, but you can certainly tailor the heat level to your own tolerance. Be sure to kick things up further with a Trinidad Moruga Scorpion or 2.. should you want more HEAT!
Note! I used a fatty (cheap) piece of pork, which was about 1 to 1 1/2 inch thick. Please wash your hands with soap and water IMMEDIATELY after handling hot peppers.
Wash the pork with 1/2 a lime (juice) and cool water. Drain well and season with the regular ground black pepper, mushroom soy sauce, light soy sauce and Chili Crisp. Mix well and allow it to marinate for about one hour. TIP! grated ginger will be excellent in here as well.
Place on a wire rack over a cookie sheet (line the cookie sheet with foil to make clean-up easier after and hit the wire rack with some baking spray) and into a pre-heated 425 F oven, on the middle rack.
40 minutes later and it’s where we want it to be to carry on. Remove it out of the oven and allow it to cool so we can slice it.
Slice the pork thin, across the grain and on an angle (watch the video below).
Place you wok or frying pan on a medium flame and add the vegetable oil. Toss in the wiri wiri peppers to blister them, but not break them.
30 seconds later add the onion, garlic, the course black pepper, scotch bonnet pepper and the white parts of the scallions. YES I included the seeds from the scotch bonnet peppers – This Is PEPPER Pork!
Vent you kitchen(open a window and/or turn on the fan above the stove).
3-4 minutes later and it’s time to add the sliced pork and toss well to coat with that fiery goodness.
After a minute, toss in the parsley and finish up with the remaining lime (juice) and sea salt. Mix well and cook for another 2-3 minutes. As you turn off the stove, toss in the remaining green tops of the scallions.
I’m not a fan of sesame oil, but you can certainly add a few drops for more flavor.
This pepper pork can be used as you would serve any pork dish, but in most cases this is a side (say “cutters”) to adult beverages. I personally like it on sandwiches, with crisp lettuce and sliced tomato to help add a bit of brightness and to cut back some of the heat.
