Meat & Poultry Archives - Page 20 of 29

In the Caribbean we find (delicious) ways to use just about every part of the animal (and bird).. dishes you must try before passing judgement. Souse is traditionally made with pig trotters, ears and snouts when I was growing up on the islands. However, chicken feet are also used, especially by people who don’t dine with the swine! Souse is basically a spicy pickle, served cool (for the most part) with herbal and citrus notes, along with the kick of Caribbean Sunshine – scotch bonnet peppers.

You’ll find variations of this chicken foot souse recipe as you make your way up and down the island chain, so please use this as a beginners guide and don’t be afraid to personalize it a bit with your signature touch.

You’ll Need…

1 lb chicken feet (cleaned and trimmed)
1 scotch bonnet pepper
2 cloves garlic
water for boiling the chicken feet
3-5 cups of water for the souse
2 tablespoon shado beni (or cilantro)
1 scallion
1/2 large onion sliced thin
juice of 1 lime
lemon slices
1/4 teaspoon salt
pinch black pepper
1 medium cucumber

Notes: Remember to wear gloves and to wash your hands with soap and water immediately after handling scotch bonnet (or an HOT) peppers. If you don’t want the raw heat, do not use the seeds of the pepper. I used Shado Beni (culantro), but you can use cilantro if you cannot source it. Remember to give the ingredient list a once-over if doing this gluten free to ensure they all meet with your gluten free dietary needs.

Hopefully your butcher will clean and trim the chicken feet for you. In my case I had to trim off the sort of toe nails off the feet, then wash and place in a deep pot with water. Bring to a boil, add the salt and let them cook on a rolling boil until tender (about 40 minutes). If you see any sort of residue on the surface of the water, skim off and discard.

As they cook, you can use this time to prep the other ingredients. Thinly slice the onion, scotch bonnet pepper, shado beni, cucumber, lemon, scallion and finely dice (or crush) the garlic.

Drain and rinse the cooked chicken feet, then place then in a deep bowl.

Top with the sliced ingredients, go in with the black pepper, water and lime juice and mix well.

For best results mix well, cover and let it chill in the fridge for a couple hours. All the flavors will start working to combine for a spectacular dish – served as you would soup.

If you want you can place the garlic, scotch bonnet pepper and shado beni in a food processor with a little water and blend until smooth.. that’s how you’ll find it when you purchase from vendors outside bars and night clubs. However I much prefer getting little bits of the fresh herbs and seasonings.

Meat & Poultry

Eddoes With Leftover Trinbago Stewed Pork (recipe).

May 27, 2025June 8, 20143 Comments

Whenever I make stewed pork (Trinidad style stewed pork) I purposely make extra so I have leftovers for adding to other dishes.. like this one using eddoes. As I’ve mentioned before I’m a ‘country’ boy at heart, so ground provisions (starchy root type vegetables) are a huge part of my diet (though expensive to buy here in Canada). This recipe is a take on one our mom would do, but she would use yam (finger yam) instead of the eddoes, with amazing results.

You’ll Need…

2 lbs eddoes
1/4 teaspoon salt (boiling the eddoes)
pinch black pepper
2 scallions
1 tomato (diced | deseeded)
1 onion diced
2 cloves garlic (sliced thin)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon butter
1 cup stewed pork.

Tip: When peeling/washing the eddoes you may want to wear gloves or coat your hands with vegetable oil as the starch/sap can cause irritation.

Using a sharp pairing knife or potato peeler, peel the skin off the eddoes, cut in half and wash with cool water. Then place in a deep pot covered with water and bring to a boil on a high heat. As it comes to a boil, add the salt and skim of any foamy residue on the surface. Reduce to a rolling boil and cook until tender (about 15-20 minutes) To test to see if they’re fully cooked, pierce with a knife and if there’s no resistance.. they’re good to go. Drain and set aside.

As the eddoes cook/boil, you can prep the tomato, onion , garlic and scallion (dice).

In a wide saucepan heat the oil on a medium flame and add the butter, then go in with the onion, garlic, scallion and black pepper. Reduce the heat to low and let this gently cook for about 3-4 minutes.

Next up add the diced tomato, give it a good stir and let it go for another minute before adding the left over stewed pork pieces. Turn up your heat to medium and let it go for another 2-3 minutes.

It’s now time to add the cooked eddoes to the pot and give it a good stir to ensure the eddoes are coated in the wonderful flavors we put together. Since the eddoes should still be warm, it will only take a minute or 2 to complete this amazing dish.

When boiling the eddoes do remember to cut them the same size so they cook evenly and if you don’t have stewed pork you can always start off with diced bacon or if you want to give it an Italian twist.. go with some pancetta. Do serve warm.. reheats well in the microwave.

Meat & Poultry

The Ultimate Fried Chicken Wings Recipe.

May 27, 2025May 1, 201419 Comments

I love me some chicken wings, but I’ve come to accept that most restaurants in North America do them “Buffalo” style. Which basically means… fried crisp then tossed in a vinegar based hot sauce. Vinegar is one of those ingredients you won’t see being used much in the Caribbean, unless it’s for an escovitch sauce or as a preservative for home made peppersauces (hot sauces). Like other West Indians I dislike vinegar, so this chicken wings recipe is based on a traditional way of making fried chicken in the Caribbean. Where you get that crispy skin, followed by tender and juicy pieces of chicken, seasoned perfectly with herbs and spices. No-lie.. this fried chicken is much better than KFC and Popeyes!

You’ll Need…

4 lbs Chicken wings (trimmed and washed)
1/2 teaspoon salt
pinch black pepper
1 tablespoon ketchup
1 tablespoon Caribbean Green Seasoning
1/2 teaspoon curry powder
2 eggs
1/4 cup corn starch
1 cup flour
vegetable oil for frying (about 2-3 cups)

Note: I washed the trimmed pieces of chicken wings with about 3 tablespoons of lemon juice (you can use lime juice as well) and cool water.

Place the trimmed, washed and drained chicken wings in a large bowl and mix in the salt, black pepper, curry powder and Caribbean green seasoning. Mix well and marinate for a couple hrs in the fridge.

Remove from the fridge about 20 minutes before you’re ready to fry so they come back to room temperature. Now beat the eggs in a small bowl and pour over the seasoned chicken wings. Be sure to mix well so the wings get coated in the eggs. In a large zipper bag (or in a mixing bowl), mix together the corn starch and flour (you can also add a pinch more of black pepper, salt and a bit of paprika). Mix well, then add (a few at a time) chicken wings to the bag and toss around to coat.

Heat vegetable oil or whatever fat you like using for making fried chicken on a medium high heat in a large pan. I like using my wok when frying so the splattering does not soil the stove top as much. I hate cleaning up grease on the stove.

Add about 3-5 pieces of dusted chicken wings to the hot oil at a time so as not to overcrowd things.

Fry until golden brown (about 15-20 minutes depending on the size of the wings you’re using) and set on paper towels or on a wire rack (over a baking sheet) as I did, so we can get the excess oil to soak up or simply drain off as they cool a bit. Fry the chicken wings in batches and remember to serve warm for tastier results!

Our last visit to Trinidad and Tobago for Carnival 2014, while the rest of us were ordering bake and shark sandwiches at Maracas Bay (beach) Indy (our youngest daughter) opted for deep fried chicken wings which were almost exactly like these. Those chicken wings came with fries and a wonderful garlic sauce (like a garlicky mayo).

Before you go, don’t forget to check out the latest cooking videos, connect with me on twitter and join our community on facebook. Oh yea! Leave me a comment below – it’s appreciated!

Meat & Poultry

The Simplest Oven Curry Goat Recipe.

May 28, 2025April 5, 201427 Comments

If you’re looking for a quick and tasty way to prepare curry goat with a Caribbean signature, look no further. I remember my aunt starting her curry goat on the stove top, then the last couple hours she would place it in the oven to slowly do it’s thing in the oven. Falling off the bone tender and infused with from the slow braising process of cooking the curry in the oven… pour over some steamed rice and boy I tell you. Pure niceness!

In this version we’ll marinate the goat pieces in a classic Caribbean marinade for a few hours, then everything goes into an oven-proof container in the oven for the magic to happen.

You’ll Need…

2 lbs goat *
4 med potatoes (1/4’s)
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 heaping tablespoon curry powder
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon ketchup
2 tablespoon Caribbean green seasoning
2 slices ginger
1 seasoning pepper (pimento pepper)
1 medium onion (diced)
5 cloves garlic (crushed)
1 scallion (chopped)
1 cup coconut milk
1 cup water
4 bird’s eye pepper (or 1/4 scotch bonnet)
1/4 teaspoon allspice

* I like using goat meat with bones as I find there’s more flavor, especially when doing a curry and it’s much cheaper at the butcher than boneless. Just make sure to ask the butcher to cut it for you with their electric saw. Curry traditionalists will argue that you need to cook (fry the curry) so you don’t get that raw curry taste. But the 3 hours of braising will take care of that in a delicious way.

Wash, rinse and drain the goat meat, then season with everything mentioned above except the coconut milk, water, bird’s eye pepper and potatoes. Click “Caribbean Green Seasoning” for the recipe for this wonderful base to many Caribbean dishes. Allow this seasoned goat meat to marinate in the fridge (cover with plastic wrap) for at least a couple hrs (overnight is best).

Preheat your oven at 375 F. As it comes to temperature, place the seasoned goat in an oven-proof container with a lid and add the other ingredients. Do not break the bird’s eye peppers as we want the flavor without the raw heat. Place on the middle rack in the oven (covered) and let it slowly braise for 2.5 to 3 hours.

Remember to cut the potatoes in big pieces so they won’t melt away while cooking. After 2.5 hrs, taste for salt and here’s where you can remove the bird’s eye peppers or break them if you want some wicked heat. If you find that the gravy is overly thin, you can leave it uncovered the last 30 minutes of cooking.

Top with some chopped shado beni (culantro), cilantro or parsley and some diced tomato to give it some added color.. after taking it out of the oven.

Here’s one of those classic Caribbean curry dishes where you can actually place it in the oven and go about doing other things at home and have a wicked main course for dinner. I’m sure you can do the same in a slow cooker as well, but you may just need to add more time to get it fully tender and infused with that wonderful curry goodness. If you want to make this dish stretch you can add more potatoes, carrots and diced celery (a bit more cooking liquid and salt will be required as well).

Before you go, don’t forget to check out the latest cooking videos, connect with me on twitter and join our community on facebook. Oh yea! Leave me a comment below – it’s appreciated!

Meat & Poultry

A Classic Caribbean Split Peas And Salted Pigtail Soup.

May 27, 2025March 9, 201422 Comments

This is a take on a basic but extraordinary soup my grandmother would make with simple ingredients like yellow split peas, herbs, salted cod instead of salted pig tail and tons of dumplings. She lived her entire 99 years without ever touching pork. However I love pork on my fork, so in my version I’ll be using pieces of salted pig’s tail for added flavor and that true Caribbean vibe in the pot.

You’ll Need…

2 cups yellow split peas
2 lbs salted pig tails
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 scotch bonnet pepper
1 tablespoon veg oil
1 large onion
4 sprigs thyme
4 large potatoes
3-4 cups coconut milk
6-8 cups water
2 scallions
4 cloves garlic
1 cup flour + water for dumplings

Note: If you don’t dine with the swine, you can easily use salted beef or bits of salted cod for the same flavor base. Additionally, you can make this split peas soup fully vegetarian and leave out the pork. Just add about 2/3 teaspoon salt in cooking.

Have your butcher cut the salted pig tail into one to 1.5 inch pieces for you or use a heavy Chinese clever to do so. Anything else and you’ll ruin your good knives. Rinse with cool water, place in a deep pot, cover with water and bring to a boil. Turn it down to a simmer and let it go for about 45 minutes. The goal is to remove most of the salt the pork was cured in and to help tenderize it so when cooked in the soup it will be falling off the bones. Then drain and set aside.

As the vegetable oil heats on a medium flame in a deep soup pot, prep the ingredients. Dice the garlic, onion and scallions and peel and cut the potato into quarters.

The oil should be hot now, so toss in the garlic, onion, scallion and thyme and reduce the heat to low. After about 3-4 minutes, go in with the black pepper and then toss in the pre-cooked pieces of salted pig tail. Raise the heat to medium and give it a good stir. Wash and drain the split peas (place in a strainer and run cool water while running your fingers though the grains), then add it to the pot.

It’s now time to add the water, coconut milk and potato to the pot and bring to a boil. Then lower to a simmer and drop in the scotch bonnet pepper ‘whole’! This will give us a ton of flavor but not the raw heat. Near the end you can remove the springs from the thyme as well as the whole scotch bonnet pepper. Or if you want that Caribbean sunshine, you can burst it for real fyah!

After about 50 minutes of simmering (remember to keep stirring) the pieces of pigs tail should be tender and the split peas should start to dissolve. A sign that it’s time to add the flour dumplings. In a bowl place the flour and enough water to make a soft but firm dough (tip – add a pinch of sugar to the dough) , then work with a fork then go in with your hands to make the dough ball. Let it rest for about 5 minutes, then start pinching small pieces off and shape into a sort of cigarette shape (spinners). Add to the pot and cook for another 8 minutes.

Now taste for salt (adjust accordingly) as we didn’t add any salt with the hopes that the remaining salt from the salted pig tail would be enough to season the pot accordingly, remove the pepper if you so desire and don’t forget to also get rid of the springs from the thyme.

IMPORTANT! This split peas soup will thicken drastically as it cools so be sure to add more water if needed.

Turn off the heat and serve HOT! You can always add carrots, green bananas and ground provisions to the pot if you desire, but I find that it’s not really necessary! However our grandmother would always include yam if it was in season. Also bear in mind that this is not like a North American soup, but more like a thick stew and it will (no matter how hard you try) turn out to be a very large pot of soup.

Before you go, don’t forget to check out the latest cooking videos, connect with me on twitter and join our community on facebook. Oh yea! Leave me a comment below – it’s appreciated.

Gluten Free Meat & Poultry

The Ultimate Curry Turkey Necks Recipe.

May 27, 2025February 23, 201412 Comments

One thing you’ll quickly notice about the cuisine of the Caribbean is that we ‘doh waste”. This usually means that things like necks, backs, feet.. even pigs ears, trotters and snouts are used to perfection in many of the dishes throughout the region. We never had turkey necks (or turkey as a matter of fact) when we were growing up, as it wasn’t a common poultry on the islands back in those days. How times have changed!

The bony texture of the turkey necks allows for a delicious curry and if you’re not squeamish, it will be one of the best curry dishes you ever enjoy. If you’re daring kick up the heat level as I find that a spicy curry takes on a whole new dimension.

You’ll Need…

3 lbs turkey necks

Marinade…

1 tablespoon Caribbean Green Seasoning
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon curry powder (for marinating the turkey)
2 scallions (green onions)
1 tomato (diced)
1/2 scotch bonnet pepper (or to your liking)
1 teaspoon ketchup

Cooking…

2 tablespoon veg oil
1 onion (diced)
4 cloves garlic (diced)
1 1/2 tablespoon curry powder
1/4 teaspoon grated ginger
3 cups water
2 tablespoon chopped cilantro – garnish at the end.

IMPORTANT! If doing this recipe gluten free, do ensure that the curry powder has no flour filler to meet with your specific gluten free dietary needs.

Wash, drain and marinate the turkey necks with the ingredients mentioned in the marinade list above. Overnight in the fridge will be best, but if you’re in a rush try to get about 2 hours.

Heat the oil on a medium flame then add the garlic and onion… reduce the heat to low and let it cook for about 3 minutes. Just to soften up and helps with a lovely flavor base. Then toss in the curry powder (heat still on low) and cook for another 2-4 minutes. This will toast the spices in the curry powder and help them bloom… plus it will cook the curry so you don’t get a raw curry taste at the end.

The curry will go darker in color and take on a grainy texture… then start clumping together. Turn up the heat to high and start adding the seasoned turkey necks to the pot. It’s ok if the marinade gets it there and try to deglaze the pot so we get all that lovely curry goodness from the bottom of the pot. After the necks take on a bit of color (about 2-3 minutes) reduce the heat to low, place the lid on the pot and cook for about 10 minutes. It will spring it’s own natural juices.

Then remove the lid, turn up the heat and grate in the ginger. This step is to do two things, burn off all the liquid and in the process give the dish a rich color and infuse it with massive curry flavor (stir). Pour the 3 cups of water into the same container you had the necks marinating in and swish it around to pick up any remaining marinade.

With all the liquid in the pot burnt off, add in the water and bring to a boil.

You’ll need some patience now.. turn the heat down to low and let it simmer (braise) for about 2 hours. The idea is to have very tender turkey necks when it’s all done.

* If you’d like you can certainly use a pressure cooker to cut back the cooking time for this dish by at least 1.5 hrs or if you want low and slow, a slow cooker will work as well. The first few steps must be done first though (cook curry powder, add seasoned turkey and then burn off initial liquid.. this will give you that rich curry flavor we expect from a good curry).

After a couple hrs you can now test for salt and adjust accordingly, if the gravy is thin you can turn up the heat and thicken it a bit more (or burn off all if you want a more infused curry) and top with some chopped cilantro or culantro (shado beni).

Treat this curry turkey necks as you would any curry meat dish.. goes well with rice, roti, ground provisions, flour dumplings and even bread! Before you go, don’t forget to check out the latest cooking videos, connect with me on twitter and join our community on facebook. Oh yea! Leave me a comment below – it’s appreciated.

Gluten Free Meat & Poultry

Quick And Tasty Curry Chicken Livers.

May 27, 2025February 8, 20149 Comments

A coworker had invited me out for lunch many moons ago saying that the restaurant in the mall where we worked had the best liver with onions on special every Thursday… I still recall his enthusiasm when he spoke about how delicious they were. I also recall other coworkers having a sort of disgusting look on their faces as they heard him describe this liver with onions. No-Lie it was the most revolting thing I had ever tasted. Still a bit bloody and that metallic taste stuck with me the rest of the day. No wonder parents in North America struggle to get their children to eat chicken liver. It’s the way YOU cook it!

If you’ve tried my other chicken liver recipe : Caribbean Inspired Stewed Livers , you’ll know it’s all about flavor so don’t be alarmed when I get all the liver haters loving livers.

You’ll Need…

1 lb Chicken Livers
pinch black pepper
1 tablespoon veg oil
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup bell pepper
2 scallions (green onions)
1 shallot (or small onion)
4 cloves garlic
2 sprigs thyme
4 bird’s eye pepper (or 1/4 scotch bonnet)
3 leaves shado beni (or cilantro)

1 tablespoon curry powder

Note: Shado Beni (Chadon beni) can be found at most West Indian stores as well as Asian and Latino markets where it may be called culantro. The best substitute is cilantro or coriander. IMPORTANT: If doing this recipe gluten free, do ensure that the curry powder has no flour filler to meet with your specific gluten free dietary needs.

Prepare the ingredients (slice the shallot, bell pepper and scallion, then diced the garlic and shado beni). Please leave the bird’s eye pepper whole as we want the flavor but not the raw heat. Obviously if you want the kick, dice them. Bearing in mind that the seeds will pack a real kick if you include them. Clean, chop the liver in equal sized pieces (so they cook evenly) and wash/ drain.

Heat the oil on a medium heat then add the shallots and garlic, lower the heat and let it cook slowly for a couple minutes. Now add the curry powder and cook (still on low) for another 2-3 minutes. The curry will go a bit darker and grainy. The goal here is to wake-up the spices which make up the curry blend.

Toss in the whole peppers (stems removed) and heat through, then add the pieces of liver to the pot and stir well to coat with that lovely curry base we created. Turn the heat up to medium/high now. Then top with everything else except the shado beni, stir well and cook for about 5 minutes.

It’s important to not cover the pot or it will release a ton of moisture and then it will mean cooking longer than necessary to burn off that liquid. The last minute of cooking, top with the finely chopped shado beni or cilantro. Taste for salt as your tolerance for salt will be different than mine.

Now here’s the kicker (after my gallivanting above about how YOU cook livers).. our girls refuse to eat liver, even with this delicious version. Liver has a bad reputation, falsely spread by people who (in most cases) have never given them a try. Yes the texture is a bit weird, but once cooked correctly, the tasty flavor will make up for that. Serve warm!

Before you go, don’t forget to check out the latest cooking videos, connect with me on twitter and join our community on facebook. Oh yea! Leave me a comment below – it’s appreciated.

Meat & Poultry

Caribbean Stewed Chicken With Red Beans Recipe.

May 27, 2025January 8, 201432 Comments

This recipe is one of my favorite dishes to prepare when I’m homesick or when things are not going well and I need a pick-me-up! It combines two dishes I just adore, Trinidad stew chicken and stewed red beans. Two things mom would cook on Sunday’s when the entire family were together… pure joy! It works well as a side to rice, roti, dumplings, ground provisions.. even pasta! And if you want you can add some coconut dumplings the last 10 minutes of cooking and make it a true one pot meal.

You’ll Need

3 Lbs Chicken (I like using drum sticks)
1 scallion (chopped)
1 onion (diced)
3 cloves garlic (diced)
1 teaspoon ketchup
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon grated ginger
3 sprigs thyme
3 drops worcheshire sauce
1 small tomato (chopped)
1/4 scotch bonnet pepper
2 cups water
1 can red kidney beans (rinsed/drained)
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon veg oil

Wash and season the chicken with all the ingredients except, the water, beans, sugar and oil. Allow this to marinate for about 2 hrs or 15 minutes if you’re in a rush. Remember to wash your hands with soap and water after handling the scotch bonnet pepper and don’t include any of the seeds if you’re concerned about the raw heat.

Heat the oil in a deep pan on med/high, then add the sugar and stir well. Be sure to use a dry metal spoon and have the seasoned chicken close. This will all about timing for the ultimate flavor and color. As the sugar melts it will go liquid, then frothy and start changing color. Let it go until you have a rich amber color (NOT BLACK or it will taste burnt), then start adding the pieces of seasoned chicken to the pot. Mix as you do to coat the chicken pieces with the lovely caramelized colour. Don’t worry it won’t be sweet! Place the lid on the pot, bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer for 5-8 minutes. It will spring it’s own juices.

Now remove the lid and turn up the heat to burn off any liquid. This will intensify the color and flavor of the chicken. As this cooks down, add the 2 cups of water to the bowl you had the chicken marinating in (to pick up any remaining marinade) and rinse off the red beans.

With all the liquid gone from the pot, add the water and top with the beans, then bring to a boil. Lid closed, simmer for 20 minutes until the chicken is fully cooked.

After 20 minutes or so, taste for salt and adjust accordingly and if you find that the gravy is a bit ‘thin’ turn up the heat (lid off) and reduce to the consistency you like. Personally I like it a bit thick. Remember that it will thicken up a bit as it cools.

This is a very comforting dish, packed with rich Caribbean flavors and it’s something your family will be asking for on the regular.

Before you go, don’t forget to check out the latest cooking videos, connect with me on twitter and join our community on facebook. Oh yea! leave me a comment below – it’s appreciated.

Meat & Poultry

Curry Cabbage With Leftover Caribbean Stewed Chicken.

May 27, 2025December 29, 201312 Comments

Cabbage is another one of those vegetables mom could never get us to eat, unless it was in chow mein or if she added leftover stewed meats to it. However these days you can always find cabbage in our crisper in the fridge as I add it to many dishes I prepare. Especially if I’m trying to ‘stretch’ a dish to feed more people. With left-over stewed chicken in the fridge, I thought this would be an excellent time to share the curry cabbage with stewed chicken mom would bribe us into eating cabbage when we were kids.

If you’re new to the website and don’t know what ‘Stewed chicken” is, see: Tasty Trinidad style stew chicken recipe.

You’ll Need…

1 medium cabbage (shredded)
1 small onion
4 cloves garlic
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoon curry powder (your fav)
2 tablespoon veg oil
1/4 scotch bonnet pepper
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
* left over stewed chicken

Notes: I used a Caribbean made Madras curry powder in making this dish , but you’re free to use your favorite kind. This dish is just as delicious if you choose not to add any meats and have it fully vegetarian.

Shred the cabbage, crush the garlic, dice the onion and slice the scotch bonnet pepper (don’t use any of the seeds of the pepper or it will be very spicy). Then heat the oil on a medium flame and add the garlic and onion. Turn the heat down to low and allow this to slowly cook for 3-5 minutes.

With you heat still on low, add the curry powder and black pepper and mix around. Cook for another 3-4 minutes.. basically we’re toasting the curry powder to release all the flavors of the spices. It will go darker and grainy.

Turn the heat up to medium and start adding the cabbage, it will wilt as it cooks in the event you find that your pan is crowded. Add the scotch bonnet pepper and salt.

Turn the heat down to med-low, cover the pot and let it go for about 7 minutes or so. Stir a couple times during this cooking period.

Remove the lid (here is where you’ll personalize it a bit) and taste for salt and see if the texture is close to how you like it. Add the pieces of leftover stewed chicken, stir and turn up the heat to burn off any excess liquid (about 3-4 minutes).

For a little flair I added some chopped cherry tomatoes at the end. This is a wonderful side dish and goes well with rice or roti and is excellent on sandwiches.

Before you go, don’t forget to check out the latest cooking videos, connect with me on twitter and join our community on facebook. oh yea! leave me a comment below – it’s appreciated.

Gluten Free Meat & Poultry

Spinach Rice Simmered In Coconut Milk And Salted Pigtail.

May 27, 2025October 26, 201317 Comments

To avoid the “check yourself emails” let me make my Trinbagonian people happy and say “bhagi rice” instead for spinach. Now on to a recipe which I try to make on those cold winter days when I crave the bright Caribbean sun and long for the days when I can be back down in my little piece of heaven The Caribbean. This is as good as it gets when it comes to comfort food for me. Though I’d much prefer to use dasheen bush bhagi, it’s easier to grow (short summers here) and easy to access (in grocery stores) Jamaican callaloo (chorai bhagi) so that will be the ‘spinach’ I’ll be using today.

You’ll Need…

2 cups chopped Jamaican callaloo
3 cloves garlic
1 medium onion
1 scotch bonnet pepper
3 sprigs fresh thyme
1 tablespoon celery leaves
1 tablespoon chopped shado beni (optional)
1 scallion
2 seasoning peppers (pimento peppers)
2 cups brown rice (parboiled long grain)
tablespoon olive oil (veg oil or butter)
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 1/2 cup coconut milk
2 cups water (or stock)
1 lb salted pig’s tail

* No salt as pigtail should have enough salt remaining, but do taste near the end and adjust to your liking. Important: Please go through the ingredient list if making this recipe gluten free to ensure it meets with your specific gluten free dietary needs.

Start by cutting the salted pigtail into 1 inch pieces. Use a heavy Chinese cleaver or ask your butcher to cut them for you. Rinse off, then place in a deep pot with water (cover) and bring to a boil. Then reduce to a rolling boil and let it cook for about 45- 55 minutes. The goal is to get the pieces tender and to remove most of the salt it was cured in.Drain, rinse with cool water and set aside.

As the oil heats in a deep saucepan (med heat), chop the onion, celery, scallion, garlic, seasoning peppers and shado beni (chadon beni or culantro. you can substitute cilantro).

Add all the chopped ingredients to the heated oil and reduce the heat to low. Let that gently cook for about 3 minutes. It’s all about flavor! In the meantime, wash, trim and cut the Jamaican callaloo into 1/4 inch ribbons. Basically take the leaves, roll into a large cigar and cut across the length of them.

Add the pieces of pre-cooked salted pig tails and give it a good stir. Let that cook for about 3 minutes. Then start adding the chopped callaloo (chorai bhagi) and stir well.

Wash the rice to remove any grit (place in a bowl with water and massage with your hands, drain and repeat until the water runs clear or place in a strainer under running water and massages until the water runs clear) then add it to the pot. Now add all the other ingredients into the pot and bring to a boil.

You’ll notice that I placed the scotch bonnet pepper whole in the pot. This will allow me to get a lot of flavor without the raw heat. If you’re into the hot-stuff, near the end you can burst that pepper open and deal with the heat. Remember to remove it from the pot when your done and DO NOT break it when stirring the pot.When the pot comes to a boil, reduce the heat so you have a gentle bubble going and cover the pot. The idea is to let this slowly cook, until all the liquid is gone and you have plump grains of rice flavored with the coconut milk, salted pigtails and herbs.

It will take between 20 and 25 minutes after putting the rice in for the dish to be fully cooked, but it depends a lot on the brand of rice you use. If you find the liquid is burning off too fast, place on a smaller burner and simmer. If after the rice is fully cooked you find that it’s a bit runny, turn up the heat to burn off and excess liquid. But do keep stirring as the high heat will cause the natural sugars in the coconut milk to burn and the rice will stick to the bottom of the pot.

Turn off the heat and keep the lid on the pot for about 5 minutes before serving.. According to my mom, this will cause the rice to ‘yield’ nicely.

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Gluten Free Meat & Poultry Vegetarian

Pak Choi With Smoked Bacon A Twist On A Caribbean Fave!

May 27, 2025October 15, 20139 Comments

This is a take on traditional Caribbean technique of cooking “bhagi” or greens especially in Trinidad and Tobago. You’ll notice that I also placed this within the vegetarian section of the website, so before the flood of emails… I wanted to point out that you can leave out the bacon and start with olive or coconut oil for additional flavor. So by simply leaving out the bacon you could have a delicious vegetarian dish.

Traditionally our mom would prepare this dish when she had leftover stewed pork (Stewed Pork With Pak Choi) from the night before and it’s one of those dishes everyone of my siblings quite enjoyed with hot sada roti. Oh the joy when mom got us all to eat the same thing.

You’ll Need…

6 – 8 cups chopped pak choi (about 2lbs)
1/4 lb smoked bacon (I used smoked pork belly)
1 onion
3 cloves garlic
2 birds eye pepper (bird pepper)
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 scallion
4-6 cherry tomatoes (optional)
1/4 teaspoon salt

* IMPORTANT: If you don’t eat pork or prefer to have this vegetarian, leave out the bacon and start with 1 tablespoon of olive oil. If you don’t have bird’s eye pepper, you can use scotch bonnet or habanero (very small piece). If doing this recipe gluten free do go through the list of ingredients to ensure they meet with your specific dietary needs.

Cut the bacon into small pieces and place in a dry pan on medium heat. The idea is to cook until crispy and to render off the fat. Reserve about 1 teaspoon of the fat. Once crispy, drain on paper towels and set aside.

Remove each leaf/stem of pak choi and wash under running water individually as you’ll find dirt between each leaf (natural as it grows), Rinse well and drain – now get ready to chop. I usually cut each leaf lengthwise first (about 1/4 inch, then make into a bundle and cut in the other direction the same thickness. Besides trimming off the very bottom of the white stems (discard), do use the rest of the pak choi (white and green).

Also chop/dice the onion, garlic, tomato and scallions (green onion) and set aside.

In the same pan you rendered the bacon (don’t wash) heat about 1 teaspoon of the bacon fat on a low flame, then add the onion, garlic and scallion pieces. Let it cook on low for about 3 minutes to basically soften up and create a flavor base.

Toss in the birds eye peppers (don’t cut open) then start adding the chopped pak choi to the pot and finish off with the salt and black pepper. It may seem like a lot at first, but it will wilt down (have your heat at med/high at this point). Give it a good mix.

The rest of this dish takes some personalization. I like my greens (still green) and not over cooked. So I let it go for about 5 minutes, then I topped it with the pieces of bacon and stirred well. The pak choi will release a bit of liquid so at this point you’ll need to raise the heat to high and burn off the excess liquid (took another 3-5 minutes).

The last 2 minutes of cooking you can toss in the tomatoes so they too are brilliant in colour, retains it’s shape and give the dish a brightness. Remember to taste for salt and if you wanted, you can certainly cook this a bit longer if you’re not like me and like a little texture to the pak choi. You’ll note that at no time did I cover the pot as it will only help to create liquid you really don’t need.

This is excellent on steamed (or boiled) rice, with roti and when all fails, I make sandwiches with this… lovely! If you break the peppers while cooking it will release the raw heat (though mild since they are bird’s eye) so if you like playing with “the Heat”.. break them open! BTW if you don’t dine with the swine, you can use some prepared saltfish (salted cod) instead of the bacon for additional flavor.

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Meat & Poultry

Curry Chicken With Eggplant Simmered In Coconut Milk.

May 27, 2025October 12, 20138 Comments

Even as child my mom recalls how much I loved eggplant (baigan), stewed, curry and my all-time favorite , roasted over an open flame and made into baigan choka. Today that affection for eggplant aka aubergine, baigan, brinjal, brinjal eggplant and melongene is just as strong and I try to find different ways to put this lovely vegetable to use. In this recipe we’ll go through the steps of making a classic Caribbean style curry chicken, then we’ll add the cubed eggplant along with some potatoes into the pot with the coconut milk and let it simmer to perfection in the curry sauce.

You’ll Need…

3 lbs chicken thighs (skinless)
1 large eggplant
4 medium potatoes
1 onion
4 cloves garlic
2 tablespoon veg oil
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon Caribbean green seasoning
2 tablespoon curry powder
3 birds eye (bird pepper) pepper
1/2 cup coconut milk
3/4 cup water

Notes. I like using a madras blend curry made in the Caribbean, but you can use your fav. Feel free to use 1/4 scotch bonnet pepper instead of the bird pepper.

Wash, drain and season the chicken with the salt, black pepper and Caribbean Green Seasoning, then allow it to marinate for about 2 hours.

Now heat the oil on a medium flame (in a deep sauce pan) and add the diced onion and garlic to the pot. Turn the heat down to low and let that cook for about 3 minutes so they soften up and start a lovely flavor base.

With your heat still on low, add the curry powder, stir well and let that toast for about 3-5 minutes. The curry will go darker, start to go grainy and take on a wonderful scent. Be sure the heat is on low to avoid the curry burning. In this step we’re cooking the curry so you don’t get that ‘raw’ curry taste when the dish is done cooking. We’re also awakening the spices which make up the curry powder.

15 minutes before you’re ready to cook, take the marinating chicken out of the fridge so it comes back to room temperature. Now add the seasoned chicken to the pot, turn up the heat so you can sear the chicken and get the pieces covered in the curry base we made. Turn the heat back down to med/low, place the lid on and let it cook for about 10 minutes. Add the birds eye peppers at this time as well.

The chicken will release it’s own natural juices, so turn the heat up and burn off that liquid. This will help to intensify the curry flavor of the chicken. It’s now time to add the cubed eggplant (you can peel it or leave it with the skin on), the cubed potatoes and top it with the coconut milk and water. Bring to a boil (raise the heat), then reduce to a simmer and let it cook for about 20-25 minutes or until the potato pieces are tender. You can have the lid slightly ajar as it cooks and do remember to stir every 5-8 minutes.

Taste for salt and adjust accordingly. If the sauce (gravy) is thin all you have to do is press a few pieces of the potato with the back of your spoon to crush them and it will help thicken up things. This curry chicken with eggplant will not be the most attractive dish, but I assure the curry base with the addition of the coconut milk will ensure you have a very flavorsome dish.

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