pescatarian Archives | CaribbeanPot.com

Traditionalists will argue (always) that if there’s no pimento wood and resulting smoke involved, it’s not truly Jamaican jerk. So with that in mind (they do have a point as the flavor of that open fire as it kisses the pimento wood is incredible) we’ll loosely call this “jerk” to avoid the hateful comments.

You’ll Need…

3 salmon fillets
1 tablespoon Jamaican Jerk Marinade
2 tablespoon olive oil (divided)
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
2 tablespoon golden brown sugar
1/8 cup rum
1/4 cup orange juice
1 tablespoon butter
2 tablespoon chilled butter
2 tablespoon finely chopped parsley
1/4 lemon (juice)

Notes! Please use the video below to follow along, especially since I have limited photos for the post as I usually do. I used a spicy jerk marinade, however you may use any you prefer. Even your own homemade Jerk Marinade.

With your clean (check for bones and remove) salmon fillets on your cutting board (or plate), season with the black pepper and salt. NOT THE SKIN SIDE!. Then mix the jerk marinade with one tablespoon of the olive oil and brush the salmon flesh (not the skin) with it.

Now preheat your oven to 450F as we’ll finish off the recipe in there.

Heat the remaining oil in an ovenproof saucepan (I used a cast-iron pan) on a medium heat and add the1 tablespoon of butter as the pan gets warm and then the salmon fillets (skin side down).

Try to spoon on some of the butter/oil combo over the salmon to help cook the top and to add some moisture to it.

About 4 minutes later, move the pan away from the heat source and add the run, then tip the pan towards the heat and allow the rum to catch on fire (Flambé). It will burn (flame) for 5 seconds and in doing so. burn off most of the alcohol, leaving that rich rum flavor.

After a minute, add the orange juice and top each salmon fillet with the brown sugar (evenly), bring back to a boil, then into the oven for 3 1/2 – 4 minutes on the middle rack.

As you take it out of the oven add the cold butter to the pan, along with the juice of 1/2 lemon and the parsley. Stir well to create a sort of lemon butter sauce (watch the video below) and top the salmon fillets with said sauce.

Shrimp In A Spicy Tomato Sauce.

October 14, 2020October 13, 20203 Comments

While this dish is not part of my childhood growing up on the islands, I did have something similar in the French Speaking Caribbean (don’t recall which island at the moment) and it’s something I try to make whenever I have fresh off the vine tomatoes from my garden. The sauce is something you need good bread for and to be honest, you can top pasta, rice or ground provisions with this. My fave? Cassava dumplings!

You’ll Need…

4-5 tomatoes (I used Roma)
3/4 lb shrimp (I used wild caught)
1/4 teaspoon Caribbean Green Seasoning
2 tablespoon parsley (chopped)
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon brown sugar
5 cloves garlic (diced)
1/2 medium onion (diced)
4 peppers (birds eye) divided
3/4 teaspoon Paprika (hot)
1/4 cup water
2-3 tablespoon olive oil

Important! If doing this dish gluten free, be sure to go through the entire list of ingredients to make sure they meet with your specific gluten free dietary needs.

Clean and devein the shrimp. Season with the Caribbean Green Seasoning and set aside as we prep the tomatoes.

Blanch the tomato in boiling hot water. Give the tomatoes a cut X on the bottom and into boiling water for about 1 minute. Cool, then peel (use the little cuts we made to pull back on the skin- toss out the skin and stem/core) and dice finely.

Heat 2 tablespoon olive oil in a saucepan on medium heat, then add the seasoned shrimp to the pot. Stir well and cook for 1.5 to 2 minutes. Then remove and set aside.

In the same pot, with the heat on low add the onion, garlic, 2 peppers (chopped, with the seeds – remove the seeds if you want to cut back on the heat level) and parsley. Cook for 2 minutes, then add the smoked paprika and stir well. Add the salt and black pepper and continue cooking on low.

4 minutes later add the diced tomato, water, brown sugar and float 2 more of the peppers. Do NOT cut or break these 2 peppers.

Bring to a boil (medium heat) and cook for 5-6 minutes. Now tuck in the shrimp, stir well and take off the heat. Allow the residual heat to fully bring everything together.

The goal is to have a rich spicy tomato sauce , with plump shrimp. So please don’t overcook the shrimp.

A simple, quick and TASTY dish, packed with tons of tropical flavors. Drop me your comments below, tag me on Instagram and don’t forget you can now get my cookbook – The Vibrant Caribbean Pot, 100 Traditional And Fusion Recipes @ CaribbeanPot.com/CookBook/

Gluten Free Seafood

Ultimate Grilled Lobster #JulyMonthOfGrilling

July 19, 2020July 6, 2020Leave a Comment

It’s that time of the year! We’re now into the 10th edition of the annual July Month Of Grilling and we’re starting off with a BANG! (a recipe which is heavily requested on Instagram) This recipe is influenced by the folks at Ducky’s Ortoire Organic Roast Seafood and the delicious offerings they sorted us out with last year. While I wish I had Caribbean lobsters, the cold water lobster is an excellent substitute to accompany the steaks grilled this night.

You’ll Need…

3 1 lb lobsters
3/4 teaspoon sea salt
3 scallions (chopped fine)
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
2 pimento peppers (seasoning peppers – chopped fine)
2 bird’s eye pepper (chopped fine)
3/4 lb butter
6-8 leaves Shado Beni (culantro – chopped fine)
8 cloves garlic (diced fine)
2 tablespoon parsley (chopped fine)
1/2 lemon (juice)
1 shallot (diced fine)
1/2 cup coconut milk

Important: If doing this recipe gluten free, please go through the entire list of ingredients to make sure they meet with your specific gluten free dietary needs. Banana leaves can be found in the frozen section of your Asian, Latin or Caribbean grocery store. Remember to wash your hands with soap and water after handling such hot peppers.

Please use the video below as a guide when cleaning the lobsters. These were live lobsters, so using a sharp chef’s knife I made a quick (but forceful) cut down the head of the lobster, then continued down the tails to cut into two equal halves. This swift method of cutting through the head, is probably the most humane way to kill the lobsters.

Remove the rubber bands from around the claws and wash out the belly cavity with cool water. In the video you’ll see the stuff I removed. Feel free to wash the lobsters with some lemon juice.

With the ingredients prepped, it’s now time to go crank up your grill. I used my propane grill, but you can use a charcoal grill should you prefer (better flav actually). You’ll want a hot grill.

Heat a pot and add all the ingredients mentioned above (except the lobster and banana leaves). This is the key to this succulent grilled lobster.

Allow it to simmer for about 3-5 minutes after it comes to a boil, to allow flavors get an opportunity to combine. Keep warm as we grill the lobsters.

I prefer to go flesh-side down to start, over direct heat. But.. not for long. 40-50 seconds later, flip them over and hit then with the first basting of the coconut buttery goodness we created. Then cover them with the banana leaves. Should the leaves be difficult to source, simply close the lid on your grill.

4-5 minutes later (depending on how big your lobsters are) remove the leaves (discard) and baste with another round of the flavored butter. Give it another minute or 2 and you’re done.

Serve warm, with the remaining coconut garlic butter as a dip. BTW, this butter is excellent on steaks as well. The goal is to have juicy lobsters, so please don’t over-cook and be sure to be generous when applying the melted butter. BUT be mindful that you may get flare-ups.

Seafood

Simply Amazing Jerk Crab.

January 16, 2020August 19, 20191 Comment

Puritans will tell you that you need smoke and fire from pimento wood to get that real authentic Jamaican flavor when doing “jerk” and I’d be crazy to disagree. However, with this recipe in particular… I humbly think you achieve “jerk” greatness on the stove-top. Plus I live in Canada where there’s no pimento wood and our winters are very HARSH to be grilling outside all year!

You’ll Need…

3 lbs Crab (cleaned)
4 cloves garlic (smashed or grated)
1 tablespoon ginger (diced fine or grated)
5 birds eye pepper
1 medium onion (diced)
3-4 scallions (chopped – divided)
2 sticks cinnamon
3/4 tablespoon ground allspice
2 scotch bonnet peppers (chopped)
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 1/4 tablespoon brown sugar
10 sprigs thyme
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
2 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoon water
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup orange juice
1/2 lemon (juice)

Get your fish monger to clean the crab for you or clean then by removing the backs off the crab (discard) and clean the sort of gills.. then rinse with the juice or a lime or lemon (not mentioned in the ingredient list) and water. I’d also recommend cracking the bigger claws, to get extra flavor when cooked.

I’d recommend prepping the other ingredients at this time so when you get started, it would make for easy work. The goal is to keep is simple and tasty.

*Prepped ingredients for the jerk crab.*

Heat the oil in a wide pan on medium heat, then add the onion, garlic and Bird’s Eye peppers (called bird pepper in the Southern Caribbean). Turn the heat down to as low as it will go as we don’t want to burn the garlic. Cook for 2-3 minutes.

Now add the black pepper, diced ginger, scallions (1/2) and thyme and cook on low for a further 2-3 minutes. After which you’ll add the scotch Bonnet peppers. Remove the seeds if you’d like to tame down the heat level a bit. It’s also important that you wear gloves and wash your hands with soap and water immediately after handling such hot peppers. May I also recommend turning the fan on over your stove or open your kitchen window to vent your kitchen.

Give it all a good stir, then add the allspice, brown sugar, cinnamon, soy sauce and salt. Stir well, then add the orange juice and water .. heat still on low.

*The brown sugar will give the jerk sauce a lovely rounded flavor and balance off some of the heat from the spicy peppers we used. BTW jerk is supposed to be spicy!*

It’s now time to add the cleaned crabs to the pot and give it a really good stir. Turn the heat up to medium to bring it to a sort of boil/simmer. To assist, place a lip on the pot you’re using. As you see a simmer, turn the heat down to maintain that simmer and keep the lid on. We’ll try to steam-cook the crabs with all this lovely flavors.

Cook on that simmer for about 8 minutes (with the lid on) and be sure to stir it about 3-4 times during the cooking. Top with the other 1/2 of the scallions, cook for 2 more minutes.. then it’s time to ENJOY!

Probably not your typical way of making/enjoying crab, but I assure you, you’ll be blown away by the flavors of this classic pescatarian dish. Be warned that it may be a bit spicy, but you can definitely tailor the heat level to your liking.

Do you own a copy of my cookbook ?- The Vibrant Caribbean Pot 100 Traditional And Fusion recipes Vol 2

Gluten Free Seafood Vegan Vegetarian

Stewed Honey Nut Squash Recipe.

May 28, 2025March 13, 2019Leave a Comment

Yea, Honey Nut Squash is new to me too! I had never seen nor heard of it until I was at a local market and the name caught my attention. And even when I posted a clip of me cooking this on Instagram, I had a ton pf people correcting me “it’s butternut squash” so I knew it was kinda unique to many. Like any spinach (greens) type leafy vegetable, I’m also a HUGE fan of all squash and pumpkin, so they came home with me.

You’ll Need…

3 small honey nut squash (peel | cubed)
1/2 medium onion (diced)
2 cloves garlic (diced)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon Caribbean green seasoning
3/4 cup prepared salted cod
1/4 teaspoon salt

Note: I did this recipe with salted Cod, but if you wanted to leave that ingredient out and have this fully vegan or vegetarian, you can certainly do so. Additionally, if doing this recipe gluten free, please go through the entire list of ingredients to make sure they meet with your specific gluten free dietary needs.

Peel (the skin will be tough), core and dice the squash, then place it in a bowl covered with cool water. This will prevent it from going discolored.

Place a heavy pot (one with a lid) on a medium flame and heat the olive oil, then turn down the heat and add the diced onion and garlic, along with the black pepper. Cook on low for 2-3 minutes. Then add the Prepare Salted Cod to the pot and stir well. Followed by the Caribbean Green Seasoning and stir.. heat still on low.

It’s now time to crank-up the heat to med-high and start adding the cubed squash pieces to the pot. be sure to stir well to combine all the flavors we started with.

Heat at medium now, add the brown sugar and cover the pot.

After about 3-5 mins (watch the video below) you’ll notice that the Honey Nut Squash got a lot of it’s own natural liquid… add the salt, turn the heat down to low and cover the pot. Cook for about 20 – 24 mins, stirring occasionally.

It should be fully cooked at this point and falling apart. Here’s where you can personalize things a bit. Check for salt and adjust. I used a little salt as I know the remaining salt in the salted cod would help season things nicely. I then turned the heat up to med/high to burn off the liquid (I like a dry squash wen cooked.. you may like it a bit runny) and I used the back of my spoon to crush any solid pieces. It took another 5-7 minutes to get to the consistency and texture I like.

If salted cod is not your thing, you can add some seasoned shrimp the final 5 minutes of cooking.. you can thank me later. I usually eat this as a typical vegetable side or on days when I want to be taken back to the islands.. I get some hot roti.

Do you own a copy of my cookbook ?- The Vibrant Caribbean Pot 100 Traditional And Fusion recipes Vol 2

Gluten Free Seafood

Roasted Breadfruit With Smoked Herrings.

February 23, 2018February 18, 20181 Comment

This is one of those dishes which immediately takes me back to the Caribbean and my childhood days. Mom would usually make this for us (myself, brother and dad) the odd Saturday dad didn’t have to go to work. The breadfruit came directly off my grandmother’s tree and it was roasted on an open fire in a coal pot for that true island goodness. While I don’t have a coal-pot, nor can I achieve the same unique flavor it gives the breadfruit, this dish is still incredible. Definitely my idea of comfort food.

You’ll Need

1 Large onion (sliced)
3 cloves garlic (crushed)
2 tablespoon coconut oil
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
4-6 sprigs thyme
1/4 scotch bonnet pepper (sliced)
1 1/2 tablespoon parsley (chopped)
2 cups prepared smoked herrings
5-8 grape tomatoes (cut in half)
1/4 medium cabbage (shredded)
1 medium breadfruit (roasted)

Important! If doing this recipe gluten free, please go through the entire list of ingredients to ensure they meet with your specific gluten free dietary needs. Please wear gloves when handling the smoked herrings as the oils can leave a distinct odor on your hands. And as we’ve discussed in the past, when handling scotch bonnet or any HOT pepper, you’ll want to use gloves and/or wash your hands immediately after with soap and water.

Videos To Watch!

How to prepare smoke herrings.

How to roast a breadfruit

How to roast a breadfruit in your oven

Heat the oil in a wide pan on a med flame, then add the onion, garlic, thyme, black pepper and scotch bonnet pepper (don’t include the seeds if you’re concerned about the raw heat). Turn the heat to as low as it will go and cook gently for 3 minutes.

Prepare the smoked herrings (I used fillets).. watch the video above (click on the link).

It’s time to add the parsley to the pot, stir well then add the prepared smoked herrings.

After a minute or so you can add the tomato and stir well. my heat is still on low.

Give it about 3-4 minutes, then add the cabbage and stir. Cook for another minute or two. I like my cabbage to have a slight crunch. Cook longer if you wish. You’ll notice that I didn’t add any salt to this dish as I find that the salty element the smoked herrings bring, is enough for my liking. However near the end you can taste and adjust the salt to your liking.

Turn the heat up to med and add the prepared pieces of roasted breadfruit. All you have to do now is coat the breadfruit with the smoked herring base and warm through. Usually 3-5 minutes.

This is one of those dishes which may give you the sleepies after.. yea it’s that good. If you don’t have/like smoked herrings, you can use salted cod or there are times I use bacon as a base as well. Instead of having the breadfruit as wedges you can cut them into smaller pieces. Feel free to go in with other vegetables etc.. sweet pepper, thinly sliced carrots, broccoli, green beans will work great.

Do you own a copy of my cookbook ?- The Vibrant Caribbean Pot 100 Traditional And Fusion recipes Vol 2

pescatarian

Incredible Jerk Salmon.

Shrimp In A Spicy Tomato Sauce.

Ultimate Grilled Lobster #JulyMonthOfGrilling

Simply Amazing Jerk Crab.

Stewed Honey Nut Squash Recipe.

Roasted Breadfruit With Smoked Herrings.

Videos To Watch!

How to prepare smoke herrings.

How to roast a breadfruit

How to roast a breadfruit in your oven

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