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Meat & Poultry

Pig Foot Souse.

2 Comments on Pig Foot Souse.

How do you improve a classic? I shared my version of Pig Poot Souse, just over 12 years ago, and while that version remains a classic (according to fans), I thought it was time to give it a refresh. In that recipe I spoke about how Souse is more of a cure for hangovers and something you also enjoyed at local watering holes (rum shops). However, I learned (social media again) that it’s just as popular, removed from the adult beverages scene.

You’ll Need…

2- 4 pig feet (cut into pieces)
1 heaping tablespoon Caribbean Green Seasoning
6-8 cloves garlic (smashed)
3 scallions (chopped)
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon sea salt
water

2 medium cucumber (sliced thin)
1/2 large onion (sliced thin)
2 stalks celery (diced fine)
2 scotch bonnet peppers (diced fine)
4 cloves garlic (sliced or crushed)
2-4 limes (juice)
3 tablespoon chopped shado beni (culantro) (chopped fine)
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
water

Notes! I like my Souse spicy so I used 2 whole scotch bonnet pepper (including seeds), but you can tailor it to your heat tolerance level. Remember to wash your hands with soap and water after handling such spicy peppers.

Important. As mentioned in the previous 2 recipe posts, my camera for stills is not functioning properly so I could not take step by step pics as I normally do. Should you run into any questions the post doesn’t explain, please refer to the video below.

Get your butcher to cut the pig feet. Wash with the juice of a lime or lemon (not mentioned in the ingredient list above) and cool water. Watch my tip on getting rid of any remaining hairs on the feet, in the video below.

Place the cleaned pig feet pieces (I got 10 pieces from 2 feet) in a deep pot covered with water and cook for 2 hours or until tender. As it comes to a boil (high heat) add the items mentioned in the first part of the ingredient list.

After 2 hours on a simmer (lower your heat) they should be tender, drain and rinse with cool water and place in a deep bowl to assemble. The water in the pot will reduce over the cooking time, so add more when necessary.

While they boil, it’s a great time to prep the other ingredients.

Try to get the onion sliced as thin as you can and while a lot of people like to crush the garlic, I’m a HUGE fan of garlic, so I sliced mine to get pieces as I enjoyed a bowl of this Souse.

Place all the ingredients (mentioned in the 2nd part of the ingredient list) along with the cooked/cooled pig feet pieces and cover with cool water. This is served by the cup-full, so add a lot of water (I had about a liter and 1/2 of water in this batch).

Taste and adjust the salt to your liking. I’d recommend allowing this to marinate in the fridge for a couple hours before serving and when you do serve a bowl or cup.. make sure you have a wedge of lime to juice on fresh.

It’s probably the only soup-like dish we have in the Caribbean that we serve cold. TIP! Should you have a pressure cooker, you can cook the pig feet for about 25-30 minutes, instead of the 2 hours I did. Personally I like low and slow.

Pork not your thing? I got you – Chicken Foot Souse!

If you cannot source the Shado Beni, cilantro is an excellent substitute. Not traditional, but I also like adding trimmed branches of watercress to the mix, so it’s a bit more filling and for the added crunch and flavor.

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

Zesty Octopus Souse (spicy pickle) Recipe.

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While I’ve had souse (protein and vegetable pickle with a cold spicy broth) made from the less glamorous parts of the pig (ears, snout and trotters) and the odd time I’ve done it using chicken feet, this is my new favorite way to make this Classic Caribbean Pickle. Our culinary culture in the Caribbean is one where the entire animal is used.. and with very TASTY results. Supposedly this is a great ‘cure’ for hangovers!

You’ll Need…

1 – 2 Octopus tentacles
1 cucumber (sliced thin)
2 scallions (sliced thin)
1 clove garlic (smashed)
1 scotch bonnet pepper (sliced thin)
2 limes (juice)
1/4 cup water
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon shado beni (or cilantro) chopped

Important! Wear gloves when handling such hot peppers and do wash your hands with soap and water immediately after. By keeping the seeds of the pepper it will enhance the overall heat of the dish. Discard the seeds and white membrane surrounding the seeds if you wish to cut back on the heat.

Note: The Octopus I used was a gift from a friend and it was already fully cooked (boiled it would seem).

Thinly slice the Octopus, pepper, cucumber (leave the skin on if you wish) and the scallions. Place in a bowl big enough so you can easily toss everything.

Basically all you have to do now is add the salt, black pepper, garlic, lime juice (a combination of 1 lime and 1 lemon works great as well), water and Shado Beni (or cilantro) and give it a good mix.

I’d recommend chilling this Octopus Souse before serving and after it’s been marinating for an hour or so, you may need to adjust the salt to your liking. It keeps in the fridge (in a sealed plastic container for at least 2-3 days). Conch, Oysters and Spiny Lobster can be used in the same manner with excellent results.

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

 

 

 

Gluten Free Meat & Poultry

How To Make Caribbean Chicken Foot Souse.

7 Comments on How To Make Caribbean Chicken Foot Souse.

chicken foot souse
Chicken Foot Souse

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.

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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.

chicken foot souse (2)

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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.

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

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

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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.

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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

A Zesty Souse Recipe Inspired By A Cure For Hangovers.

33 Comments on A Zesty Souse Recipe Inspired By A Cure For Hangovers.

trinidad pig foot souse (6)

I’m not much of a drinker, though I do enjoy a good Scotch ever so often and I do appreciate a Guinness or two when I’m on the islands (stronger than the ones we get here in North America). So having to deal with hangovers is something that’s completely foreign to me. I recall my uncle making this dish quite often, as he was a true connoisseur of the “rum” and dealing with hangovers were part of his routine. Aside from souse, he also made a deadly fish broth, that I still crave to this day.  Souse is traditionally made with parts of the pig that’s not really glamorous, but when I asked the butcher if she had any pig’s feet left, she told me they were all sold out. Imagine that!

Souse is basically a cold pickled soup, that’s marinated for a couple hours after you assemble it and it’s full of flavours from the peppers and pickling process. I guess it could be considered a light soup by our standards, especially since it’s not really filling (you’d have to eat a bucket full).

* Since I was unable to get the pig feet I went looking for I opted for the next best thing I could find, which was pork hocks. But I’m sure you could use pork bones or rib ends to make this with success. And if all fails, you can always use chicken feet.

You’ll Need…

1lb pork hocks
1/2 medium red onion sliced thin
juice of 4 limes
1 hot pepper sliced thin (use habanero or scotch bonnet for best results)
dash fresh ground black pepper
1 teaspoon salt (but do taste after marinating to adjust to your liking)
2 cloves of garlic crushed
4 cups water
1 cucumber sliced thin
1/4 cup chopped cilantro (traditionally shado beni is used, but I didn’t have any)

Wash the hocks or whatever parts you were able to source, then place in a deep pot with water – add the couple cloves of garlic and bring to a boil. Then reduce to a simmer and allow it to cook for a couple hours covered – until the meat starts falling off the bones. If you have a pressure cooker, do your thing.

trinidad pig foot souse

trinidad pig foot souse (2)

Then drain the cooked meat and give it a good rinse under cool water and set it aside to cool down. Now prepare all the ingredients for the sort of pickling process. Slice the onion, pepper, cucumber and cilantro. if you’re using shado beni, use about 4-6 leaves.

trinidad pig foot souse (3)

By now the meat should be cooled enough to work with. Strip away the meat off the bone in small pieces and place in a large bowl. Traditionally the skin is also added in some instances, but I’m trying to live a little healthier, so out with the skin… but I did keep the bones. Then add all the stuff we sliced, the salt, fresh ground black pepper, lime juice and water and give it a good stir.

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Now here’s where you’ll need a little patience, since the smell will be alluring and you’ll be tempted to dig in right away. The combination of the lime juice, fresh sliced cucumber and hot pepper gives this an amazing aroma. Cover this and allow it to marinate for a couple hours. I’ve seen some people add the garlic just before the marinating process with the other fresh ingredients, but I much prefer to add it during the boiling of the meat, just to infuse the meat with it’s flavor and not over-power the main dish.

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