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Starting with the Bahamas in the north and ending with Trinidad and Tobago just above Venezuela, the islands of the Caribbean are particularly unique because they have been influenced by different communities from across the world, from Africa, India, China, Syria, Lebanon and beyond. All of which helps make our cuisine so eclectic, yet somehow also so similar right across the culinary culture.
Bhaji rice with salted pork (pictured top)
Spinach is often called bhaji in the Caribbean, no doubt derived from the various Indian communities who migrated here. This is just one of the many delicious one-pot rice dishes found in our traditional cooking, and features spinach, pumpkin, coconut milk and salted pork. The latter would normally mean salted pig tail, but here I’ve used pork shoulder, because it’s a little more accessible and because it has much more meat on it and is far less fatty. You’ll need to salt it for at least two days in advance.
Prep 25 min
Salt 48 hr+
Cook 1 hr 30 min
Serves 4-6
For the salted pork
500g pork shoulder, trimmed and cut into medium chunks
2 tbsp fine sea salt
1 tbsp white sugar
For the rice stew
3 tbsp olive oil, or rapeseed oil
1 brown onion, peeled and finely diced
3 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
8 okra, thinly sliced
200g fresh spinach leaves, finely chopped
150g pumpkin flesh, or butternut squash flesh, grated
500g jasmine rice, rinsed
400ml can coconut milk
¾ tbsp flaky sea salt, or to taste
1 tsp ground black or white pepper
1 fresh bay leaf
15g coriander leaves and soft stalks, or chadon beni or Thai parsley, finely chopped
1 scotch bonnet, split in half lengthways (if you prefer less heat, leave it unsplit)
A few sprigs fresh thyme
Put the pork, salt and sugar in a bowl, mix to coat, cover, then put in the fridge for at least 48 and up to 72 hours, so it gets well salted.
Rinse the meat to remove the excess salt, put it in a medium pan, add enough cold water to cover, and bring to a boil. Turn down the heat to a medium simmer, leave to cook for 40-50 minutes, until the meat is nice and tender, then drain.
Put the oil in a large saucepan on a medium heat. Once it’s hot, add the onions and garlic, and cook, stirring, for a couple of minutes, until soft. Add the sliced okra, cook for a minute or so to soften that, too, then stir in the poached salted pork, spinach and pumpkin. Mix well and cook for just a few minutes more, just until the pumpkin takes on a little colour.
Turn down the heat a little so the spinach doesn’t catch and burn, and keep stirring for a minute or so – the juices released by the meat and veg should stop the contents of the pan from drying out. Stir in the rice, pour in 450ml water and the coconut milk, then season with the salt, pepper, bay leaf and coriander.
Turn up the heat to medium-high, then, once it’s bubbling away, turn down to a simmer and poke the thyme and scotch bonnet into the rice – this way, the chilli will release its heat slowly and flavour the whole pot. Cover the pan and leave to cook for 25-35 minutes, until the rice has absorbed most of the liquid and is tender and cooked through – keep checking on it occasionally. This dish is meant to be quite wet and sticky, so if the liquid gets absorbed too quickly or/and before the rice is cooked, add a little extra water.
Ladle into bowls and serve hot.
Fish curry with green mango
This is based on a Guyanese dish called gilbaka fish curry. It’s usually made with the fish found in the many rivers that run through the Amazon rainforest to the northern regions of Brazil, before eventually arriving at the Atlantic Ocean. I’ve used haddock to imitate the meatiness of those river fish.
Prep 20 min
Marinate 1 hr+
Cook 45 min
Serves 4
For the fresh seasoning
1 small onion, peeled and finely chopped
2 spring onions, trimmed and finely sliced
5-6 garlic cloves, peeled
1½ scotch bonnet peppers
For the curry
600g piece fresh haddock fillet, cut into four steaks
4 tbsp curry powder
2 tbsp amchar masala, or garam masala
1 tbsp tomato paste
4 tbsp rapeseed oil, or vegetable oil
1 medium tomato, diced
1 unripe green mango, halved, stoned and cut into skin-on slices
1 tbsp tamarind paste
1 tbsp sea salt, or to taste
¼ tsp ground black pepper
First make the fresh seasoning blend. Put all the onions in a mortar with the garlic and scotch bonnet, then grind to a paste (alternatively, pulse in a blender). Towards the end, add up to 60ml cold water to help make a smooth paste.
Put the fish steaks in a bowl, add a third of the seasoning paste, then rub all over the fish to coat. Cover and marinate in the fridge for at least an hour and up to overnight.
Next, make the curry paste. Put all the remaining seasoning paste in a bowl, add the curry powder, amchar masala, tomato paste and four tablespoons of cold water, and mix well to combine.
Put the oil in a large, heavy-based pan on a medium heat, then add the curry paste – take care, because it may spit. Stir-fry the paste for a couple of minutes, until it starts to smell very fragrant, most of the liquid evaporates and the oil starts to separate. Stir in the chopped fresh tomato – at this stage, the mix will release more oil and the spices may start to catch a bit, so keep an eye on things – and cook for four or five minutes, until the tomatoes soften and start to break down.
Add the green mango, stir to coat, then leave to cook for a few minutes, to soften a little. Stir in the tamarind paste, salt, pepper and 300ml water, turn up the heat slightly, so the mix comes to a simmer,then leave to cook for another eight to 10 minutes.
Drop the fish into the curry, along with all the seasoning from the bowl, push down gently to cover in the sauce, then leave to poach for 10-12 minutes, until it’s cooked through – don’t turn it too much or it may break up. Once the fish is cooked, the curry is ready to serve with rice or roti.
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Keshia Sakarah is a chef, food writer and food educator. Her book, Caribe: A Caribbean Cookbook with History, is published by Quadrille at £30. To order a copy for £27, go to guardianbookshop.com
