Conference turris::cooks

I don't know if this is truly Caribbean in origin, but it sounds like something
that you would like. The coolness of the sour cream is a treat against the 
spiciness of the soup. 


EAST COAST GRILL'S SPICY BLACK BEAN SOUP

Serves 8

    3 cups dried black beans
  1/4 cup oil
    2 medium onions, finely chopped
    2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
    1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 1/2 teaspoons dried red pepper flakes
1 1/2 quarts chicken stock, free of fat
    1 bay leaf
    Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Pile the beans into a large bowl and add enough water to cover them by several
inches. Leave the beans at room temperature overnight.

The following day, drain the beans, rinse them with cold water, and set them
aside.

In a large flameproof casserole heat the oil and add the onions. Turn the heat 
to low and let the onions cook gently, shaking the pan once or twice, for eight
minutes, or until they are softened but not browned.

Add the garlic, oregano, cumin, and red pepper flakes to the onion mixture 
and cook over medium heat for one minute.

Add the drained beans to the oil and stir them thoroughly so that they absorb
the oil in the pan.

Pour in the chicken stock, add the bay leaf, salt, and pepper, and bring the 
mixture to a boil.

Lower the heat, cover the pan, and let the soup simmer gently for 55 minutes
or until the beans are quite tender.

Remove the bay leaf from the pan. In a blender or food processor work five 
cups of the soup until it forms a coarse puree. Return the pureed soup to 
the to the remaining soup in the pan and stir it in thoroughly.

Reheat the soup, taste it for seasoning, add more stock if the soup is too 
thick to ladle, and ladle the soup into bowls. Add the garnish and serve at 
once.

GARNISH

  1/2 cup sour cream
  1/4 red onion, finely chopped
  1/4 cup freshly chopped parsley

Add a spoonful of the sour cream to the center of leach bowl and garnish the
cream with some red onion and parsley.

    Blanca,
    
    If you don't enjoy soups, you can easily make this into a main dish.
    After you puree the soup and return it to the pot, just simmer it 
    until it thickens. Serve it over rice and garnish it with the sour
    cream and onion or cheese.

		SPICY BEAN AND RICE SALAD

prepare dried black or red or pink or kidney beans as per package 
directions (sorta like this):

pick all foreign debris and any damaged beans out, rinse, and then soak
the beans overnight.  Drain, rinse well, cover with cold water.
Bring to a boil and cook for 5 minutes at medium temp.  Remove from
heat, cover, and let them sit for 30 minutes.  Drain completely,
cover with cold water, add one large white onion, cut in chunks,
1 bay leaf (or two small), and a ham hock or two(if you like).  Bring
to a boil, reduce temperature to a simmer and cook until the beans
are firm, but tender....somewhere between 45 minutes and 2 hours.
Add water as needed to prevent burning.  Remove ham hocks and remove
the edible meat from them, discard all bone and fat.  Discard the
bay leaf.  Chill the beans.  When the beans are well chilled, remove
from the broth in the pot with a slotted spoon to a large bowl,
measuring the amount you have in the process.  For each two cups of
beans, add:

	1 cup cold long grain white rice (brown rice looks too 
		"muddy" for this dish, but it would be healthier)
		DON'T USE INSTANT RICE - IT'S HORRIBLE.

	1/2 cup sliced or chopped red (or spanish) onion

	1 cup coarsely-chopped, drained, FRESH tomato

	1 - 2 jalepeno peppers, skinned, seeds-discarded, and
		diced fine (you can use canned chopped peppers
		but the texture is not as crisp)..fresh peppers
		must be "blackened" over a flame, "sweated" in
		a paper bag or plastic bag for 5 minutes, and
		then carefully peeled, de-seeded, and diced.

	a "vinegarette" made with:

		1/4 cup FRESH squeezed lemon juice,
		the juice of 2 fresh limes,
		3/4 cup oil (I use cold-pressed, top quality olive oil)
		1 teaspoon salt
		oodles of fresh cracked black pepper (coarse)

	toss in a generous handful of fresh chopped parsley (or 
	you can use cilentro).
	toss the salad well, mixing all thing thoroughly.  Chill
	for at least 2 hours and up to 24 hours to blend flavors.
	just before serving (20 minutes) remove from fridge to warm up
	a little.  Toss in the chopped ham (if you have it), chopped
	grilled chicken, or grilled beef.  Fish will have no flavor
	in this salad - it is too delicate.

	serve in lettuce cups - or in mayonaise jars - everyone will
	love it.  Have lots of fresh warm bread and cold beer handy.

	this recipe is a variation on a recipe I found in a boyfriend's
	playboy magazine a few years back.

I remember reading somewhere that you should avoid the overnight soak on many
bean products as they can start to ferment and form some toxins.  The solution
(if you'll pardon the pun) is to add a tablespoon or so of baking soda to the
water, or to quick soak (an hour or so), then boil longer to attain the same
degree of tenderness.

Also, my Time Life book on dried beans and grains and such recommends boiling
for a full 10 minutes on some beans to kill some toxic bacteria.  I don't know
if this is working on the same problem as above, because I don't remember what
their recommendation for soaking was.  I do remember that only certain beans 
required the extended boiling, and it was for bacterial reasons, not for 
tenderness.

>I remember reading somewhere that you should avoid the overnight soak on many
>bean products as they can start to ferment and form some toxins.  The solution
>(if you'll pardon the pun) is to add a tablespoon or so of baking soda to the
>water, or to quick soak (an hour or so), then boil longer to attain the same
>degree of tenderness.

I soak in the fridge (when soaking overnight) so I've never had a problem.
A quick soak, with boiling water poured over the beans to cover, and then
soak for 1 hour is also, as you said, effective.  The soaking and discarding
of the soak water, followed by a short cooking session AND discarding that water
as well before adding more water and continuing cooking, can help break 
down the protein that humans do not generally digest well....which leads 
to flatulence.  Having used this technique, I THINK it works, but who
knows, maybe I just don't have the problem.....

The followup cooking period during which the beans are brought to a boil and 
then simmered until tender MIGHT take care of some bacteria, but then, I 
wasn't AWARE that there was a problem with really dangerous bacteria...
Wouldn't the package have instructions for preparing the beans correctly
and avoiding any toxins? Egad! more dangerous food....

    I soak beans for anything up to 24 hrs, and also sprout them.  Bacteria
    haven't been a problem and I'm unlikely to change.  I believe that
    soda can remove/destroy some of the nutrient, but am not sure on
    this.  Red kidney beans must be boiled 10 minutes to destroy a toxin.
    I understand this to be within the bean itself, not caused by bacteria.
    There was publicity about this after slow cookers had been used
    to cook beans and people were ill afterwards, because the beans
    had never been boiled.
    
    Linda

We spent a week's vacation in St. Kitt's a few  years ago, and one of our  
treasured souvenirs is a Caribbean cookbook (title:  The Art of Caribbean
Cooking, author: Yolande Cools-Lartigue).  

I found a recipe for Roti on page 102, and it follows below.  I haven't made
it myself so I hope it all makes sense to you!  If there is anything else in
particular that you want a recipe for I'll be glad to check the cookbook.  Have
fun.

				Roti (Dalpourri)

6   cups flour				1 tablespoon salt
1/4 cup margarine			   oil for frying
6   teaspoons baking powder

Filling:
	1 lb. split peas
	4 cloves garlic
	1 small onion
	1 tablespoon cumin seed
	1 hot pepper

Method:  Prepare filling by cooking split peas in salted water until only half-
cooked.  Test by squeezing pea in hand, it should squash with pressure of
fingers.  Drain and process in food processor to form a powder, but not a paste.
While processing peas, add garlic, cumin, pepper and onion.  Then set aside dry
powdery filling.

Sift flour, salt and baking powder into large mixing bowl.  Work in fat with
pasty knife or fingers until well blended.  Add enough warm water to flour to
make a soft dough.  Knead with fingers for about 5 minutes or until mixture is
smooth.  Dough however must remain soft.  Then turn on to floured board and 
pat gently a couple of times.  Then form dough into small balls and set aside
on floured table.  When all balls are formed, flour hands well, and flatten
balls with the hands to make very thin flat rounds.  Put about 1-2 tablespoons
of pea mixture into each round and close over dough making sure that pea mixture
is securely sealed inside the dough and not likely to pop out.  Then roll each
on floured board, one at a time, with rolling pin.  It should become a very thin
circular about 9" in diameter.  Then cook (one at a time) on medium heated iron
plate.  Rest dough on plate and allow to remain for a couple seconds only.  Then
quickly turn on to other side.  Then baste with oil and quickly turn over again 
and baste the other side with oil.  Cook on both sdies until only very lightly 
brown.  Wrap into clean towel to keep warm until ready to be served.

Serve warm with curried fish, meat or vegetable dishes, with lots of gravy.



Jan

    We spent a week in St.Kitts last December and loved it!! In fact we're
    probably going back in January! (I saw that cookbook there and now I
    wish I had bought it....)
    
    Are there any rice recipes in it? Also coleslaw?? Down on the beach
    there was a native ( actually I believe he was from Jamaica) cooking on
    a grill. Along with broiled lobster tails he made a carrot slaw that
    was spicy, sweet and also garlicy (?). It was great!! He also made rice
    that was loaded with spices and garlic (all washed down with Carib
    beer). I'd love to get recipes for this stuff.
    
    Thanks a lot!
    
    Lynn
    
    

I couldn't find anything like a carrot slaw, but here are some rice recipes
(same cookbook as before).

				Bele Rice

1     cup rice				1/2 cup chopped green onions
1/2   cup chopped green peppers		1 tablespoon oil
1     clove garlic			1 tablespoon salt
1-1/2 cups coconut milk			1 large tomato, chopped

Method:  Wash rice in cold water and drain well.  Then prepare coconut milk by
adding boiling water to coconut (freshly grated) and straining.  In pan, saute
onions and pepper in oil.  Add garlic (crushed), salt and mix well.  Then add
tomatoes and then stir in rice.  Add coconut milk and cook covered for about 
20 minutes until all liquid is gone.  Serve immediately.



				Yellow Rice

1    tablespoon butter		2    cups water
1    cup rice			1/4  cup chopped green onions
1    tablespoon saffron		1    pinch ground nutmeg
1    tablespoon salt		1/4  teaspoon pepper

Method:  Wash rice in cold water and drain well.  In pan, saute onions in butter
over medium heat.  Add water, salt, pepper, saffron and half onions.  Stir well
and then add rice.  Bring to a boil and then lower fire to very low and cook
tightly covered until liquid is gone.  Then add balance of onions and sprinkle
with nutmeg and serve immediately.


				Caribbean Rice

1/2    lb. cooked meat		1/4   lb. ham
4-1/2  cups water		3     green onions
2      tablespoons oil		1     teaspoon sugar
1/4    teaspoon salt		2     cups rice
1/4    teaspoon pepper		1     clove garlic, crushed
1      onion			1     tomato
       thyme or parsley         1     lb. cooked shelled shrimp

Method:  Cut meat into pieces.  Chop ham and set aside.  Heat oil in skillet,
add sugar and allow to cook until it bubbles.  Add meat and seasonings and fry
until golden brown.  Add water, ham and rice and allow to boil until rice is
cooked and all the water is dried up, and rice is grainy.  Serve hot, garnished
with parsley and shrimp.



Enjoy!

Jan

    ESCOVITCH FISH
    
    This Jamaican style marinated fish can be served warm as a main dish
    or chilled as an appetizer.
    
    2 tablespoons olive oil
    1 medium size onion
    2 medium size carrots, scraped and thinly sliced or julienned
    1 small bell pepper, seeded and cut into strips
    1/3 cup vinegar, malt or cane
    2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice or lime juice.
    1 bay leaf
    1/2 teaspoon salt (optional)
    1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
    1/8 teaspoon mace
    1/2 cup vegetable oil (for frying fish)
    1.5 pounds kingfisk, snapper or other white-fish steaks or cutlets,
        cut crosswise into halves
    1/4 cup all-purpose flour
    1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
    Optional garnishes:olives and chopped pimientoes
    
    In a medium-size skillet, heat olive oil; saute onions, carrots and
    bell pepper until onion is transparent, about 5 minutes. Stir in 
    vinegar, lemon juice , bay leaf, cayanne, and mace. Simmer 10 minutes.
    Meanwhile, briefly rinse fillets; pat dry with paper towels. Dredge in
    mixture of flour and black pepper. IN a large skillet, heat vegetable
    oil until hot. add fish; fry until golden brown, about 4 minutes on 
    each side. Place fish on a platter and spoon on vegetable marinade. 
    Serve right away or marinate overnight. Makes 6 servings.
    
    Per serving: 269 calories, 26 grams protein, 17 grams fat, 9 grams
    carbohydrate, 261 milligrams sodium, 0 milligrams cholesterol, 0.5
    gram fiber.

    Our local Safeways has started a new line of Carribbean seasonings.
    They're by an outfit called Dunn's River, and consist of an "Everyday"
    and a "Jerk" seasoning. Apart from the obvious of sprinkling the spices
    on the likes of chicken, beef and pork, and grilling/roasting/frying
    the joints what else can one do with this stuff? How authentic is the
    Dunn's river seasonings both in terms of origin and reputation?
    
    Angus

I just returned from a week in the West Indies (it was the week of the blizzard
too, what great planning!).  As I ate my way across the Caribbean (jerk, black bean
soup, pepperpot, conch fritters, fish cakes, fabulous Scotch Bonnet based sauces,
etc., etc.) I encountered something called "salt bread".  I saw this both in
Barbados and St. Lucia where fish cakes are very popular.  I believe the salt bread
was a reference to the batter used in the cakes and fritters.  The cakes and
fritters were cooked much like American style but the inside was of a heavier,
chewier consistency that the fritters we find up here.

In any case I never was able to find out just what salt bread was.  Does anyone
have an opinion? (foolish question for this conference...let me rephrase) Does
anyone have an answer.

thanks,
dave