Tamarind Jerk Beef Strips

This is a really quick and tasty recipe for beef. It can be eaten in a wrap or with rice. It combines the flavors of Jerk and Tamarind, both Caribbean favorites. It is not particularly spicy but very tasty. Any brand of dried jerk seasoning may be used but for the Tamarind flavor, I like to use a Tangy Tamarind Chutney made by a company called National.

Ingredients

7 oz New York Strip Steak, cut in strips

½ tbsp dried jerk seasoning

½ tsp salt

½ tsp brown sugar

½ tsp thyme

1 shallot

1 small jalapeno pepper

3 cloves garlic

3-4 cherry tomatoes, coarsely chopped

1-2 tsp Worcester sauce

1 tbsp Tangy Tamarind chutney

2 tbsp cooking oil

Method

1. Cut the steak into small strips. Season with jerk seasoning, salt, Worcester sauce, brown sugar and thyme
2. Place shallot, garlic cloves and jalapeno pepper slices in a small chopper, and pulse to coarsely chop.
3. Heat oil in a pan and sauté chopped shallot, garlic and jalapeno pepper. Cook until the chopped shallot becomes transparent
4. Add steak strips with seasoning and sauté until lightly brown. Add chopped cherry tomatoes, and tamarind chutney. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Eat with rice or in a wrap.

 

A Quick and Easy Banana Date Bread Made in a Food Processor

I love Banana bread but hate all the steps of mashing, chopping etc that you have to go through to make it. I wanted to come up with a tea bread that could be made in a food processor, one that was quick, easy and for which the food processor would do all the work of mixing, chopping etc. Some of the new, fancy, all-in one kitchen mixers they are now promoting on the market for close to $1000 might do all that but I only have a $30 food processor to use. The recipe is a simple one but does require the steps to be carefully followed as a food processor is not like a stand mixer. The bread is not the usual sickly sweet banana bread but one with a slight tartness to it because of the added tamarind flavor.

 Ingredients

8 oz whole wheat flour

2 tsp baking powder

½ tsp salt

¼ tsp ground coriander

¼ tsp cinnamon

¼ tsp nutmeg

Seeds from 4 green Cardamom pods (or ¼ tsp ground Cardamom)

2 oz butter

2 oz coconut oil

4 oz dark brown sugar

2 tbsp honey

2 tbsp molasses

2 tbsp tamarind paste

2 bananas cut in1/2 inch slices

½ lime, juiced

2 eggs, lightly beaten

4 oz pitted dates

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Put the rack in the middle position of your oven. Grease and line a 2 lb loaf pan with parchment paper.
2. Cut the bananas into 1/2 inch slices, and squeeze the lime juice over it.
3. Mix the honey, molasses, and tamarind concentrate in a small bowl I find that a little oil on the spoons used to measure these “syrups” helps them to slide easily off the spoon)
4. Put the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, dates, and spices (Note: If I’m using Cardamom seeds, I put them in at this stage so that the food processor will grind them up) in the food processor bowl. Pulse on high 6-8 times until the mixture looks like cornmeal and the dates are finely chopped
5. Add the butter, and coconut oil to this and process until the mixture has the consistency of breadcrumbs (about 30-40 seconds).
6. Add the lightly beaten eggs, the mixture of “syrups”, and the banana slices and lime juice to the processor bowl. Process until smooth (about 1 minute on high) and no whole slices of banana can be seen.

Empty into loaf pan and bake for about 60-70 minutes or until a cake tester inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean.

Cool in pan for 10 minutes. Run a rubber spatula around edges before turning out to cool further.
 

Tasty Oven Stewed Pork

I wanted to come up with a recipe that combined the spices and flavors that were common in other countries. This is the result of that idea. Sambal Oelek is an Indonesian crushed chili pepper sauce that is commonly used throughout South East Asia. Coriander and Tamarind are more commonly used in Indian cooking, as is the Maggi Masala sauce. Thick Soya sauce is borrowed from China, and ginger, combined with lime juice and Allspice are integral components of Jamaican Jerk Seasoning. Worcester sauce is a staple in English seasoning, and imparts a nice tart taste for the background. There is sauce/gravy with this but because it is slightly spicy, and tart, for maximum enjoyment the dish should be accompanied by a sweet/spicy Pepper Jelly, Tamarind Chutney or a sweet Indian Mango or Lime pickle. It also goes well with a simple green salad using a Strawberry or Raspberry Vinaigrette.  

Ingredients

 

2 ¾ lbs pork shoulder or butt with fat and good marbling

1 tbsp Grace Caribbean Traditions Meat seasoning

2 tbsp Sambal Oelek

Juice ½ lime

½ tsp salt

½ tsp ground coriander

½ tsp allspice

½ tsp black pepper

1 tbsp Worcester sauce or Jamaican style Browning
2 teaspoons dark brown sugar

1 heaping tsp Tamarind Concentrate

3 cloves garlic

½ piece of ginger root, peeled

2 tbsp Maggi Masala Sauce

1 tbsp thick Soya Sauce

Method

1. Cut the pork into 1 inch cubes and put in a Ziploc plastic bag. Season with meat seasoning, coriander, allspice, black pepper, Thick Soya Sauce, and Sambal Oelek.
2. In a small chopper, place the garlic cloves, ginger root, Masala sauce, tamarind concentrate, lime juice, and puree to form a paste. Add to seasoned pork. Mix well and allow to marinate in refrigerator overnight.
3. Use a 9 by 13 inch pan as your baking pan. Cut a piece of heavy duty aluminum foil, larger than those measurements and place the pork and marinade in that. Wrap the pork in the foil and bake at 425 degrees Fahrenheit for 40 minutes.
4. Remove from oven and unfold the foil so that it lines the baking pan.
   
   Bake at the same oven temperature for 15 minutes, basting once or twice with the sauce. Because it bakes in the sauce, the pork pieces do not become dry.
   
   Accompany with suggested items.
   

 

A Truly Tropical Tea Bread

There are quite a few tea bread recipes on my site. Some are healthier than others but all are pretty delicious with a cup of tea or mug of coffee. I have been looking for a truly tropical tea bread recipe, one that would remind me of the flavors of my childhood when I would climb Tamarind, Orange, Mango and Guava trees to gorge on the sweet, ripe fruit. None of what I found on the web reflected this at all. Some recipes used ingredients that are not even available naturally in tropical regions. This recipe is a result of trying to incorporate the flavors I remember, into a banana bread that would bring back fond memories for me.This is delicious especially when spread with sweet cream butter!

 Ingredients

8 oz self raising flour

¼ tsp nutmeg

1/2 tsp ground Jamaican Allspice

1-2 dashes of ground black pepper

1 tsp grated ginger root

Juice of 1/2 lime

2 oz butter

2 oz coconut oil

2 ripe bananas, mashed

4 oz dark brown sugar

Grated rind of one orange

2 eggs

4 tbsp guava jelly/jam

1 tbsp Honey (if a darker bread is preferred substitute honey for 1 tbsp molasses)

1 1/2  tbsp Tamarind Paste/concentrate

1 oz dried mango or guava, finely chopped

Method

1. Grease and flour a 1-5-2lb loaf pan. I also line the pan with parchment paper because of the “syrup based” ingredients
2. Put flour and spices in a bowl and work in butter and coconut oil to get a crumbly mixlike the texture of coarse cornmeal or breadcrumbs
3. Peel and mash the bananas (I use a fork). Add the grated orange zest, ginger root and chopped mango to this. Pour the lime juice over this and mix well. Set aside
   
4. Beat eggs and sugar until it gets a bit pale (I use the whisk attachment on my mixer). Add the guava jelly, tamarind paste, honey and whisk for another minute. Fold in banana mixture.
5. Change the mixer attachment to the paddle type and mix wet and dry ingredients. Alternatively, mix by hand until just incorporated then pour into prepared loaf pan.
6. Bake in 350 degrees Fahrenheit oven for about 1 hour or until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean. If it starts to become too brown either decrease the oven temperature to 325 degrees Fahrenheit or just cover the baking tin with a tent of heavy duty aluminum foil. Allow the bread to cool in the loaf pan for 10 minutes the turn out on a rack to cool.

 

Vietnamese Pickled Mustard Greens, My Version

I'm a person who loves pickles in any shape or form. In this version of Vietnamese Do Choa, I have used just the stems of the Mustard Greens (Gai Choy). The leaves are quite bitter, and though may be used in soups,I tend to puree them in a food processor with a little water to make a paste. This paste I use in my garden as fertilizer, burying lumps of it beside my plants. It adds organic vegetable matter to the soil and also nitrogen. To make the pickle, you have to trim off all the leaves, and use only the stems, including the part where it fans out to the leaf.

Giant Mustard Greens or Gai Choy

Ingredients
3 bunches of Gai Choy (These have to be fresh, and relatively blemish free)
1 cup Pickling salt
2 1/2 cups of water
1 cup vinegar
2 cups water
1 cup granulated sugar
1/8 tsp pickle Crisp
2 red or yellow Habanero Chili Peppers, cut in thick slices with seeds
Method
1. Trim the leaves off the Gai Choy stems. Wash the stems very carefully making sure that all the dirt is removed. Cut the stems into 1 inch pieces
2. Mix the 2 1/2 cups of water with the pickling salt and heat on stove top until salt is completely dissolved. Let this cool to room temperature
3. Put the cut Gai Choy stems and the slices of Habanero chili  in the salt solution and let this stand at room temperature for 8 hours or overnight.
4. The next day, mix the vinegar, Pickle Crisp, 2 cups of water and one cup of sugar in a saucepan.  DO NOT BOIL. Heat slowly until sugar is just dissolved. Let this cool to room temperature.
5. Boil 4 cups of water in a saucepan. Drain the cut Gai Choy stems and sliced Habanero Chilis through a colander and pour the boiling water over them. Immediately rinse with cold water about 2-3 times taking care not to bruise the stems. Drain on a paper towel then transfer to a clean glass container. Add the cooled pickling brine and refrigerate. The pickles will be ready when they start to turn a bit yellow. They keep for quite a while in the refrigerator.

Kerala Chicken Curry using Double Horse Curry Mix, "tweaked"

This is not a food hack but more of a food “tweak”. From time to time, I try pack mixes for curries but have never found one that really works all that well.  I found a new one for Kerala Chicken Curry (it was actually made in Kerala) and decided I’d try it with some modifications. On opening the envelope, it was easy to see that this mixture was quite different to any other that I had used. You could smell the spices and actually see the curry leaves and other ingredients almost as though they were freshly ground. The mixture was dark and rich looking. My “tweaks” involved, using a small amount of Jamaican chicken seasoning and marinating overnight in the refrigerator, dry frying, toasting or “burning” the spices before I added liquid, and as liquid,  I used chicken stock instead of water. The other departure from the recommended recipe was that I used a slow cooker, and decreased the amount of liquid called for in the original recipe. The result is a very satisfying curry, with a rich, dark and thick sauce, perfect to spoon over rice or “sop up” with fresh Naan bread.

Ingredients

1 pack "Double Horse" Kerala Chicken Curry Mix

 2 1/2  lbs chicken meat

3/4 tsp Grace Caribbean Traditions Chicken Seasoning

1 1/4 cup chicken stock (Equivalent of a small tin of Swanson Chicken broth in the US)

5 tbsp cooking oil

Method

1. Season the chicken meat with the chicken seasoning and marinate overnight in refrigerator

2. Heat the cooking oil in a wok and fry the chicken meat until browned in areas. Put in a 2-3 quart size slow cooker

3. Discard the oil, and use a paper towel to wipe the wok clean 

3. Empty the contents of the Kerala Chicken Curry Mix in the wok and "toast" until fragrant. Add the chicken stock and continue cooking for another minute until a paste forms.

4. Pour this mixture over the chicken meat in the slow cooker and cook on high for about 3 hours. Stir occasionally (about twice in the 3 hour period) so that the sauce thickens and coats the meat. Plate and enjoy.

Fish with Ready Mix Paneer Tikka Masala Sauce

This is another “food hack” where I have used an envelope of Paneer Tikka Masala sauce to make a fish Tikka Masala. Readers may ask, “Why not just buy an envelope mix for fish Tikka Masala?” The reason is that those pack mixes for Fish Tikka Masala require you to use 1-1.5 kilograms of fish, and if you are cooking for just one person that’s not an option. This mix only needed 250 grams of cottage cheese (for which I substituted an equivalent weight of fish), and added just three additional ingredients not called for in the original directions on the mix envelope. I also did not follow the directions exactly the way suggested on the envelope, as the sauce would have been to thin for my liking. The result is a meal that’s ready in less than 30 minutes, and is a lot better than a slice of pizza or a hamburger. 

Ingredients

1 envelope of Rasoi Magic Paneer Tikka Masala

250 grams fish filet

2 tbsp cooking oil

1 tomato (approx 150 grams)

½ cup milk or half and half

½ inch piece of ginger root, peeled

2 tbsp Maggi Hot and Sweet Tomato Chili Sauce

2 Thai chili peppers

 Method

1.      Cut the fish filet into medium sized cubes and set aside

2.      Mix the contents of the Paneer Tikka Masala mix with ½ cup of milk or half and half to form a paste. Add the 2 tablespoons of Maggi sauce to this.

3.      Slice the tomato into quarters and put in a small chopper along with the ginger root. Blitz to a puree

4.      Heat the oil in a wok over high heat and quickly sauté the fish cubes until opaque.

5.      Add the tomato puree and cook for 1-2 minutes

6.      Add the Tikka Masala paste and stir in with the fish and tomato puree. Do NOT add water as suggested on the mix envelope. Reduce heat to medium and simmer uncovered for about 5 minutes more. Serve with rice of Naan bread. Sweet lime pickle goes well with it too.