caribbean grilled fish

I may have mentioned this in the past, but growing up on the islands I never liked fish and I think the same can be said about my brother and sisters (mom had a tough time with us). While I outgrew this, I still think my sisters are not fans of fish to this day. My brother on the other hand, elevated his taste buds.. so it’s not strange to see him at seafood restaurants in New York sitting behind a massive lobster feasting away. While my fav fish dish is my mom’s curry Kingfish, during the summer months this grilled fish is something I do quite often. So as we continue July’s Month Of Grilling, I thought I’d share this herb grilled fish recipe with you.

You’ll Need…

Large Fish (I used a snapper)
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoon chopped parsley
6 sprigs thyme
2 cloves garlic (crush or chopped fine)
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon grated ginger
1 scotch bonnet pepper (optional)
2 scallions (chopped)
3/4 teaspoon sugar
1 lemon (slices)
2 sprigs parsley
1/2 medium tomato
1 teaspoon soy sauce (optional)

Important: If doing this recipe gluten free, do pay attention to all the ingredients listed (especially the soy sauce) to make sure they meet with your specific gluten free dietary needs. This marinade will be enough for 3 medium fish or 2 large ones.

Chop, squeeze, slice and grate the ingredients, then place them all in a bowl and give it a good mix. Remember when using scotch bonnet peppers (any hot pepper) to wash your hands with soap and water immediately after (suggest wearing gloves) and don’t include the seeds or white membrane surrounding the seeds if you want to avoid the ‘raw’ heat.

Clean and wash the fish (I like washing with water and either lemon or lime juice) you’re using and pat dry with paper towels. Then make 2 cuts down the thickest part of the belly to help the marinade do it’s thing and to ensure the fish cooks somewhat evenly. Place the fish in a bowl and pour on half the marinade. Work the marinade in the cuts and cavity of the fish. Since there’s lime juice in the marinade, we’ll only allow this to marinate for about 5 minutes or it will start cooking the fish.

As the fish marinates you can go get your fire started. I used a charcoal fire, but this works good on a propane grill as well. You have a couple options for grilling the fish, you can wrap in tin foil or use a fish grilling wire basket -thing (cheap at Walmart). Place 2 slices of the lemon on the inside of the wire basket, then a sprig of parsley and another lemon slice. Now place the marinated fish (try to keep as much marinade on it) and repeat with the slices of lemon and parsley before closing the wire contraption.

Unlike how we did the Drunk Chicken (indirect heat), this time we want the fish directly over the heat source. The slices of lemon will not only add flavor to the fish as it grills, it will help protect it from the direct heat.

The size/thickness and how well-done you like your fish, will determine how log to cook your fish. For me I had it over the direct heat for about 25 minutes in total. Flipping over every 4 minutes or so. The wire basket makes this really simple (once you lock the hinge) and if you want you can use the remaining marinade to baste the fish as it grills. I like adding the marinade near the end, just before I remove the fish off the grill and get ready to serve. That final blast of heat awakens all the flavors of the marinade for a wonderful finish. Make extra marinade and serve as a dipping sauce!

My appreciation for fish only happened after moving away from the islands, where I would have access to fresh out of the ocean goodness. Today I try to shop at fish markets where I know there’s a lot of foot traffic and turnover, so I tell myself I’m getting fresh stuff (as can be expected). You can make this marinade and store it in the fridge for a solid week. You can use any of your favorite fish for this recipe (may be a bit too bold for salmon..but I’m not a fan of salmon). In my case I try to only eat salt water fish as I get a sort of ‘muddy’ taste when I eat lake or river fish. The salt in the marinade was enough for me (with the soy sauce), but you can sprinkle on some sea salt after grilling.. to your liking.

Grilled Sea Bass Stuffed With Jamaican Callaloo.

December 9, 2014August 4, 20136 Comments

You knew I’d be ending this year’s month of grilling with a truly wicked recipe.. one that’s very dear to me. This grilled stuffed fish is one of those dishes we try to make at least once a year (summer) when my best friends and I meet. One from Dominica, another from Jamaica and myself the Trinbagonian, connect in a sort of mystical way as we dive into our individual red snapper stuffed with Jamaican callaloo (amaranth, spinach or chorai bhagi) along with some cold beverages. The only talking is after we’re good and stuffed and each of us eying the last piece of boiled sweet potato or fried plantain.

You’ll Need…

2 Sea bass * (medium sized)
3 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 onion
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
1 lime
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 scotch bonnet pepper diced finely
1 scallion

Stuffing

3 cups Jamaican callaloo
1 onion
2 cloves garlic
2 sprigs thyme
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup coconut milk
1/4 teaspoon salt
pinch black pepper
1/4 scotch bonnet pepper

Notes: I much prefer using red snapper for this dish, but the prices were too high for my wallet (the reality of not living in the Caribbean). If you can’t source Jamaican callaloo, you can use spinach or any of your favorite greens (Swiss Chard, Pak Choi.. collard greens?). IMPORTANT: If doing this recipe gluten free, please go through the list of ingredients to ensure they meet with your specific gluten free dietary needs.

Wash, trim and chop the callaloo into 1/2 inch pieces and allow to drain dry in a colander. Heat the olive oil on a medium flame then add the sliced garlic, onion and thyme. Turn the heat down to low and let that soften up for a couple minutes. Now add the cut callaloo and top with the salt, black pepper, scotch bonnet pepper and coconut milk. Turn the heat up to bring to a boil then reduce the heat to medium and cook with the pot uncovered for about 7-10 minutes.

It will wilt down and go a bit darker in colour.. that’s normal. If there’s any residual liquid in the pot after 7 minutes, turn up the heat and burn it off. Then set aside allow to cool for stuffing the fish.

As it cools, lets make the seasoned oil for adding extra flavor to the fish as it grills.

In a deep bowl mix together the olive oil, salt, pepper, parsley,chopped scallion, juice of a lime and finely diced scotch bonnet pepper. Slice the onion in rings and set aside.

Make sure your fish is scaled, washed and dry. Cut a couple slits (not too deep) across the belly of the fish so some of the seasoned oil can get in to do it’s thing. Then spread a (double) sheet of tin foil and brush some of the seasoned oil where the fish will be placed. Now add some of the onion rings and place the fish on top of that. Take 1/2 of the now cooled cooked callaloo and stuff the cavity of the fish. Then pour some of the seasoned oil on top of the fish (spoon it on) and top with a few of the onion rings. Wrap the tin foil to encase the fish and create a package.Repeat with the next fish!

It’s just a matter of grilling as you would normally grill fish. In my case I did it over a charcoal fire (love the flavors you get) but you can also use a propane grill or if you don’t have a grill.. the oven (about 375 F for about 25-30 minutes). I grilled away from direct flame (so indirect heat) and it took about 30 minutes or so (the last 4 minutes I placed the packages over direct heat to ensure I get a flaky fish when it was done cooking).

Do remember to be gentle when flipping them and when it’s done cooking allow to cool for a minute or two or risk getting burned when you open the packages as steam will form.

Serve with some lemon or lime slices and I love having this with boiled sweet potato or steam okras!

I do hope you enjoy this years month of grilling and I look forward to bringing you some more exciting dishes off the grill in July 2014! BTW, do you have any sort of recipe or tradition in place for when you meet with your dearest friends.. friends like mine who took the place of my siblings when I moved to Canada many moons ago?

Before you go, don’t forget to check out the latest cooking videos, connect with me on twitter and join our community on facebook. oh yea! leave me a comment below – it’s appreciated.

Seafood

Caribbean Inspired Grilled Red Snapper.

June 7, 2012June 7, 201215 Comments

Today I thought I share a tasty grilled red snapper recipe with you all, as part of my month of grilling (June). This Caribbean inspired grilled red snapper will cause your taste buds to go into a state of frenzy and confusion as they’re hit with bite after bit of exciting Caribbean flavors. I grew up eating fish three ways when I was younger.. fried, curry and stewed, but the past few years have seen me adopt new and exciting ways to prepare seafood. In a few days I’ll share another grilled fish recipe with you, but this time we’ll do an accompanying sauce to go with it.

Special Thanks! I have to take a minute to thank everyone at Chelsea Brand out of Toronto for their generosity in sending me a huge supply of Red Snappers to use in my recipes. Please look for the Chelsea Brand when shopping for seafood at your local grocery store.

You’ll Need…

1 Red Snapper (1-2 lbs)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
4 sprigs thyme
3 sprigs dill (optional)
2 slices lemon
1 scallion
1 pimento pepper (see note below)
1/2 scotch bonnet pepper
2 tablespoon coconut milk
banana leaves for wrapping the fish

Notes: Pimento pepper is a flavor pepper, without any heat and also known as seasoning or flavor pepper in the Caribbean. When using scotch bonnet peppers, use gloves and if you’re concerned about the raw heat, avoid using the seeds. If you can’t source banana leaves, use tin foil or parchment paper.

Scale, trim and wash your fish. The fish I was using was already cleaned and gutted, but still had some fins, so using my kitchen scissors I trimmed those off. I then washed the fish with some lime juice (use lemon or vinegar) and cool water (pat dry with paper towels). Then using a sharp knife I made shallow cuts every 1 inch or so (see pic).

I then chopped the scotch bonnet and pimento pepper (huge pieces). Using the back of my knife I tapped on the scallion to bruise it to release it’s flavors and I sliced a couple slices of the lemon.

You’ll need to have the bottom part (belly) of the fish cut open to have a sort of cavity to stuff all the wonderful seasonings. Fold the scallion and tuck in into the belly of the fish as well as the other items (thyme, dill, peppers).

Place the now stuffed fish on the banana leaves (see video below) and season with the black pepper and slat. Turn the fish over to get both sides and using your fingers, try to get some into the small cuts we made. Place the 2 slices of lemon on top of the fish, then pour the coconut milk over it.

Fold the banana leaves over the fish (try to tuck it in to secure) to form a sort of parcel (seal the ends as well). Now place on a hot grill (about 375F).. I used a grill with three burners, so the burner to the far left I left on high and the 2 burners directly below the fish I had on med/low). Close the lid of the BBQ and allow ti to cook for about 12-15 mins (depending on how thick your red snapper is). Then flip and let cook for the same amount of time of this side. If you find that your flame is burning off the banana leaf, turn the heat down to low.

It’s normal for the banana leaves to go charred, so don’t freak! Your grilled snapper is now read. Using a pair of scissors (be careful as there may be steam as you open) cut the parcel open and enjoy. You”l be hit with the lovely fragrance of the coconut milk and other good things we used in stuffing the fish. If your lemon slices are charred, you’ll also get that lovely perfume of lemon oil. Remember this is a whole fish your eating, so be prepared for the bones.

I can’t tell you how many requests I get for this grilled fish every summer. I urge you to try this one and share it with family and friends (blow them away with your skills).

Before you go, don’t forget to check out the latest cooking videos, connect with me on twitter and join our community on facebook. oh yea! leave me a comment below – it’s appreciated.

Caribbean Herb Grilled Fish

Grilled Sea Bass Stuffed With Jamaican Callaloo.

Caribbean Inspired Grilled Red Snapper.

Hi, I'm Chris.

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