(Hamilton, Ontario Canada) CaribbeanPot.com, headed by Chris De La Rosa, is pleased to announce that their first off-line cookbook, The Vibrant Caribbean Pot: 100 Traditional and Fusion Recipes Vol.2, has won a Gourmand World Cookbook award for 2014 in the category of Best Foreign – International Cuisine Book in English Canada. De La Rosa shares this award with editor Izabela Szydlo.
The Gourmand World Cookbook Awards, founded by, Edouard Cointreau, celebrates global cookbook and wine book publishing from over 144 countries. This award is sometimes referred to as the “Oscars of food awards”.
The Vibrant Caribbean Pot: 100 Traditional and Fusion Recipes Vol.2, will compete against winners in the same category, from other countries, for The Best in the World. The results will be announced on Tuesday June 9, 2015 at the annual awards event in Yantai, China.
In this glossy full-colour cookbook, De La Rosa, spans a cross-section of mouthwatering Caribbean cuisine. There are many keys to De La Rosa’s success; stunning photographs, simplified recipes and his charming and conversational tone.
“I am thrilled to represent Caribbean cuisine in a platform that is so prestigious. This is an especially proud moment as it represents a win over thousands of amazing entries,” says Mr. De La Rosa.
CaribbeanPot.com is the international hub of all things Caribbean cuisine online. Although it started humbly as a way to document family recipes (for his daughters), De La Rosa connects with over one million fans monthly through YouTube and voracious fans on Facebook, Instagram and other social media platforms. De La Rosa is currently working on his next cookbook, (part of a series of cookbooks), and on the development of complimentary CaribbeanPot.com products.
For more information on CaribbeanPot.com please contact:
Karen Nicole Smith at karen@caribbeanpot.com or by 1.347.379.1969.
Immediately after posting the Island Style Chicken Strips Recipe, I started receiving requests for a fish version. A fish nugget recipe which will help encourage kids and picky eaters to give fish a try. When I hear people talk about hating fish and their only experience are those frozen fish sticks heated in an oven or microwave, I’m discouraged as I know that is not a good measuring-stick for fried fish. To achieve what I believe are the ultimate fish sticks or nuggets, we’ll start off with a wonderful Caribbean herb marinade, then dip the seasoned pieces of fish in a modified tempura batter, before frying them until they are golden brown.
You’ll Need…
1 lb Sole (any white fish)
1 teaspoon Caribbean Green Seasoning
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1/8 teaspoon peppersauce
Veg oil for frying
Batter ingredients:
1 cup carbonated water (chilled)
pinch salt
pinch black pepper
1 egg
1 cup all-purpose flour (+ flour for dusting)
1 scallion (green part)
1/4 teaspoon curry powder (optional)
If you’re using previously frozen fish (I used Sole) as I did, make sure to squeeze the pieces to remove the excess water they are frozen in. Cut into bit sized pieces and get ready to season. Go in with the Caribbean Green Seasoning, 1/4 teaspoon salt, black pepper and peppersauce (or finely diced scotch bonnet / your fav hot sauce). Give it a good mix and let it marinate for 5-10 minutes.
Place all the ingredients for the batter in a bowl and whisk (try to have the carbonated water as cold as you can get it – beer will work great as well). Now set up a work station. Seasoned fish, batter and flour.
Heat the vegetable oil on a med/high flame, then take a piece of the seasoned fish (leave the marinade on it for max flavor), dust it in the dry flour and then dip into the batter. Gently add to the heated oil. Fry 2 -4 minutes on each side – until golden brown. Then place on a wire rack or paper towels to get rid of the excess oil from frying.
As you take the pieces of fried fish out of the oil, you can sprinkle on a tiny bit of sea salt (if salt is your thing).
Serve warm – with some ranch dressing (or your fav dipping sauce for fish) or as we do in our home, with some homemade peppersauce and ketchup. Personally I like making sandwiches with these wonderful pieces of battered fried fish, but they just as good with fresh cut fries. Maybe in the coming weeks I’ll share my KILLA seasoned fries recipe with you all.
I’ve been fortunate to travel up and down the Caribbean island chain over the years and one of the things I find astonishing, are the many uses we have for plantains. Growing up in Trinidad and Tobago, Sunday lunch (most important family meal) always consisted of boiled ripe plantains to go along with the stewed meats, Callaloo, Macaroni Pie, Stewed Beans, Sweet Potato and other tasty treats mom would prepare. Very simple, but what a joy to eat. The English, Spanish, French and Dutch Caribbean all have their unique take on preparing Plantains (green and ripe) and I’m sure this orange brown sugar glazed plantain recipe will surely join in among other classics.
You’ll Need…
2 ripe plantains
pinch salt
1/2 cup orange juice
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1/3 teaspoon cinnamon
2 tablespoons butter
Note: The more black (and ugly looking) the plantains are, the better they are for use. This is an amazing dessert and can also be used as a topping for your favorite ice cream. Fried ripe plantains are great to serve as a side to spicy dishes (like jerk and curry) as the natural sweetness helps to balance the heat elements.
Peel and slice the plantains into 1/4 inch pieces. I did oval shape, but if you wish you can certainly do lone pieces.
Place the slices of plantain in a container and add all the ingredients, except the butter. Stir and allow it to marinate for about 15-20 minutes at room temperature.
Heat the butter on a medium/low flame in a wide pan and add the pieces of marinated plantains. Keep the marinade. Fry on both sides until you have a golden color and slightly crisp edges.
After you have the desired golden color, go in with the leftover marinade and bring to a boil. The plantains are fully cooked, so all you have to do is allow the glaze or sauce to thicken up to a consistency you like.
Note: If doing this recipe gluten free, please go through the list of ingredients to make sure they meet with your specific gluten free dietary needs.
Do give this plantain recipe a try as it’s fun to do and quite tasty.. your sweet-tooth will thank you.
Here’s another dish I enjoy making when we have leftover jerk chicken (something not too common in this house). From the flavors of the residual jerk marinade on the chicken to texture of the slightly cooked vegetables, this is an ideal one-pot dish. As I’ve mentioned in the past, after slavery was abolished on the islands, many indentured laborers from China and India were brought in to facilitate the shortage of labor. So you’ll find that our culinary culture reflect this infusion of Asian flavors and technique in cooking. This dish is the perfect example of how the Caribbean and Asia comes together for something absolutely mouthwatering.
If you can, try to get a “Guyanese” chow-mein type noodle – can be found at most West Indian markets.. it works best for this dish in my opinion.
* Cook the noodles according to package directions “but”.. if it says to cook for 5 minutes, try to under-cook it by a minute or so, so you don’t end up with soggy noodle when it’s stir fried.
Prepare your vegetables (cut, dice etc). I had leftover jerk chicken breast, so all I did was cube it into bit sized pieces. If you don’t have leftover jerk chicken, take 2 large chicken breasts, marinate in your fav Jamaican jerk marinade and broil in the oven for about 15-20 mins (depends on the thickness). Be sure to keep as much of the jerk marinade on the chicken as you cube it as it will add that wicked jerk flavor to this noodle stirfry.
Cook the noodles,drain and set aside. Be sure to have all your ingredients prepped as this is all about cooking fast!
In a deep pan heat the oil on a medium flame then go in with the diced garlic and cook for 30 seconds, then add the celery, cabbage and carrot and cook for another 1-2 minutes. At this time you can add the two birds eye pepper (whole) so we get some flavor and not the raw heat.
It’s now time to add all the sauces and stir well, then go in with the cubed chicken.
Stir well so we get that ‘jerk’ flavor throughout the dish. If you wish you can add a tablespoon of jerk marinade to the pot for that extra kick of Caribbean goodness. Finally it’s time to add the pre-cooked noodles to the pot, stir well and cook for another 2-3 minutes. Then top with the chopped scallion and you’re done!
It will be normal for the noodle to clump a bit when it’s cooled, but as you add it to the pot and stir.. it will loosen up. Remember to remove the whole peppers (or leave it for those who like heat) before serving. If you want an additional kick (remember the jerk marinade will have scotch bonnet) you can always break the birds eye pepper.
You can personalize this dish by adding your fav vegetables and that’s also a great way to stretch this dish for more people. Bell pepper, bean sprouts, broccoli, zucchini and Christophene (Jamaican choc cho | chayote) will all work well in this dish. NOTE: You will notice that I didn’t add any salt as I’m trying to cut back on the amount of sodium in my diet and the soy sauce will be enough to season this for me. But do taste near the end and adjust to your liking.
I still recall mom always asking me to go get a piece of fever grass (lemon grass) from the old wash-tub she converted into a gardening pot, where we had a huge patch of lemon grass growing for as long as I could remember. In the dry season they would dry-down with a mound of dirt where the roots were , but with the first drizzle of the rainy season they would be back with vigorous life. It was my job whenever someone had the onset of a fever (high temperature) to go harvest the ‘fever grass’ so mom could make a pot of tea. Yes, lemongrass tea is used as a remedy for fevers in most of the Caribbean, it’s known “Fever Grass” and… it works!
You’ll Need…
3 stalks lemon grass (aka fever grass)
4-6 cups water
sweetener (honey or sugar)
slices of lemon (optional)
For a more potent tea, try getting grass with a bit of root still attached (or so mom would insist). If you live outside the Caribbean or a region where you can grow fresh lemon grass, try Asian markets as it’s used in cooking many of their delicious recipes. In my case I was able to source both the fresh (a bit dry) and frozen stalks of the lemon grass at a local Asian market.
Using the back of your knife, beat the lemon grass a bit, then place it into a pot with the water and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and let it go for about 15-20 minutes.
You can now strain and sweeten as you like, but I much prefer to let it steep for a few minutes. I would recommend straining a couple times, then sweeten with sugar or as I like doing, with honey. To really brighten up the finished fever grass tea, I like adding a couple slices of fresh sliced lemon.
Our friends had invited us out to lunch a few years ago to a lovely Vietnamese restaurant. As you’re seated the waiter brings over a piping hot teapot of tea (served cold in the summer months). As my friend poured me a cup, I was immediately taken back to my childhood days with the lovely scent of the lemon grass (fever grass). However, my recollection of this tea was when someone (including myself) had a fever.. yea, not a great way to start of dinner.
That bone chilling cold is back and with a vengeance. Over the Christmas holidays it was relatively mild by Canadian standards, but this morning the mercury dropped to -28 C (-18.4 F). Like a true son of the Caribbean soil, I’m battling back with a hearty beef with sweet potato and pumpkin soup to warm up the mind, soul and body! We’ll start off by roasting the pieces of beef (with bones) in the oven, something which is not traditional in Caribbean soup making, but that roasted flavor will elevate this soup to a HIGHER level! Then we go in with pieces of pumpkin and sweet potato, followed by fresh herbs and other flavor ingredients. You’ll Need…
2-3 lbs beef bones
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
2 carrots
1 large onion
2 stalks celery
2 large sweet potatoes
1 medium butternut squash
2-3 cups diced pumpkin
water * or Beef stock
3 cloves garlic
3 tablespoon olive oil (divided)
4 sprigs thyme
1 scotch bonnet pepper
2 tablespoon chopped parsley
1 stock cube
2 scallions
3-4 allspice berries
optional.. flour dumplings, potato and ground provisions.
It’s important that you use pieces of beef with bones for maximum flavor and it’s normally the cheapest cut of meat. Wash and pat the beef dry, then place in a baking dish with the cubed celery and carrots. Toss with 2 tablespoon olive oil and roast on the middle rack of your oven for 45 mins @ 400F
As the beef roast in the oven, peel and cube the pumpkin, squash and sweet potato. You’ll notice that I used traditional Caribbean sweet potato (purple/red colour) and what is called ‘yams (sort of orange colour) in North American grocery stores. We’ll cook this for a long time, so feel free to cut them in large pieces.
Remove the roasted beef from the oven and get ready to put everything together so we can started on our soup. If you prep the vegetables in advance, cover them with water so they don’t go discolored on you.
In a large soup pot, heat the remaining tablespoon of olive oil and go in with the diced onion, garlic, black pepper, chopped scallion and thyme on a low heat and cook for about 3-4 minutes.
Turn up the heat, add the roasted beef and vegetables.. be sure to get all the stuff at the bottom of the roasting pan and give the pot a good stir. Now go in with all the other ingredients, cover with water or beef stock and bring to a boil.
You will notice a few things. 1. If using beef stock, keep in mind that it will have a lot of sodium so be mindful when adding more salt. 2. I added the scotch bonnet ‘whole’ to get the flavor and not the raw heat. if you break it – be prepared for that Caribbean sunshine. and 3. If adding flour dumplings, do so the last 10 minutes of cooking.
Reduce to a gentle boil and allow to cook for about an hour and 3/4 or until the beef is tender. The vegetables will fall apart for the most part, but that will give you a nice thick soup. If you want your vegetables with texture, you can add them the last 35 minutes of cooking. Taste for salt and adjust accordingly and remember to remove that scotch bonnet pepper at the end of cooking.
Serve HOT (forget the warm thing).. this is meant to warm you up on those cold winter days or when you just want a taste of home! If doing this recipe gluten free, do go through the entire list of ingredients to ensure they meet with your specific gluten free dietary needs. Flour dumplings will NOT be an option.
This rich, Caribbean-style soup blends tender beef with the natural sweetness of sweet potatoes and pumpkin, creating a comforting, slow-simmered broth perfect for winter meals or anytime you crave a taste of home.
Ingredients
Instructions
Video
Preheat oven to 400°F (204 °C).
Pat the beef bones dry and place in a baking dish with chopped carrots and celery. Toss with 2 tablespoons olive oil. Roast for 45 minutes.
Meanwhile, peel and cube sweet potatoes, pumpkin, and butternut squash. Keep covered in water to prevent discoloration.
In a large soup pot, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium-low heat. Add onion, garlic, scallions, thyme, and black pepper. Cook for 3–4 minutes until fragrant.
Increase heat to medium-high. Add roasted beef and vegetables to the pot, including all pan drippings. Stir well to coat.
Add pumpkin, sweet potatoes, squash, stock cube, allspice, parsley, and enough water or beef stock to cover. Add whole scotch bonnet pepper.
Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Cover loosely and cook for 1 hour 45 minutes, or until beef is tender and vegetables break down. Skim any foam.
Taste and adjust salt. Remove scotch bonnet before serving. Add flour dumplings or other provisions in the last 10 minutes, if using. Serve hot.
In this glossy full-colour cookbook, De La Rosa, spans a cross-section of mouthwatering Caribbean cuisine. There are many keys to De La Rosa’s success; stunning photographs, simplified recipes and his charming and conversational tone.
