Happy Caribbean Food Week. Today is the big go-live for Grace Foods, as the 21st marks the first day of the weeklong celebration of food and drinks from the tropical islands.
Five years ago, Caribbean food supplier, Grace Foods, decided more needs to be done to recognise the delightful dishes and flavours that are enjoyed over 4,000 miles away, so they made it their mission to bring the cuisine right before us.
This year, I was invited to cook along for the big launcho.
They had me at food, no persuasion needed.So, cooking is one of my favourite past-times, but the pressure was on, for a hamper of all sorts of spices, sauces, nibbles and drinks came my way, and I wanted to do this challenge justice.
The cogs turned. With a good mix of planning and impromptu adaptations, one meaty Caribbean feast was served.
From crispy jerk chicken thighs, sticky drumsticks, pepperpot beef and ginger beer pork belly. Oh yeah, you know it, go big or go home.
Winner, winner chicken dinner
2017-08-21 22:23:41
Here are my two versions of Caribbean chicken dishes that I guarantee will be a winner for your dinner.
Prep Time
1 hr 30 min
Cook Time
30 min
Total Time
2 hr
Sticky drumsticks
- Chicken drumsticks
- Econa Hot Pepper Sauce
- Curry Powder
- Garlic Oil
- Salt
- Pepper
Crispy jerk thighs
- Chicken thighs
- 1/2 Coconut Milk
- 1 Red Chilli
- Dunn's River Hot & Spicy Jerk Chicken Fry Mix
- Garlic oil
- Salt
- Pepper
Instructions
- Preheat your fan oven to 200ºC.
- Wash both chicken thighs and drumsticks.
- For the sticky drumsticks, apply the Econa Hot Pepper Sauce and curry powder dependant on how much heat you like. Rub the sauce and powder into the meat.
- Place in a heatproof dish.
- For the crispy jerk thighs, pour the coconut milk into a dish with the sliced red chilli. In a separate bowl, pour in the jerk chicken fry mix. Dip the thighs into the coconut milk, followed by the fry mix.
- Follow this process for the rest of the thighs.
- Let the marinade soak in for an hour before cooking.
- Once ready to cook, season the both drumstick and thighs with salt and pepper.
- Place into the oven for 30 minutes (there's no need to turn the chicken).
- Towards the last 10 minutes of cooking, drizzle the chicken with a tablespoon of garlic oil to crispy up the skin.
- Voila, your chicken should be cooked. Enjoy.
Crunch Corner https://crunchcorner.co.uk/
Pepperpot Beef
2017-08-21 22:41:01
A delicious heart beef stew, made up from a peppercorn and coconut sauce. You won't be disappointed with these tender chunky, pieces of carrots and beef.
Prep Time
1 hr 20 min
Cook Time
3 hr
Total Time
3 hr 30 min
Ingredients
- 400g Diced Beef
- Grace Pepperpot Soup Mix
- 4 Carrots
- 1 Can of Coconut Milk
- 1/2 Cup Water
- 1 Red Chilli
- 2 Tablespoons of Dunn's River Jamaican Jerk Seasoning
- 1 Tablespoon Thyme
- 1 Teaspoon All Spice
- 1 Teaspoon Cayenne
Instructions
- To start, marinade your diced beef with the Jamaican jerk seasoning.
- Let the sauce soak for one hour before moving onto the next step.
- Preheat your fan over to 200°C.
- Chop your carrots into chunky pieces.
- Finely slice your chilli.
- In a casserole dish, add in all of your ingredients and cook for three hours, or until the meat is tender.
- You may have to add in more water when checking up on it, based on how thick you'd like your stew to be.
- And enjoy!
Crunch Corner https://crunchcorner.co.uk/
Ginger Beer Pork Belly
2017-08-21 23:25:27
Sweet and punchy, this ginger beer marinade will caramelise your pork belly with meat that will melt in your mouth.
Prep Time
1 hr
Cook Time
45 min
Ingredients
- 4 Strips Pork Belly
- 1 Can Grace Ginger Beer
- 1 Tablespoon Econa Hot Pepper Sauce
- Salt
- Pepper
Instructions
- Marinade the pork belly strips with the hot pepper sauce and a good amount of salt and pepper.
- Place in a heatproof dish.
- Pour in half the can of ginger beer, coating the pork.
- After 30 minutes, flip the pork belly.
- After 20 minutes, preheat your fan oven to 200°C.
- Add the pork into the oven in the dish with the ginger beer.
- Every 10 minutes, flip the pork to allow each side to crispen until the juice is cooked.
- Once the juice is completely gone, roast each side for a final five minutes.
- You'll see the meat darken very quickly, but not to worry, it's not burnt, and instead caramelising.
- If you prefer crispy pork belly, continue cooking.
- When it's done, the meat should fall apart when cutting into it.
Notes
- Leftovers: should you have any leftover pork belly, reheat in the oven the following day for 15 minutes, and the meat will almost be double as tender.
Crunch Corner https://crunchcorner.co.uk/
Super Scrumptious Rice and Peas
2017-08-21 23:43:15
A one pot rice dish that will deliver on the full-bodied flavours of the Caribbean. It's easy to adapt based on the tastes you'd like to achieve.
Prep Time
10 min
Cook Time
30 min
Total Time
40 min
Ingredients
- 200g Long Grain Rice
- 1 Spring Onion
- 1 Can Coconut Milk
- 300ml Chicken Stock
- 1 Tin Dunn's River Caribbean Beans & Peas
- 3 bay leaves
- Salt
- Pepper
Instructions
- Soak the rice for 10 minutes, rinse and drain.
- Chop the spring onion, and add to a saucepan with the coconut milk, chicken stock, and bay leaves.
- Bring to a simmer.
- Add in the rice and simmer for 10 minutes. You'll need to stir occasionally.
- Add in the tin of beans and peas and simmer for another five minutes. Be sure to stir to avoid the rice from sticking and burning at the bottom.
- Season with salt and pepper.
Crunch Corner https://crunchcorner.co.uk/
The sauces and marinades were just absolutely gorgeous, and with our cooking, we do enjoy our food to have a little extra kick. In particular this week, we’ll be sure to continue the Caribbean celebrations, and from there, see what fusion dishes I can try with the seasoning.
When it comes to dishes from the tropical islands, what do like to eat? I’d love to know 🙂
Lots of love
Charlotte
xox
Charlotte Corner
Lifestyle blogger & cat mother
