Well, so much for getting healthy. Given that I've postponed the chowder attempt for at least a day or two, I realized I'd been soaking some salt cod in the fridge that was now not needed -- and loathe to toss it, I decided on an appetizer for tonight's dinner.
Yes, fish cakes -- a Barbados recipe, actually. One of the colonial legacies left in the Caribbean by the British is a plethora of salt fish-based recipes. Gotta love the imperial mentality -- here we are in this island paradise, with some of the most delicious fish in the world (dorado and flying fish are my favourites), but we don't trust that. Oh, no ... we can't eat what the locals do. So what becomes a staple product in the pre-refridgeration days? Salt cod, imported from Newfoundland. And when you go into a restaurant in Barbados, two things you're pretty much guaranteed to see on the menu are fish cakes, made with salt cod, and salt fish and ackee. I'll explain the latter one in the future.
For the adventurous:
CHRIS'S TWEAKED BARBADOS FISH CAKES
1 fillet salt cod
4-6 potatoes, boiled and mashed
1/2 cup flour
2 eggs
Barbados hot sauce (recognizable for being yellow with red flecks) to taste
1/2 sweet onion, diced fine
1/2 canned corn niblets
lotsa oil, preferably vegetable or canola
Soak the salt cod overnight, then rinse. Flake it into the mashed potatoes. Add onion, hot sauce and corn. Mix. Add eggs and flour. Mix again. Heat the oil (really hot -- keep the fan going). Make sure there's enough oil so that the fish cakes can be completely immersed. To shape the cakes, I like to use two spoons. Scoop out a spoonful of the mixture, then smoothe it out with the other spoon. Drop in oil. Let fry until they are about the colour of the picture above.
For an ideal dipping sauce, mix a small amount of the hot sauce in mayonaise.
6 comments:
You are not from Barbados. Those fish cakes are too black and long!! Should be cinnamon colour and a little less rounded.
Good 4 you my dear, as long as your fish cakes are nto burnt you keep frying Bajan fish cakes. Traditional shape is round but to heck wid dat 2. Thanks for the exposure. Try conkies next.
Hi, Chris. The fish cakes look good. I made some last night, but the round-shaped ones. I also made a dipping sauce out of apple and mango---hot, sour and sweet. Delish! It's my mother-in-law's recipe. She's a Portuguese who was born in Guyana.
Keep it going.
Hey Chris
Fish cakes are not only from Barbados. I'm sure all the islands have them and my favorite island....Jamaica!
Sheila
This is something really rare so maybe tasting it I can change my opinion, I'll go to Barbados to taste that incredible recipe.
This is pretty interesting site. I glad to find this site. Every time I got some thing new and interesting information here especially like this fish cake. I must appreciate your blog site. Good job! Keep posting.
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