Summertime Ceviche

Ever since I first tasted it at a cooking class at Urban Element I've been a fan of ceviche. It's the perfect dish for these steamy summer days when you don't want to add more heat to your home by turning on an oven. Ceviche is made using acids (citrus juices) that cause the proteins in the seafood used in the recipe to change on a molecular level similar to the change that occurs when the proteins are cooked. I like to use the recipe in my favourite cookbook, "Cooking For Geeks", with the addition of an element I learned at the Urban Element; I also like to listen to listen to Action Bronson's "Ceviche" while making this, but that's strictly optional.

Ingredients:

500 g bay scallops, rinsed and patted dry
130 g lime juice
60 g lemon juice
15 g ketchup
7 g garlic, chopped on run through a garlic press
18 mL olive oil
4 mL balsamic vinegar
1 small red onion (70 g ), sliced as thinly as possible
1 shallot bulb, sliced as thinly as possible
1 plantain
canola oil

1. Mix everything but the scallops, plantain and the canola oil in a bowl. Add the scallops to the bowl and make sure everything gets covered by the marinade. Cover the bowl securely and store it in the fridge. Mix everything up again in two hours, then allow it to sit overnight to allow the acids to do there thing.
2. Before you're ready to serve the ceviche, preheat 3 cm of canola oil to 190 C in a large skillet over medium-high heat (or plug in your deep fryer if you have one). Cut the ends from the unpeeled plantain, then halve it crosswise. Peel the plantain then cut it lengthwise into very thin slices (use a mandolin if you have it). Fry the strips in batches, turning frequently, until they are golden. Drain on paper towels, and season immediately with kosher salt.
3. Take out the ceviche from the fridge, and plate it. Top with the fried plantain you have made.

Barbados Cuisine

After spending some time with family and friends in Quebec cottage country this month, circumstances have allowed me the chance to spend time with more family and friends, this time with the location being the island of Barbados. While visiting the tropics would be better during the icy grip of winter instead of the dog days of summer, I'm not going to look a gift visit to my parents' place of birth in the mouth. From upscale restaurants to colourful street food markets and vendors, Barbados is a Caribbean island with a rich choice of cuisine. Slaves from West Africa who were brought to Barbados in the 1600s were very influential in the country's traditions and foods, along with influences from England, Portugal, and Spain. The British influence is the most prevalent, as they decided to begin growing sugar cane in Barbados in the 1640s, making sugar one of the most common foods on the island, along with corn, fish, guava, molasses, potatoes, rice, and rum. Barbados' national dish is flying fish and cou cou (similar to polenta), traditionally served on Fridays, with the fish cooked either fried, or steamed. If you can't make it down to Barbados to sample this dish, here are the recipes for them to bring the island to your dinner table at any time of the year.

Ingredients: Fried Flying Fish
Source: http://www.alleasyrecipes.com/

6 flying fish (or any filleted white fish)
75 g green onions, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 lime
1 onion, chopped
½ hot pepper, chopped
2.5 g ground thyme
2.5 g ground cloves
2.5 g salt
2.5 g black pepper
bread crumbs or flour
oil for frying

1. Wash and debone the fish if necessary and place the fillets in a bowl.
2. Combine the juice from the lime with the green onions, onion, garlic, hot pepper, thyme, cloves, salt and pepper. Marinate the fish in this mixture for at least 15 minutes.
3. Heat the oil in a saucepan. While the oil is heating up, coat the fish in either breadcrumbs or flour, and fry the fillets until they brown or for 5 to 10 minutes.
4. Serve with either cou cou, vegetables or rice.

Ingredients: Cou cou
Source: http://www.barbados.org/

240 g corn meal
90 g okra, with the tops and bottoms removed, and chopped into rings (either fresh or frozen can be used)
45 mL butter
2.5 g salt
1 medium onion, chopped

1. In a bowl, combine the cornmeal with enough water to cover the meal, then set the bowlaside.
2. Place the sliced okras in a saucepan with some water, the chopped onion and the salt. Bring to a medium boil for a few minutes until the okras soften. Strain the okras into a bowl, setting aside the liquid.
3. Add about a quarter of the okra liquid back into the saucepan and add the soaked meal. You'll need a whisk or wooden stick to stir the cou cou as it cooks. (In Barbados they use a flat wooden spoon known as a 'cou cou stick'). Stir the mixture constantly to avoid lumping.
4. Add more of the okra liquid gradually. You can tell you're nearly finished when the cou cou starts to bubble gently at the surface. At this point add in the cooked okra slices and continue stirring for another 2-3 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the butter.