What's up guys! I'm back at it again with a brand new blogpost! Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you, our very first recipe of 2020! YAAAAAS! As you can tell from the title, this recipe is for a coconut curry salmon, served with a Jamaican favorite, known as "tun caameal" (turn cornmeal). This recipe is a collaboration with my mama. She made the turn cornmeal and taught me how to do it. I made the salmon and the complete dish was absolutely phenomenal! I would eat it again right neoooowe! lol My dad loved it as well and he's not a curry lover.
Salmon is a fatty fish filled with loads of nutrients such as omega 3 fats which are protective against heart disease and are good for the brain. Salmon is also a good source of protein as well as B vitamins, choline and minerals such as selenium and potassium. Cornmeal is essentially, ground corn. It is one of the staples in our cuisine in Jamaica. It is used to make dumplins (we spell it without the 'g'), festival, porridge, and of course turn cornmeal. We had a family friend who would make cornmeal pudding (this is sort of like a cake but it is more dense) and share it with us. Unfortunately for me, I can't remember distinctly the taste of the pudding because I was very young at the time. Cornmeal comes with its own host of nutrients: carbohydrates and fiber, protein, some fat, iron, potassium and magnesium.
A balanced meal for sure! Now that we've got all the facts out there, let's get into the recipe!
Recipe
1 tbsp oil
1 tbsp curry
1 cup coconut milk
1 cup gungo peas (AKA pigeon peas)
1 small chocho (or potato)
1 Scallion stalk
Lime juice
1/4 cup pumpkin cubes
1 Pepper (scotch bonnet)
2 tbsp salt
Preparation:
- Add 1 tbsp oil to a pan on medium heat. Add 1 tbsp curry to the pot and stir till incorporated in the oil (this is called burning the curry) and takes about 3-5 mins or when color turns bright yellow green.
- Add 1 tbsp salt, the scallions, gungo peas, pumpkin cubes and chocho.
- Stir to cover vegetables with curry mixture.
- Add in 1 cup coconut milk and stir. Turn down the flame a bit and let simmer for a few minutes.
- Squeeze lime on salmon fillets and rub the fish with a tbsp salt and a tbsp black pepper.
- Add salmon to the curry sauce ensuring that each fillet is completely covered.
- Cover the pot and let simmer so that the salmon can soak up all the flavor.
- After about 20 mins turn off the flame and serve.
For the "tun cornmeal" you will need:
1 cup cornmeal
1 cup coconut milk
1 tbsp sugar
1 piece thyme
salt to taste
1 stalk scallion
1 slice scotch bonnet
1 clove garlic
Preparation:
- On medium heat, pour 1 cup coconut milk into a pot. My mom and I used what we call a dutch pot, which is shaped like a bowl and has two handles (it's hard to describe lol!).
- Mince 1 clove of garlic, and 1 stalk scallion, slice of scotch bonnet pepper and thyme. Add to the milk with salt and 1 tbsp sugar. If you want it to be more on the savory side you can omit the sugar.
- Stir to incorporate the flavors.
- Add 1 cup cornmeal and stir continuously to prevent lumps. The cornmeal will take up the liquid and turn into what I would describe as a "thick paste". Use a cooking spoon to turn the cornmeal (basically stir) until all the liquid is soaked up.
- At this point cover the pot and let it steam. Make sure to reduce the flame to prevent burning. (2mins).
- Pour in a little water around the sides of the cornmeal and cover again.
- Let it steam for another 5 mins and then it is ready to serve.
I hope you enjoyed today's blogpost. I had a lot of fun cooking with my mom and learning from her. Definitely try out this recipe in your own kitchen and be sure to send me a message on instagram @theholistichealthnut letting me know how it goes.
Until next time!
Peace love and blessings<3
Reference:
Fish: Friend or Foe? (2019, May 22). Retrieved from https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/fish/
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