AuthorBriana RiddockYields4 ServingsCategoryCaribbean
When we travelled from Kingston to Ocho Rios, I remember grabbing food from street merchants. We stuck our hands out of the car to buy bags of guinep, peppered shrimp, mangoes and coconut water. Guinep is a peculiar fruit. I snapped the leathery skin open to reveal a pulpy flesh reminiscent of lychee with notes of a sweet and sour. The fruit was mostly seeded, so we devoured a bag quickly. It was the perfect snack for travelling cross country.
Roads were narrow, filled with potholes, and the drivers drove fearlessly around mountainsides. We ventured through Fern Gully, a magical winding road covered in a thick fern that was once a river. The starking sun rays bounced everywhere as it peaked through the greenery. When we reached the Ochie, we made a stop at Dunn’s River Fall, the most popular waterfall in Jamaica. I would grab the hands of my brother and sister, while the freshwater gushed over our faces as we climbed the slippery waterfall rocks. Memories of Jamaica will always make it my piece of paradise.
Ingredients
Directions
Rinse and clean fish with juice from the lemon. Pat dry. Cut 3 diagonal lines across the sides of each fish.
Mix spices sea salt, cracked black pepper, paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, celery powder, and cumin in a small bowl.
Season the outside and inside cavity of the fish with the spice mix.
Fill a large frying pan with oil, about ½ inch deep, to high heat.
Season the oil by adding 6-8 pimento seeds and ½ of the scotch bonnet pepper (or a whole pepper for a more intense heat) into the oil. The scotch bonnet pepper will eventually turn black as it cooks. That’s ok!
Place fish in the frying pan away from you. Adjust the heat between medium and high to avoid the fish being burned.
Fry for 5-6 minutes on each side. The fish should be slightly brown to blackened.
Remove fish from frying pan and allow to drain on a plate lined with paper towels.
Allow the oil to cool and strain, reserving ½ cup of oil. Discard remaining oil.
In a large saucepan, warm reserved oil to medium heat. Add fresh oil if needed.
Add onions, remaining allspice seeds, red pepper, green pepper, carrot, and remaining scotch bonnet pepper to lightly saute.
Saute for about 5 minutes, you want the vegetables to keep their body and crunch.
Add the rice vinegar, and cook for another 5 minutes.
Place onions and pepper sauce over the fish.
Serve with Jamaican Rice and Peas.
Ingredients
Directions
Rinse and clean fish with juice from the lemon. Pat dry. Cut 3 diagonal lines across the sides of each fish.
Mix spices sea salt, cracked black pepper, paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, celery powder, and cumin in a small bowl.
Season the outside and inside cavity of the fish with the spice mix.
Fill a large frying pan with oil, about ½ inch deep, to high heat.
Season the oil by adding 6-8 pimento seeds and ½ of the scotch bonnet pepper (or a whole pepper for a more intense heat) into the oil. The scotch bonnet pepper will eventually turn black as it cooks. That’s ok!
Place fish in the frying pan away from you. Adjust the heat between medium and high to avoid the fish being burned.
Fry for 5-6 minutes on each side. The fish should be slightly brown to blackened.
Remove fish from frying pan and allow to drain on a plate lined with paper towels.
Allow the oil to cool and strain, reserving ½ cup of oil. Discard remaining oil.
In a large saucepan, warm reserved oil to medium heat. Add fresh oil if needed.
Add onions, remaining allspice seeds, red pepper, green pepper, carrot, and remaining scotch bonnet pepper to lightly saute.
Saute for about 5 minutes, you want the vegetables to keep their body and crunch.
Add the rice vinegar, and cook for another 5 minutes.
Place onions and pepper sauce over the fish.
Serve with Jamaican Rice and Peas.
