Erin Cooks Jamaican: Steam Fish

by it's true

I have taken to going down to Coronation/Queen’s market each Saturday and buying a bunch of produce (for about half the price you’d pay at a grocery store–with way more options) to be eaten over the following week. This has also meant lots of food discussions with market men and women. I’ve got wonderful suggestions on how to cook things and great insight into what vegetables work well together. This has meant that I’ve expanded my normal cooking routine and am trying a whole wack of new stuff. I thought that I might as well share my attempts.

This first try was with perhaps my favourite Jamaican meal. I love steam fish and bammy at the beach. Though fried fish is also great, I just adore the soft, moist fish and the slightly thick vegetable soup that is soaked up with water crackers, bammy (cassava flour cakes) and/or festival (doughnutty fried bread). For instructions, I looked at a number of recipes, asked some questions of the folks at the market and further inquired on Twitter (thanks to the lovely Juicy Chef and Nyamist!) to make sure that I had a good idea of what was required.

I considered adding cabbage, but decided against it. I wasn’t going to use pumpkin, but then was reminded that pumpkin, when it cooks, tends to dissolve in such a way that it will help thicken the stewy soup, along with the okra. Anyhow, all in all, I ended up with the following ingredients, with some pimento (a.k.a. all spice), pepper, oil and teeny bit of butter.I started with butter, pimento and oil…then added the chopped carrot, cho cho, onion, garlic, pumpkin, thyme and half the scallion. I held back on the tomatoes and the okra because I didn’t want the tomato to completely dissolve and I like my okra a little crunchy and not totally, well, slimy.

I let the veggies soften–and I didn’t have to worry about them sticking too much to the bottom, as I had purchased an incredible, non-stick stock pot specifically for this and potential steam fish making occasions. I had been thinking about a stock pot for a while (yes, I think about these types of things), and I realized that I just couldn’t go a year without one. I didn’t buy the best pot around, but I got one that will make cooking stuff like this a heck of a lot easier. Anyhow, while the veggies were cooking a little, I stuffed the fish with thyme, tomatoes and scallion.Note: Purple-y crimson fingernails are courtesy Ms. Flewwelling-Skup.

By this point the vegetables were a little soft, so I poured in some stock. I used a couple veggie stock cubes, but I probably should have used Grace Fish Tea since Jamaican comedian Fancy Cat used it in his recipe…I then dropped a whole scotch bonnet pepper in to simmer. This dropping-the-whole-darned-thing in technique is one that I wish I’d known before, as I’ve ruined a few things by tossing in a whole chopped pepper previously. I love hot and spicy food, but a little scotch bonnet goes a long way.When the pumpkin really started to soften and thicken the liquid a little, I tossed in the tomatoes and okra. After leaving it to simmer for a couple minutes, in went the fish, and any remaining scallion and thyme.

Fifteen minutes later, it was all done. I had made an attempt at baked bammy, but that was really quite dismal. They turned out like hockey pucks, but there was thankfully enough yummy liquid for them to soak up. I’d bought some water crackers, which are also traditionally eaten with steam fish, and they worked out quite well too. Apart from the bammy issue, this was absolutely delicious. We had some of the stewed vegetables left over, so we ate them the next day with homemade festival–well, not really homemade. It was from a mix, but I fried them myself after vainly searching on Google for “baked festival recipe”. Sometimes healthy just aint the way to go.

If you read this and have any suggestions for my steam fish, or suggestions for Jamaican food that I should give a try, please do comment. I’m back at the market on Saturday, and I’m always up for buying new and interesting ingredients.

Most photos by Josh Chamberlain, by the way…