photo by Kristen

I recently went to an "all-inclusive" resort in Mexico.  Having never been, I expected a landlocked version of the Love Boat.  I think the hotel made a good margin on us.  We didn't eat, drink or sun ourselves into a coma.  The food was actually much better than I expected (not so the margaritas) and there was something very Epcot Centerish about wandering around "Mexicoland" on the way to white sand beaches.  Not sure we will do it again, but it was a nice way to spend a few days.

We spent one day in Playa del Carmen, sitting out in the sand with a lunch of ceviche and tacos.  It’s a nice little town if you stay away from the frog place and Carlos and Charlie's.  There is something special about sitting in the shade, drinking Mexican beer and eating snacks while listening to the waves.

Truth be told, the tacos were pretty much the best food on the Love Boat.  Once we figured out where they were, we at lunch in the same spot (there were something like a dozen restaurants) .  Watching the guy cook them to order, I realized I have never seen tacos made exactly this way before.

For those of you that don't live in Texas, pico de gallo is a ubiquitous condiment/salsa made of tomatoes, onions, peppers and lime.  Replace it with any salsa you like.

I like these tacos on the small side, with corn tortillas, but they work just as well with flour.  With the smaller tacos, the fish lasts longer.  Be gentle once you starting cooking the fish to keep the batter from coming off.

Yucatan Fish Tacos

12 oz fish prepared using the recipe for Oistins Fish Fry

1 onion, long sliced

2 Tbsp olive oil

White wine

Pinch of red pepper

1 avocado

Pico de gallo

Corn or flour tortillas

Directions

1. Heat the oil in a cast iron skillet over medium heat.


2. Sauté the onion until the onion starts to become translucent.

1. Add the fish with a pinch of hot chili

1. Once the fish starts to warm, add a splash of wine.  Allow the wine to boil off and remove from heat.

1. Warm the tortillas on a griddle or flat pan.

1. Prepare the tacos with fish, a slice of avocado and some pico de gallo

photo by daveypea

Its hard to go wrong with fried fish.  Fish and chips is not a fare landlocked in the UK, although its hard to match the popularity of UK chip shops.  As I have posted before, fried fish is common in the Caribbean Islands.

Friday's in southern Barbados brings the Oistins Fish Fry, near some of the best beaches on the island.  Dozens of fish stands appear, the tourists pour in and everyone enjoys the island version of Shriner's fried fish benefit.

I use the frozen fillets from Whole Foods.  They are excellent quality and come in the perfect portion for 2-4 people.  Be cautious not to marinate the fish too long in the lime, or you'll be frying ceviche.  I grind the panko a bit to avoid ending up with tempura, but I think the panko adds a good crunch to the breading.

Oistins Fish Fry

2 mahi mahi filets (12oz)

Juice of 2 limes

1 egg

1/2 white onion, minced

1 clove of garlic, minced

1 in grated ginger

1 tsp tumeric

1/2 tsp ground coriander

1/2 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp garlic powder

1/4 tsp black pepper

Pinch of clove

1/4 cup breadcrumbs

1/4 cup panko, ground a few seconds in a spice grinder

1/2 cup flour

1/2 tsp white pepper

1/2 tsp paprika

1/2 tsp hot red chili

1/2 tsp salt

Directions

1. Rinse the fish, dust with salt and marinate it with the lime and 2 tablespoons of water for 30-60 minutes.

1. Beat the egg with a little water.   Add the onion, garlic, ginger, tumeric, coriander, cumin, cinnamon, garlic powder, clove and pepper.  Mix well.

1. Rinse the fish again and cut into 1/2" strips.  Marinate with the egg/seasoning mix for a few hours.


2. Mix the breadcrumbs, flour, panko, peppers, paprika and salt in a shallow bowl.

1. Dredge the fish the flour until covered well.

1. Fry over medium heat for 3 minutes per side.

I am a Whole Foods shopper.  "Whole Paycheck" jokes aside, I admire their commitment to fresh, organic ingredients that are local where possible.  I like the people that work there.  I like the people who shop there.  I like the place.  I might be unduly influenced by the fact that they opened their first store where I live, and I remember shopping as they built their business.  This was long before they used Wall Street cash to buy up everyone doing the same sort of thing with the same sort of commitment and learn how to do it all a little better.  Maybe the stores elsewhere are different, but I have been to plenty and they seem to all have the same commitment to quality that brings me back.

The stores are disorganized.  I find things in the strangest places.  One day, while I was waiting for the seafood guy to finish up with his customers and package up my green chili smoked salmon, I was poking around the case next to smoked fish.  I noticed something strange, yet recognizable.  Salt cod.  Fish in a wooden box is not something that jumps out at you, but I knew when I saw that little box it was not the first time I had heard of salt cod.

Stamp and Go is really a recipe for cod fritters.  I have heard various stories of where the name comes from - something about a bus and the fritters being served at bus stops.  I love buses, so Stamp and Go seemed like a good place to start with salt cod.

Stamp and Go is really fried salt cod fritters.  The recipe involves a simple way of making a batter with the cod, but it does involve the fish sitting overnight to get the salt out.  So leave some time to prepare the batter - these little cakes are not a quick snack.  This is an intentionally small recipe, since I have found that these do not keep well.  They are best served fresh and hot, which really makes them the perfect street food.  This recipe will make 10-12 fritters, depending how big and how flat you make them.

After making the batter, I cooked the fritters by dropping a bit of batter in the oil and building the fritters up to the right size.  Don't try to get enough batter on a spoon to make one fritter - just drop some in and build them up the way you want them.  I make three fritters at the same time in a cast iron pan with a cover.

Stamp and Go

1/4 lb salted cod

1 Tbsp olive oil

1/2 onion, minced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tomato, diced

1/2 in grated ginger

1/2 cup green pepper, diced

1 habanero pepper, seeded and minced

1 cup flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup water

1 egg, beaten

1 tsp ground black pepper

2 green onions, chopped

Oil for frying

Directions

1. Rinse the cod under cold water.  Soak the cod in cold water overnight.  Use enough water to cover the fish well and give the salt lots of room to dissolve.

1. Rinse the cod one last time, then thoroughly flake the fish and set aside.


2. Heat the oil and sauté the onion with the garlic until the onion is translucent.  Mix in the tomato, ginger, green pepper, habanero and set aside.


3. Mix the flour, baking powder, salt in a bowl.

1. Beat the egg with the water and add to the flour mixture.

1. Add the vegetable mixture to the flour mixture and blend with the pepper, green onions and flaked fish.


2. Heat the oil in a skillet to about 350 degrees.  Drop the batter in the oil by the spoonful, building up each fritter until it is the correct size.  Cook 3-5 minutes, until nice and golden brown, then flip over and cook another 3 minutes.


3. Serve hot with lime and hot sauce or salsa.

Street food holds a special place in the lives of Thai diners.  Street food is not an oddity housed in an Airstream trailer.  Street food is a way of life - in some cities most residents do their primary dining from street vendors.  Trying to capture street food in a place like Thailand is like fishing with a butterfly net.

Spicy fish cakes are a fairly common staple.  They are served with lime wedges and occasionally small salads.  Tod Man Pla is typically deep fried until lightly crispy.  You'll sometimes see them as fish balls, but they are more common as a patty.

This recipe is made to be doubled, if you have the fish.  This is the right size for me, but very easy to multiply for a party.

The real trick here is the red curry paste.  If you decide to pull it out of a jar, its going to take no time at all to make these, but you'll lose some taste and color in the Tod Man.  There are brands with more local flavor than what you'll find at Whole Foods, but its easy enough to make your own paste.

When you make the paste, you can decide how much you want to leave the vegetables  whole.  I use a hand processor so that I get a choppy, inconsistent paste.

Spicy Fish Cakes (Tod Man Pla)

Patty

1 lb fish (I pick what I can get - salmon works well but so does Tilapia)

1/4 cup Thai Red Curry Paste or fresh curry paste (see below)

1 tsp salt

1 egg

3/4 cup diced green beans

1 basil leave, diced

Directions

1. Use a food processor to blend the fish, curry paste, salt and egg.


2. Fold in the green beans and basil.


3. Form into patties and fry in a vegetable oil over medium.  It takes about 3 minutes per side

Thai Red Curry Paste

3 Shallots or heirloom red onions

1 in ginger or galangal

4 in lemongrass

1 Tbsp cilantro, diced

2 cloves garlic

1 tsp salt

1 Tbsp kaffir limes leaves

1 1/2 tsp sugar

1 tsp soy sauce

1/2 tsp fish sauce

2 fresh red chilis

Blend in food processor to the consistency you like.

Sliders are a great invention.  I'm sure White Castle has a higher unit margin than other burger shops - less meat, more bread, more sliders.  I have but one rub with sliders, and it’s a big one - I don't like burgers.

I realize that burgers and hot dogs are all American street food. For many reasons, none having to do with White Castle, I have not had a burger since I was a kid.  But I love sliders,so accommodations must be made.

Sliders aren't just great because they come in cool little boxes. A local spot serves Kobe beef sliders on a fancy plate.  I like them because they are snack sized and you can do all kinds of modifications to them.

Ever since people started blackening things like mad I have been making sandwiches out of blackened fish.  I think it’s a much better delivery mechanism than covering blackened fish in heavy sauces with crab or crawfish.  I'll take that too, if you're buying.

I realize most native cajuns would rather use peanut oil, but I don't like to burn my oils and this recipe cooks pretty hot.  I use a decent high temp oil.

For the fixins, I like to use a combination of red and white cabbage, but spicy slaw works well too.

Blackened Snapper Sliders

2 tsp paprika

1/2 tsp mexican oregano

1/2 tsp thyme

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

1/2 tsp white pepper

1/2 tsp onion pepper

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

Safflower oil

2 cloves garlic, smashed

1 lb red snapper or redfish

Slider buns

Directions

1. Heat 2 Tbsp of oil in a cast iron skillet.  Sauté the garlic until it starts to brown, then remove the garlic.


2. Mix all the seasonings together well, and coat the fish on one side.


3. Make sure the skillet is hot, but not smoking.


4. Put the fish in the skillet seasoning side down, then coat the next side with seasoning


5. Let the fish cook, depending on thickness, for 3 minutes.  Turn once and cook for another 3 minutes.  If the fish is not done, leave on that side until it is.


6. Make the sliders with small pieces of fish.  Top with cabbage or spicy slaw.