Bajan Seasoning, Updates, and more.

Kinda slow this week for some reason. Not that I haven't been cooking, but it's been dishes I've told you about long ago.

Bajan Seasoning

We brought some of this back from Barbados two years ago, but it's long gone. Since I'm going to do a Bajan Pepperpot recipe for the Jones Creek Beef posts, I knew I had to buckle down and make a batch rather than trying to shop around and buy the pre-made stuff. 

There's no such thing as a single recipe for Bajan Seasoning, although you can buy it in packets and jars on the island of Barbados and certain special places in the U.S. Every good cook has his/er own version. This is mine. 

Bajan Seasoning is great for everything - meats, fishes, poultry, soups and stews, etc. A tablespoon or two will kick up the flavor of almost anything (well, maybe not ice cream...). Vinegary, oniony, a touch spicy, you'll really like this, trust me!

Make a batch and store it in an airtight jar in the fridge -- it will last for a couple months at least. Pretty fast and easy to make, too -- if you've got decent knife skills. Still easier and faster to make if you have a food processor rather than good knife skills.

1 bunch of Green Onions, minced

1 Red Jalapeño pepper, minced (want it hotter? Use a Scotch Bonnet or Habañero.)

1 cup minced Parsley

1/2 cup minced fresh Dill (or 1 Tbsp dry)

2 Tbsp Thyme (dry) or 2-3 fresh sprigs of leaves, minced

2 Tbsp Marjoram (dry) (fresh seems very hard to find for some reason)

12 leaves fresh Basil, minced

3 pressed Garlic cloves (minced fine, if you don't have a garlic press)

3/4 cup minced Onion

1 Tbsp grated fresh Ginger

Juice of 3 Limes

1/2 cup White Wine Vinegar

Salt and Pepper to taste

Mince, chop, grate everything as fine as possible, and combine in a bowl. Makes 1-2 cups depending on how fine you chop and whether you used many dry herbs rather than fresh. Seal in a zip top bag or snap top container and let it 'marry' in the fridge for a few days before using. 

The result should be sort of like a pesto.

But this pesto is a flavoring agent for meats, fish, stews. etc You can think of this Seasoning as the Bajan equivalent of Sofrito, the Cajun Trinity or a French Mirepoix -- a collection of vegetables and herbs used a flavor base for hundreds of dishes, which enhances the flavor of each and every one.

Asparagus Tart Update

It was so good the first time we just had to have it again. Here's a better photo to show you what the whole thing looks like. This time, rather than the expensive Gruyere cheese, I used shredded (not grated) Parmesan. Equally tasty and half the cost. Stay tuned for more variations (cheeses, dressings, spices, who knows).

Jones Creek Update

Speaking of beef, I finally got the Wal-mart Gift Card frome the Jones Creek marketing folks. But then I discovered that, oops!, the products aren't here in Florida yet. According to the Jones Creek folks and marketing company, it will be "a week or so" before the beef gets to two of my local Wal-Mart Superstores. "An-tic-i-pa-tion, is makin' me late; keepin' me wa-ait-n'."

Punjabi Chhole

No that's not a finger-stumble typo on the keyboard. It really is spelled C-h-h-o-l-e (don't ask why). Chhole is a Punjabi name for Chickpeas/Garbanzos. Chhole Masala means "chickpea spice blend", and it can be found in virtually every Indian Market in the world. This recipe comes driectly from the spice box, and couldn't be simpler. The only bad thing about making dishes from dried chickpeas is that they seemingly take forever to cook -- about two hours of simmering. This, I've decided is a good use for a pressure cooker if you have one (I don't). If you had a PC, cooking the beans would probably take 20-30 minutes... rather than two hours.

8 oz dry Chickpeas

1 large Onion, diced

1 Roma Tomato, diced

1 Poblano Chile, diced (use jalapeño or guajillo or serrano peppers for more heat)

1" fresh Ginger, minced

1-3 tsp Chhole Masala spice blend

Cook the chickpeas in at least 4 cups of water, simmering about 2 hours. Add more water as necessary, until they are plump and tender.  I added a teaspoon of Chhole Masala spice to the cooking water, to "pre-flavor" the beans a little.

Meanwhile, dice the onion, tomato, chile and mince the ginger. Cook the vegetation in a small pan until the onion is soft and the tomato is pretty well dissolved.

Drain the chickpeas, reserving the remaining liquid. Add the cooked veg to the beans, and add back some of the cooking liquid. Add 2 teaspoons of the Chhole Masala and stir to combine. Simmer for a couple minutes and taste. Need more masala? Add some a teaspoon at a time. If 2 teaspoons of masala is too spicy for you, add a 1/4 cup of plain yogurt to the bean pot and stir to combine.  The yogurt will mellow things out a lot as well as adding a creamy texture to the sauce.

This is a great side dish to a curry, or any meal for that matter. This time I made the dish for Sally to take to work for an appreciation potluck lunch, where at least two of the guests were from the Indian subcontinent, and many others were vegetarians.