Recipes
Recipes
Black Snapper and Shrimp Gravy over Grits
Black Snapper
Grits
Shrimp Stock (enough for grits and gravy)
Holy Trinity
Fresh Tomatoes
Flour (coating for fish and base for gravy)
Cornmeal
Salt, pepper, and other seasonings
Oil for frying
Saute Holy Trinity. Add flour and butter to make a light roux. Add tomatoes. After 5-7 minutes, add shrimp stock. Bring to a boil so that it thickens. Season with salt and pepper and simmer, stirring occasionally. Cook grits according to desired consistency, replacing water with shrimp stock. Dredge fish in favorite spices (I use salt, pepper, thyme, and smoked paprika) flour and cornmeal and fry. Serve fish over grits and gravy.
Pan Seared Mahi-Mahi with Brown Butter Sauce
Mahi-Mahi Filet
Butter
Parsley
Salt
Pepper
Coriander
Cumin
Paprika
Juice of Lemon
Rub Mahi-Mahi in salt, pepper, coriander, cumin, and paprika. Sear in hot pan until desired doneness. Finish with lemon juice. Add half a stick of butter and cook on medium-high heat until browned, perhaps 4-6 minutes. Remove immediately to stop the cooking process. Add parsley to brown butter sauce and serve over fish. Pairs well with wild rice and roasted vegetables.
Catfish Stew with Shrimp
Wild-caught Catfish (3-4) filets
Wild-caught Shrimp 16-20 ct. (1lb)
Canned Tomatoes (32 oz.)
Tomato Paste
Holy Trinity (w/ scallions)
Butter
Salt
Pepper
Thyme
Oregano
Cayenne Pepper
Garlic (3-4 cloves)
Seafood Stock
White rice
Parsley (for garnish)
Saute Holy Trinity in butter until it is fragrant. Add tomato paste, then canned tomatoes. Add seasonings. Cook for 5-7 minutes. Add box of seafood stock. Bring to a boil, then simmer. Dice catfish into nugget-sized chunks. Add to stew. After 2 minutes, add shrimp until it begins to curl. Serve over white rice. Will taste even better the next day.
Tomatoes and Okra
Cherry or Grape Tomatoes (sliced)
Okra (sliced lengthwise)
Garlic Cloves
Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper
Saute garlic in olive oil. After 30 seconds, add tomatoes. Cook down for about 5 minutes. Add okra, salt, and pepper. Cook for another 3-4 minutes. Pairs well with any protein or serve over rice.
Grilled Chicken and Chimichurri Salad
Grilled Chicken (or any protein)
Baby Spinach
Sliced Cherry Tomatoes
Sliced Avocado
Jalapeno Pepper
Green Bell Pepper
Olive Oil
Cilantro
Parsley
Juice of Lime
Garlic Cloves (to taste)
Salt and Pepper
Combine cilantro, parsley, bell pepper, jalapeno pepper, lime juice, and garlic in a food processor. Once smooth, slowly pour olive oil into the processor until desired consistency is reached. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Grill chicken or other protein. Once cooled, combine with spinach, avocado, and tomatoes. Toss with chimichurri mixture.
Tuscan Spinach and Sausage Penne
Sweet Italian Sausage
Baby Spinach
Sundried Tomatoes
Half-and-Half
Onions
Garlic
Salt
Pepper
Crushed Red Pepper
Dice and cook sausage in large pan. Saute garlic and onion in sausage drippings. Add sundried tomatoes. Cook for 5 minutes. Add half-and-half and bring to a boil. Return sausage to the pan and return to a simmer. Add spinach. Toss cooked penne with sausage mixture.
Red Red Hoppin John
one lb of Blackeyed peas
four cups of long grain rice
vegetable oil (for sauteing)
one medium onion
two scallions
red bell pepper
red Chile pepper
one tablespoon of ginger
six cloves of garlic
eight cups of veggie stock
dried thyme
three tablespoons of paprika
two medium tomatoes
one can of tomato paste
Saute onion, bell pepper, and scallions in oil until fragrant in a large stockpot. Add minced garlic, chile pepper, and grated ginger. Season vegetables with paprika, thyme, and salt and pepper. Add diced tomatoes and cook for five minutes. Add tomato paste and stir. Add soaked and drained Blackeyed peas. Add all of the stock and bring to a boil. Once boiling, bring to a simmer. Cook peas until tender. Once they are tender, add rice and stir. Once the rice is cooked, serve!
Efo Riro
one medium onion
two or three cloves of garlic
one habanero or scotch bonnet pepper
one half pound of smoked meat or fish
one seasoning cube
one can of diced tomatoes (28 oz.)
three or four bunches of spinach
Saute onions with smoked meat until fragrant.* Add garlic and peppers and cook for about a minute. Add seasoning cube with tomatoes their liquid and enough water to cover the vegetables. Bring to a boil, then simmer together for half an hour. Add spinach and cook until softened. Let it simmer for a while. Optional: blend the stew with an immersion blender. Serve with your favorite starch. Makes about 4-6 servings.
*Additional proteins can be added here. In fact, in traditional efo riro they are. Simply return them to the stew after adding the tomatoes. Can also be made with vegan substitutes.
Red Snapper Stew
one medium onion
one red bell pepper
one scotch bonnet or habanero pepper
twelve pods of okra
two 28 oz. cans of tomato sauce
one 6 oz. can of tomato paste
one 32 oz. box of seafood stock (learn how to make this at home!)
one whole snapper
one pound of shell-on shrimp (deveined)
one teaspoon of thyme
one teaspoon of oregano
one tablespoon of smoked paprika
Sweat onion and bell pepper until fragrant. Add scotch bonnet pepper. Add diced okra. Cook down. Add tomato paste and cook an additional 2 minutes. Add selected spices here, along with salt to taste. Be careful as the stock to be added contains salt already. Add tomato sauce and cook on medium for 10-15 minutes. Add stock and bring to a boil. You may want to add water here, depending on your desired consistency. The okra acts as a thickener. Once boiling, turn down the heat to a simmer. The flavors will come together here, so after twenty minutes, you may want to test. This step is important because it is how the seafood will be flavored. If it is too mild, add more spices and seasoning. After another twenty minutes, add fish until cooked through. Then add shrimp and cook until they curl up. Serve over stone ground grits or long grain rice.
Cabbage Soup
2 medium carrots diced or chopped
2 stalks of celery diced or chopped
Half of a yellow onion diced or chopped
2-3 cloves of garlic diced
1 habanero pepper
2 sprigs fresh thyme
Half head of cabbage chopped
1 14.5 oz can of diced or stewed tomatoes
64 oz. of vegetable broth or stock
1 tbsp paprika
Sea salt to taste
Sauté onion, carrots, and celery together until softened. Add garlic and habanero (keep the pepper whole). After thirty seconds to a minute, add can of tomatoes, paprika, thyme, and salt. Taste vegetable mixture to adjust seasonings. Add cabbage and cook down. Add broth and bring to a boil for one minute and then bring to a simmer. Cook to desired tenderness. 45 minutes to an hour. Add beans or cooked protein for heartier meal
Smothered Turkey Thighs
1 large yellow onion chopped or diced
16 fl. oz. chicken or turkey stock
flour for dredging
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp poultry seasoning blend/rub
½ cup heavy whipping cream
2 turkey thighs
Melt 1 tbsp of the butter in a large pan. Rub turkey thighs on all sides with the seasoning. Dredge turkey in flour. Then brown on both sides and remove from pan. Add remaining butter, then onions and cook until translucent. Return turkey thighs to the pan and add stock and bring it to a boil. After a minute or two, return to a simmer. Whisk the stock. The flour from the turkey will incorporate to thicken the mixture to a gravy. At this point, you may want to check the temperature on the turkey. It should reach around 145 degrees before you move to the next step. Add cream to the gravy mixture and allow it to thicken. You should turn the temperature up slightly, but it should come to a very gentle boil. Once the gravy thickens, turn the temperature back down. The thighs should be close to done now, but you may want to check the temperature again. They should be cooked to at least 165 degrees, but you can take them out if the reading is around 160 degrees, the residual heat will finish the cooking as you rest the meat and you begin to plate. Serve sliced pieces over long grain white rice. Can substitute chicken, increase to 4-6 pieces.
Poultry blend: kosher salt, ground black pepper, paprika, garlic powder, sage, thyme, oregano
