Do any of you have any favorite Caribbean recipes?

A few years back, I was in Reno visiting a daughter. She took me to an
amazing little restaurant, called, "Bananas."

The place seemed to be a combination of Caribbean cooking blended with
some Thai and Vietnamese flavors, as well as slightly Cajun. The
combinations were amazing.

Sadly, "Bananas" went out of business before I had an opportunity to go
back, and study their dishes a bit more.

Myrl Jeffcoat
http://www.myrljeffcoat.com

> wrote in message
oups.com...
> Do any of you have any favorite Caribbean recipes?
>
My favorite is Red Snapper with a Caribbean or Yucatan style Sour Orange,
Cumin and Chile sauce poured over a lightly fried fillet of snapper. I say
Caribbean or Yucatan style because it depends on how I feel like making it
that day.
The Caribe style has more spices like Allspice, Cinnamon and Clove in it.
Yucatan style I made with Anchoite paste or an Annatto seed oil. Both use
the Serrano or Habanero/ Scotch Bonnet chile for the heat (sparingly for me)
.. Red beans and
Rice with a Sweet Potato (Yam ) fritter are favorite sides. Second favorite
is Jerk, either
pork or chicken. and my second, second favorite is Cuban pork followed by
mojo isleno (fried fish with Puerto Rican sauce). The sauce is usually made
with olives and olive oil, onions, pimientos, capers, tomato sauce, vinegar,
garlic and bay leaves, then served with a side of plátanos. There are so
many good dishes from each of the Islands culture but they all tend to share
ideas and flavors.

www.epicurious.com has one of the better basic collections I have found to
start on a Caribbean cooking adventure


> The place seemed to be a combination of Caribbean cooking blended with
> some Thai and Vietnamese flavors, as well as slightly Cajun. The
> combinations were amazing.

You sure it was SE Asian (Thai and Vietnamese) flavors? After the Slave
trade was abolished in the
late 1700s, Indentured servants from India and Indonesia were brought to
the Caribbean to work the sugar cane fields bringing a lot of new spices and
flavors to the rapidly growing Creole culture. You might consider it
splitting hairs but it was probably a Creole influence not Cajun. there is
a
difference between Cajun and Creole.
http://ccet.louisiana.edu/03a_Cultur...e/Creoles.html ,
more so when talking food:

http://www.chefrick.com/html/cajun-creole.html : "In general, Cajun dishes
are the country cooking of Louisiana, highlighted by dirty rice, gumbos,
jambalaya, andouille (pronounced ahnd-wee or ahn-do-wee, it's a spicy smoked
sausage) and simple foods such as fried catfish. Cajun cooking traditionally
uses pork fat and simpler ingredients.

Creole is the food of the city, a more refined cuisine represented by
Oysters Rockefeller, Shrimp Remoulade and Bananas Foster. It traditionally
used the butter available to the wealthy Creoles, and more expensive
ingredients.

Some people will tell you that if a dish has tomatoes, it's Creole, not
Cajun. That isn't always true. Tomatoes have been known to turn up in
jambalaya or gumbo, which are both Cajun.
Both Cajun and Creole use the "Holy Trinity" of New Orleans cooking: green
peppers, onions and celery. They both also rely on the roux (pronounced
'Roo) as the base of the dish. A Roux is simply flour cooked in fat, either
pork fat or butter, until it browns. This adds flavor and thickness to the
dish". Blackened is a tourist thing make up by a drunk overweight chef
passing off a burnt fish in NOLA in the 70s! Since then some still buy into
the myth .

Myrl wrote:

> Do any of you have any favorite Caribbean recipes?
>
> A few years back, I was in Reno visiting a daughter. She took me to an
> amazing little restaurant, called, "Bananas."
>
> The place seemed to be a combination of Caribbean cooking blended with
> some Thai and Vietnamese flavors, as well as slightly Cajun. The
> combinations were amazing.
>
> Sadly, "Bananas" went out of business before I had an opportunity to go
> back, and study their dishes a bit more.

Since you're in my area: Have you tried out "Barbacoa Breeze," just across
from the Sunrise Mall? Here's what I wrote about them here a year and a
half ago:

"A new Caribbean restaurant opened in Citrus Heights. It's named "Barbacoa
Breeze," and it's on Sunrise, kitty-corner from the Sunrise Mall. (It used
to be McGee's, but I'm not able to make any comparison between the old and
the new because I never went there when it was McGee's.) The ambience is
Caribbean-casual, but the staff was attentive and the food was good: I had a
"lava flow," which is a virgin Piña Colada with a big dollop of strawberry
puree on top (which is supposed to look like lava), then I had a cup of
their pumpkin soup. The soup is thick and smooth, and came with a little
spiral of creme fraiche on top. For my main course, I had a "Jamaican Turkey
Burger," which was topped with a mostly-pineapple fruit chutney. The burger
was accompanied by french-fried sweet potatoes and mixed fruit (cantaloupe,
honeydew, and grapes). The fries, fruit, and drink were sweet enough that I
didn't want dessert, although I did note key lime pie and Bananas Foster on
the menu."

Bob

On 10 Aug 2006 16:56:02 -0500, "Bob Terwilliger"
> wrote:

>Myrl wrote:
>
>> Do any of you have any favorite Caribbean recipes?
>>
>> A few years back, I was in Reno visiting a daughter. She took me to an
>> amazing little restaurant, called, "Bananas."
>>
>> The place seemed to be a combination of Caribbean cooking blended with
>> some Thai and Vietnamese flavors, as well as slightly Cajun. The
>> combinations were amazing.
>>
>> Sadly, "Bananas" went out of business before I had an opportunity to go
>> back, and study their dishes a bit more.
>
>Since you're in my area: Have you tried out "Barbacoa Breeze," just across
>from the Sunrise Mall? Here's what I wrote about them here a year and a
>half ago:
>
>"A new Caribbean restaurant opened in Citrus Heights. It's named "Barbacoa
>Breeze," and it's on Sunrise, kitty-corner from the Sunrise Mall. (It used
>to be McGee's, but I'm not able to make any comparison between the old and
>the new because I never went there when it was McGee's.) The ambience is
>Caribbean-casual, but the staff was attentive and the food was good: I had a
>"lava flow," which is a virgin Piña Colada with a big dollop of strawberry
>puree on top (which is supposed to look like lava), then I had a cup of
>their pumpkin soup. The soup is thick and smooth, and came with a little
>spiral of creme fraiche on top. For my main course, I had a "Jamaican Turkey
>Burger," which was topped with a mostly-pineapple fruit chutney. The burger
>was accompanied by french-fried sweet potatoes and mixed fruit (cantaloupe,
>honeydew, and grapes). The fries, fruit, and drink were sweet enough that I
>didn't want dessert, although I did note key lime pie and Bananas Foster on
>the menu."

I confess, I haven't tried them, "Bob". My aunt lives in Citrus
Heights, so maybe one of these times when I'm visiting her, I shall,
and we'll go there together -- that would be a treat for both of us!
Otherwise, I tend not to venture far outta my area for dining. I have
the whole of downtown not 10 minutes' drive. It works for me.

TammyM