Locally-pastured chicken breast halves (off-the-bone, skin removed) are marinated overnight in a mixture of mango juice, fresh ginger, sea salt & cracked black pepper, then dredged in coconut flour, dipped in egg wash and breaded with toasted panko. While the chicken is baking (about 30 minutes at 350 degrees), a gastrique of fresh mango, cultured butter, chicken stock and champagne vinegar is reduced and blended for the accompanying sauce. The finished plate is dressed with toasted coconut and slivered scallions..
Dried kidney beans are picked over and soaked overnight, cooked, drained and simmered with fire-roasted tomatoes, onions, garlic, ginger, chiles and toasted whole spices. Served over a bed of Indian-spiced, aged basmati rice, this dish totally rocks the taste buds while remaining inexpensive and easy to prepare..
Rajmah (Vegetarian Kidney Bean Curry)
For the Rajmah, I adapted a recipe from Smitten Kitchen, while the cardamom and cinnamon-scented rice preparation comes from Simply Recipes. In the latter case, you can simply substitute olive oil for the ghee to suit your vegan needs. Both recipes are seriously delicious just as they are.
This post is part of Meatless Monday, a non-profit initiative of The Monday Campaigns,
in association with the Johns Hopkins’ Bloomberg School of Public Health
A riff on the familiar Jamaican dish, this version adds sweet potatoes and fresh scallions to the long-simmered goat, fresh ginger, garlic and tomatoes. Scotch bonnet peppers and Caribbean curry powder add a quickly-building, lingering heat..
Caribbean Goat Curry
Sear a pound of cubed local, pastured goat in a very hot, greased Dutch oven until nicely browned on all sides. Add a chopped yellow onion and cook, stirring infrequently until the onions are browned, about 5 minutes. Add a chopped Scotch bonnet pepper (2 if you’re brave), a clove or two of minced garlic, a teaspoon or so of freshly-minced ginger and stir to combine.
Add a tablespoon of good Caribbean curry powder (turmeric, cumin, coriander, fenugreek, star anise, black pepper and the all-important allspice) and fry until fragrant.
Reduce heat to medium and add 2 cups of chopped tomatoes, half a tablespoon of vinegar, a few sprigs of fresh thyme and enough stock (preferred) or water to just barely cover the meat.
Bring the pot to a boil, then lower heat, partially cover and simmer until the meat is tender and the liquid has reduced in volume by about 1/3, about 4-5 hours, adding diced sweet potatoes during the last hour. Remember to give the pot a stir once an hour and add a little liquid if needed to keep it from drying out.
Adjust flavor with sea salt and black pepper if you think it necessary, then ladle into bowls, top with slivered scallions and a sprig of thyme and serve immediately.
Wild Alaskan sockeye salmon is pan-seared with hulled hemp seeds, then finished in a hot oven with a sauce of freshly-squeezed yuzu juice, organic tamari and fresh ginger, scallions and shichimi tōgarashi..
Put yuzu juice and sugar into a heavy-bottomed saucepan and bring to a low boil. Lower heat and simmer until reduced in volume by about a third or until thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Add remaining ingredients (except scallions and coriander leaves), reduce heat to low and simmer 20 minutes.
Coat salmon fillets with hemp seed then place in refrigerator for 30 minutes. Heat coconut oil in a heavy skillet over medium heat until shimmering, then place hemp-coated salmon in the hot oil, presentation side down.
Sauté until light golden brown then gently turn over and pour yuzu-ginger glaze over the top. Place pan with salmon in a 400 degree oven and roast until just done, about 8 minutes depending on thickness.
Transfer cooked fish to dinner plates, then add scrape pan juices into the yuzu-ginger glaze, add scallions and coriander leaves, stir and pour back over the salmon. Serve immediately.
From Red Gold
“The Bristol Bay region of Southwest Alaska is home to the Kvichak and Nushagak rivers, the two most prolific sockeye salmon runs left in the world. Foreign mining companies Northern Dynasty Minerals and Anglo American have partnered to propose development of what could be one of the world’s largest open-pit and underground mines at the headwaters of the two river systems. Mine backers claim the Pebble exploration site is the second largest combined deposit of copper, gold, and molybdenum ever discovered, and has an estimated value of more than $300 billion.
Despite promises of a clean project by officials, the accident-plagued history of hard rock mining has sparked deep concern from Alaskans who love and depend upon Bristol Bay’s incredible wild salmon fishery. Red Gold documents the growing unrest among Alaska Native, commercial, and sport-fishermen. It’s a portrait of a unique way of life that will not survive if the salmon don’t return with Bristol Bay’s tide...”
Heirloom carrots are simmered in vegetable stock with yellow onions, green chiles, ginger and garlic and seasoned with toasted coriander and cumin. Served with turmeric-scented basmati, roasted cashews and fresh cilantro.
Curried Carrot Soup with Roasted Cashews and Coconut Cream
For the Soup
1 bunch fresh carrots, trimmed, scrubbed and coarsely chopped
2 small yellow onions, coarsely chopped
2 cloves garlic, peeled
1-1/2 teaspoons freshly-grated ginger
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
2 tablespoons coriander seed
1/2 teaspoon fenugreek
1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds
1 tablespoon paprika
1 small sprig fresh curry leaves
1-2 fresh green chiles, chopped
1 tablespoon virgin coconut oil
1-1/2 cups vegetable stock
1/2 cup coconut milk
sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper
rice
cashews
cilantro
coconut cream
Roast carrots in a 350 degree oven for 15 minutes. Add onions, garlic, coriander and cumin seeds and roast 15 minutes more.
Melt coconut oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. When shimmering add curry leaf, fenugreek, mustard, chiles and coriander seeds. Cook until the mustard seeds begin to pop and the curry leaves are crisp. Stir in paprika and ginger and cook 1 minute.
Add roasted vegetables and stock and simmer 15 minutes. Working in batches if necessary, carefully puree soup in a blender until smooth. Strain into a clean pot and simmer 10 minutes. Whisk in coconut milk and simmer 5 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
To serve, place a mound of turmeric-scented basmati in a bowl and ladle soup all around. Spoon a little coconut cream over the rice and swirl into the soup. Garnish with toasted cashews, minced chiles and chopped cilantro.
