I hope you’ve all had a wonderful Easter break. I know fish featured prominently, and based on emails I have received, it continues to play a major role in your weekly meals; and I can’t say I am surprised given the trend of eating healthier. Lately, I have had a lot of expatriates and people who love Jamaican culture writing to me from abroad. Many of them have a love affair with our delicious steamed fish and since I noticed this pattern and try to keep in tune with the readership, today I thought I’d go back to the basics and share a steamed fish recipe.

A good steamed fish is one of the most deliciously satisfying meals. I’m not sure if it’s the tender, succulent flesh which falls off the bones, the melt-in-your-mouth soft vegetables, or the sauce with the hint of butter, spices and herbs, but Jamaican steamed fish is super special. Many Jamaican men believe that a good steamed fish, especially when it involves okra, acts as an aphrodisiac. Every family has their own methods of preparing and seasoning this meal.

Red snapper seems to be the hands-down favourite, much like parrot fish is preferred fried. Snapper’s soft flesh seems to be the perfect pairing for the sauce. Also, there are some good-sized snappers out there that can feed an entire family which makes it great for a one-pot meal when available. The fish I used today was bought from a fisherman in the country and must have weighed five pounds, so it had to be sliced.

Apparently catching large snappers is more difficult because fishermen have to dive deeper to find them. I totally believe that one should never argue with fishermen over the price of fish because it is dangerous work and labour intensive. There is nothing like fish straight off the boat and immediately cooked. This is one of the great pleasures of living on an island.

One-Pot Steamed Fish Meal

The following recipe is for a one-pot meal. Use this as a guide as it is dependent upon what you have in your kitchen. You can use more or less ingredients as your taste dictates.

Ingredients:

1 large snapper, scaled, gutted and cleaned

A few okras, sliced

1 cho cho, julienned

1 carrot, julienned

1 wedge of pumpkin, sliced

2 tomatoes, sliced

1 large onion, sliced

2 stalks of escallion

1 fat sprig of thyme

Crushed pimento grains

Crushed black peppercorns

1 tbsp margarine

Fish seasoning to taste

Salt to taste

Crackers (optional)

Method:

Slice the cleaned fish and season with black pepper, salt, and fish seasoning.

Add to a large pot roughly a cup and a half of water (or more if needed) just enough to cover the fish.

Next add all the other ingredients and cover the pot tightly.

Simmer over medium heat until the fish and vegetables are cooked (approximately 20 minutes, it all depends on the thickness of the fish, so eyeball it).

Add crackers at the end.

A special shout-out to all the brave, hard-working fishermen throughout the island.

Thanks to my dear sponsors MegaMart who have been extremely supportive of this column.

Bon Appétit!