CunningLinguist

cophereth asked what i used to season with and i started this long treatise in the comments and realised it was better suited as a post.

i`m deadly allergic to shellfish and have a mild allergy to fish, so i`m pretty much a carnivore. although with all the over processing, i`m cutting chicken from my diet, i just don`t like the way it makes me feel.

so my choices are pretty much beef and pork. i feel safe with the beef here, it`s grown by a variety of farms in large pastures, not processed, which is what caused mad cow in the first place.

but onto the seasoning. i usually clean with lime, to cut the freshness and trim according to what i`m going to do with it. next step is dicing onions, peppers, garlic, chadon beni and some other green seasoning, i also use a lot of dried bottled seasonings, oregano, parsley, celery seeds, thyme and my favourites, ground black pepper and butcher`s grade pepper. my cupboard also always contains, aromatic bitters, ground chilis and teriyaki sauce.

i put the meat in a bowl and start adding stuff, there is not methodology, it`s just about a sense of what seems right, it hasn`t lead me wrong thus far.

i come from a family of hypertensives, so i don`t use salt much, pretty much only on chicken, otherwise i use whatever is at hand. recently i got a small bottle of absolut and i`ve made beef marinated in vodka.

cooking is an adventure for me. and the fact that my diet is going to be severely limited for the next couple of months, i need to make what i`m eating interesting.

i`m a big fan of doubles.

and this week in my poverty ridden state, they have been my saviour, for less than TT$10 [the exchange rate is $6.2 to the US$, you do the math] each day i can eat enough to keep me sustained throughout the day.

i have a regular doubles man, always a good thing, you know how hot the pepper is, what the right balance of chutney is and if you`re really hard up you can drop the cash for him another day.

i`ve been eating doubles from this guy for almost a decade. i first had his doubles at my first advertising job, he had his stand right up the road from the office, eventually he moved and i lost track of him for a little while and about two years ago i came across him in st. james. he`s there 6 days a week, he doesn`t work mondays, and most days he`s completely sold out by 11am.

the key to a good doubles for me is a light barra, a subtle combination of pepper, mango/coconut/cucumber chutney and a touch of shadon beni and fairly firm channa.

unlike a lover, i`m not necessarily faithful to one doubles man, i have a couple that i visit and i`ve been know to stray to any available doubles man when hunger strikes.

curepe is the home of late night doubles. too early to be breakfast, too late to be anything else, curepe is a must stop for the post party doubles craving, even if it entails driving completely the opposite direction from where you live.

such is the siren song of a good doubles.

Technorati Tags:
doubles, trinidad, cuisine, breakfast food

had my belly full this morning, even brought some back to the office. i`d love to share but since they don`t travel well here`s a recipe i found online:

Ingredients

Dough (Bara)

    2 cups flour

    ½ tsp salt

    1 tsp saffron powder

    ½ tsp ground pepper

    1 tsp yeast

    1/3 cup warm water

    ¼ tsp sugar

    Oil for frying

                 

Filling (Curried Channa)

     ½ lb channa, soaked overnight

    1½ tbsp curry powder

    3 cloves garlic, minced

    1 onion, sliced

    1 tbsp corn oil

    Pinch of ground gheera

    Pepper sauce

                 

Preparation

In a large bowl combine the flour, salt, saffron and gheera.                

In a separate small bowl place the warm water, sugar and yeast and set to sponge for 5 minutes.                

To the flour, add the yeast mixture and enough water to make a slightly firm dough. Mix well, cover with a damp cloth and allow to rise for 1½ hours.                

For the filling, heat the oil in a heavy skillet, add onion, garlic and 1½ tablespoon of curry powder mixed with ¼ cup water; sauté for a few minutes.                

Add the channa, stir to coat well and cook for five minutes.                

Add 1 cup water, gheera, salt and pepper; cover, lower heat and simmer until the peas are very soft. When the channa is finished it should be moist and soft. Season to taste with salt if desired.                

For the bara: The dough should be punched down and allowed to sit for 10 to 15 minutes.                

To shape the bara, take 1 tablespoon of the dough and flatten to a round, 4 or 5 inches in diameter. Use water to moisten palms of your hands if the dough is sticking to them.                

Fry the baras in hot oil, turn oonce and drain on kitchen (brown) paper.                

When all are cooked, fill with channa by placing 2 tablespoons of the cooked filling on each bara, covering with another to form a sandwich. Serve with pepper sauce or mango chutney.  

and there is another one here      

Technorati Tags:
doubles, barra, channa