Baked Macaroni and Cheese, Caribbean Style

By Natalie 




Here I am doing a take on the ultimate comfort food inspired by Bajan style Macaroni pie.

Ingredients:

• 1 box-454g uncooked macaroni (cooked in a good sized pot that can serve as a mixing bowl as well)
• 2  cups grated cheddar cheese
• 2 cups grated Monterrey jack (reserve 1 cup of a mix of both cheeses for topping) or grate a bit more to top with.
• 1 cup evaporated milk
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 2 TB ketchup
• 1 TB yellow mustard
• couple of dashes of dry mustard powder
• dash cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp chopped fresh thyme, (if using dried a crushed generous pinch should do)
• 1 medium onion, grated or finely diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 (bottom part) scotch bonnet pepper minced (if you like it spicy, add more!)
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1/4-1/2C panko breadcrumbs 
• salt & black pepper to taste

1. Bring salted water to a boil in a good sized pot.  Add dry macaroni to the boiling water. Cook uncovered until macaroni is tender but still firm.
2. Preheat oven to 350F (180C).
3. Drain the macaroni and set aside.
4. In a separate pot add 1 tb butter and melt. Add black pepper, cayenne, mustard powder, onion, garlic, chopped thyme, scotch bonnet pepper and sizzle for a little while until fragrant and slightly softened. 
5. Add milk and cream and heat to warm. Do not boil or when you add the egg it will curdle).  Add, ketchup & mustard. Mix into the cooked macaroni.
   Add cheese (reserve about 1 cup for topping). Add salt and pepper to taste. Add eggs at the end. Mix.
6. Pour into a greased 9″ x 13″ baking dish and top with reserved grated cheese. Sprinkle with panko as this adds a really nice, golden, crispy topping.
7. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until golden brown.
8. Allow to sit for 10-15 mins before serving.

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Yellow Pepper, Beef, Mushroom Caribbean Style Chili

I am a big fan of chili and have posted chili recipes on the blog before. I have many of them I developed over time. Followers of the recipes here will also know that I love Caribbean style dishes and flavours. Combining the two -- and with much experimentation -- I hit upon this chili that uses ground beef, mushroom, onions and chili powder but that adds more unusual ingredients like curry powder, cinnamon, coriander and cumin.

It also adds in yellow hot peppers, sweet green peppers and Scotch Bonnet sauce for a very satisfying dish perfect for a winter night or game day party.

Ingredients:

2 lb. ground beef
1 hot yellow pepper, chopped but unseeded
2 medium onions, chopped
1 lb. mushrooms, sliced
1 1/2 green peppers, diced and seeded
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
1 large can diced tomatoes with liquid (herb and spiced in you can find it)
4 tablespoons chili powder
3 tablespoons curry powder
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce
1-3 teaspoons Scotch Bonnet sauce to taste
1/2 cup water
salt and pepper to taste

To begin, heat some olive oil in a large pot or saucepan. Add the yellow pepper, onions, mushrooms, green peppers and garlic, season with salt and pepper to taste and saute for 4-5 minutes.

Add the ground beef to the mix and begin to brown. Season with the chili powder, curry powder, garlic powder, cumin, coriander and cinnamon as you go.

When the beef is browned add the water, the can of tomatoes with the liquid, the soy, Worcestershire and Scotch Bonnet sauces. Lately I have been enjoying Spur Tree Jamaican Crushed Scotch Bonnet Pepper Sauce, but you can use anyone you like. Adjust the hot pepper sauce to taste. Stir until thoroughly blended.

Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Taste after an hour or so and adjust salt and other seasonings to your liking.

The flavours of this chili go well with a variety of sides, some that are usual with chili and some less so. Serve with options like extra Scotch Bonnet sauce, sour cream, nacho chips, rice, kidney beans, roti or naan bread or garlic bread.

Also goes perfectly with ice cold beer or red wine.

Enjoy.

See also: Slow Cooker Beef & Mushroom Chili

See also: Seasoned Beef Chili
 

West Indian Style Beef Short Ribs and Potato

Today we are going to take a look at a way to make delicious beef short ribs on the stove top done with West Indian style flavours and seasonings. Because these are simmered for a long time they are also exceptionally moist and tender.


The first step you want to take is to season each of your short ribs on both sides with the following:

• liberally with Jamaican style curry powder. You want a thin layer all over the ribs.
• liberally with a Caribbean seasoning blend. I like and used the Caribbean Spice and Roasted Garlic blend from Cool Runnings, but you can use others or a jerk seasoning blend
• 1 teaspoon mustard powder on each side
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder on each side
• liberally with black pepper
• sea salt to taste

Set the seasoned short ribs out on a platter and let sit at room temperature for 30-60 minutes.

When it is close to cooking time, heat some olive oil in a large saucepan or Dutch oven. When the oil is hot add 1 large chopped onion and season it with about a teaspoon of the Jamaican curry powder. Saute the onion for around 3-5 minutes.

Then add your seasoned short ribs and brown them for about 2 minutes a side.

Once they have been browned add enough beef stock to the pot to cover the ribs. Then add the following ingredients:

2 tablespoons Worcestershire Sauce
2 teaspoons of a Caribbean style hot sauce (I used El Yucateco Caribbean Hot Sauce)
4 minced cloves of garlic
2 bay leaves
2 tablespoons minced ginger

Bring everything to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for around 2 hours.

In the final 30 minutes of simmering you can add potato pieces to the pan.

Serve the ribs with rice and the potatoes.

I like to serve the rib racks whole, though you can cut them up into individual serving pieces.

Enjoy.

See also: Stove-top Braised Beef Short Ribs

See also: Beef Short Ribs Charcoal Barbecued with Homemade BBQ Sauce

Mitzie's Jerk in Etobicoke -- Home of the Ultimate Oxtail Sandwich!

Mitzie's Jerk is an all around terrific Jamaican take-out restaurant that is just east of Islington (and the Islington subway station) on Bloor St. W. in Etobicoke.

There is lots to love at Mitzie's. As the name implies, they make excellent jerk chicken which is what often springs to mind when you think of jerk. But they also make a delicious jerk pork that is simply mouth-watering and nicely seasoned.

Both the jerk chicken and jerk pork can be had as dinners served with rice (or rice and peas) and coleslaw (chicken is $10.50 small and $13.50 large while the jerk pork is $12.50 small and $15.50 large) or as rotis ($12 chicken / $13 pork).

Mitzie's rotis and dinners generally are all worth trying. The goat is moist and tender in a curry sauce and the oxtail is fall off the bone as you want it to be. (oxtail and goat dinners are $12.50 small and $15.50 large while the goat roti is $13).

Oxtail Dinner

Mitzie's also makes a great veggie roti for $10.50.

Veggie Roti

If you are having trouble making up your mind Mitzie's has a very cool "Mix-Up" option where you can all the meats from jerk to oxtail to goat, etc. in small portions served with the rice (or rice and peas) and coleslaw. A woman at the counter described this to me as a "buffet in a box". This runs $15.50 for a small and $18.50 for a large.

But Mitzie's also has a unique and really incredible menu option that makes a trip to it all the more worthwhile.

These are "Kristle's Ultimate Sandwiches" and they are awesome. The idea is to take the jerk chicken, curried goat, pork or oxtail and serve them, boneless, on a fresh large-sized bun.

OMG...Boneless Oxtail on a Bun!!!

Seriously, boneless Caribbean style oxtail on a bun!

The Ultimate Sandwiches are $10.75 each and they are huge. Great concept really well executed.

Mitzie's Jerk is located at 3337 Bloor St W in Etobicoke. It is just a couple of blocks east of the Islington subway station. 647-345-0077. They are open 11 am to either 9 or 10 pm from Monday to Saturday (closed Sunday). See their website for more information. 

See also: Ali's West Indian Roti Shop w. Fiery House Scotch Bonnet Hot Sauce

See also: Michael's West Indian Flavor: Perfect Oxtail in New Toronto

Charlie's Caribbean Cuisine: West Indian-Chinese Fusion in Mississauga

Charlie's Caribbean Cuisine is a really terrific West Indian-Chinese fusion style restaurant on Hurontario St. in Mississauga.

Charlie's does so many things so well. There are a number of standouts on the menu. In fact I have yet to eat anything from Charlie's that was not top-notch.

Notable dishes include the Fried Red Snapper which is a fish served whole that has been seasoned to give it a nice Caribbean flavour and that is then deep-fried giving it a terrific texture ($10.99 on its own or $12.99 with rice). Charlie's is known for its rotis but vegetarians will love the incredible Mixed Vegtable Roti that includes curried chickpeas, pumpkin, curried potatoes, long beans, spinach and okra! ($9.99) The Pepper Shrimp ($10.99) and Chili Chicken ($9.99) are perennial favourites as are the fusion Chow Mein dishes.

Special Jerk Chicken Low Mein - $10.49

This is a must get dish at Charlie's. Perfect, moist jerk chicken is served atop absolutely delicious noodles with vegetables and chicken. Just fantastic. 

Fried Shrimp Wontons - $7.99

A crowd pleasing appetizer nicely prepared. 

Curried Goat (Bone-In) - $8.99

A classic executed very well and served with rice or rice and peas. You can order it large (+$2.00) and/or with extra meat (+$3.00)  as I did above. A boneless version is available for a dollar more.

Charlie's Special Mixed Fried Rice - $10.49

Another great fusion dish, it is fried rice with chicken, beef and shrimp that is topped with pieces of Caribbean style fried chicken.

Oxtail - $10.99

As any regular reader of this blog knows, I love oxtail! Charlie's makes a terrific one, exceptionally moist, served with rice or rice and peas. Large size and/or extra meat are, again, an option.

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Fried Plantain - $2.00

Do you want some fried plantain added to your dish for $2.00? Yes...yes I do!

Chicken Wings (10 pcs) $8.99

They make terrific wings with an assortment of saucing options. The Spicy Sauce packs real punch and is full of flavour.

Charlie's Caribbean Cuisine is located at 3055 Hurontario Street just north of Dundas St. 905-949-0663. They have a website with their full menu and a Facebook page. They are open 7 days a week and they are licensed. If you live within the delivery area, delivery is available from skipthedishes.com

See also: Butter Chicken Roti -- Fiery Spicy & Delicious Indian Rotis on Queen W.

See also: Michael's West Indian Flavor: Perfect Oxtail in New Toronto

Stove-top Caribbean Style Braised Oxtail

As any regular reader of this blog knows, I am a very big fan of Caribbean style oxtail.

Oxtail is a delicious meat that, when properly cooked, is wonderfully moist and full of flavour. While there are many ways to make oxtail, the spices and seasonings of the West Indies are among my very favourite.


Today we are going to look at how to braise oxtail stove-top in a Dutch Oven.

To begin, you want to heat some olive oil in the bottom of your Dutch Oven on the burner over medium-high heat. Season the oxtail liberally with black pepper and with salt to taste. Add your oxtail pieces when the oil is heated and brown the oxtail, stirring it regularly to make sure you achieve a consistent browning.

As you are browning the oxtail add the following seasonings to the meat. The portions used were for around 3 pounds of oxtail:

2 1/2 tablespoons curry powder
1 tablespoon cumin
1 tablespoon jerk seasoning
1 tablespoon mustard powder
3-4 cloves of minced garlic

Make sure to stir it all very well so that the seasonings are well distributed among the oxtail pieces.

When the oxtail is browned and the all the seasonings have been added, scrape any bits of meat or seasoning off the bottom so that they are loose and pour enough beef broth into the oven to just cover the meat. To this add 2-3 large pieces of crushed ginger, 2 bay leaves, 1-2 teaspoons of a Caribbean style hot sauce (I used El Yucateco's Caribbean hot sauce) and 1 tablespoon of soy sauce.

Bring the broth to a boil, reduce heat and simmer on the stove-top for 3 1/2 to 4 hours. You want to put the lid on, but leave it slightly askew so that it is a little bit open.

Stir the meat and broth up every 45 minutes or so while maintaining the simmer. While this should not happen if properly simmered, if you feel the liquid has reduced too much you can add a little more broth as necessary.

When finished the meat will literally fall off the bone when pulled with a fork. The slightly spicy, rich broth will serve as a nice gravy to pour over the meat when served as well as any rice on the side. If you wish you can thicken in with a bit of flour after cooking.

This oxtail dish is best if served with rice or rice and peas and goes very well with coleslaw, ice cold beer or red wine.

Enjoy.

See also: 12-Hour Slow Cooked Caribbean-Style Oxtail

See also: Caribbean Style Goat with Potatoes in a Dutch Oven

See also: Michael's West Indian Flavor: Perfect Oxtail in New Toronto

12-Hour Slow Cooked Caribbean-Style Oxtail

I love oxtail, a truly succulent and delicious meat when properly prepared, though this generally requires long cooking times.

Today I am going to take a look at preparing oxtail in the slow cooker and doing it Caribbean style.

While oxtail is a popular ingredient in many cuisines and is used in a wide variety of stews and soups, I love West Indian oxtail dishes and they are one of my favourite things to eat out.

When making oxtail at home I do it in both the Dutch Oven and in my clay baker, but the meat also lends itself very nicely to being cooked over many hours in a slow cooker.

The first step is to take around 2-4 lbs of oxtail (depending on how much you want to make and how big your slow cooker is) and dust the pieces with some flour. Put into the bottom of the slow cooker and then season them liberally with curry powder (use West Indian style curry powder if available) and black pepper. Season them as well with salt to taste.

Sprinkle 1-2 tablespoons of mustard powder over the oxtail and add 4-8 cloves of minced garlic as well as around 2-4 tablespoons of minced ginger. If you have it I also like to sprinkle 1-2 teaspoons of Vegeta seasoning over the oxtail. Stir up the oxtail pieces to mix all of this together and distribute it.

For the oxtail you can add 1-2 Scotch Bonnet peppers. You do this by slicing the peppers down the middle so that they are intact but have an opening in them to the seeds. They then cook with the oxtail. Alternately you can add a few teaspoons to taste of your favorite West Indian style hot sauce.

I added 2 teaspoons of El Yucateco's fiery Caribbean Hot Sauce.

The addition of the peppers or hot sauce adds not just some heat but a lot of flavour and the dish is not the same with out it!

Pour into the slow cooker enough beef broth so that it almost covers the oxtail pieces all the way. Add also 2-3 bay leaves, 1-2 tablespoons of soya sauce and 1-2 tablespoons of Worcestershire Sauce.

Cover the slow cooker (of course) and cook on low for 10-12 hours. If at all possible cook the full 12 hours!

Stir up a bit gently and remove the bay leaves before serving and serve with rice, rice and peas, naan or roti on the side, extra hut sauce and red wine or ice cold beer. Be sure to spoon lots of the rich juices that are produced when you cook this over your rice.

The oxtail will be incredibly moist and truly delicious. It will fall right off the bone. And, as an added bonus, your house or apartment will smell fantastic for hours!

Enjoy.

See also: Pepper Goat Soup

See also: Caribbean Style Goat with Potatoes in a Dutch Oven

Vena's Roti on Bloor St. -- "Best Roti in Town"

The otherwise unassuming take out joint, Vena's Roti has a window sized neon sign that greets you when you arrive proclaiming that it serves the "Best Roti in Town"!

Is it true? While that is certainly a big claim to make in a city the size of Toronto, unlike "The World's Best Coffee" claim in the movie Elf, in the case of Vena's it is not just hyperbole. If they do not serve "the best", a very subjective opinion anyway, they serve among the best West Indian style rotis and for a very good price.

Vena's is a classic "hole-in-the-wall" lunch counter style eatery. With only a couple of tables at which to dine in, when going be sure to have a take-out back up plan. 

But the food is excellent and, not surprisingly given the sign, the rotis are a genuine stand-out. 

What makes them special begins with the roti itself which is among the best I have ever had. 

Then, of course, is the West Indian style saucing and perfectly cooked ingredients. Very moist goat or chicken, beef and shrimp options, and a delicious veggie roti with spinach, chick peas, potato and squash. They are all fantastic. The meat rotis can be had with just potato or with some other ingredients like okra for an extra charge. 

If you are a fan of spice, the homemade scotch bonnet sauce is a

Veggie Roti

must. While deceptively watery in texture it packs a real punch in terms of both heat and flavour. 

All the dishes range from $9-12 with some daily specials as an option. Vena's only takes cash though, so keep that in mind.

Vena's is located at  1263 Bloor Street West, Toronto (just east of the Lansdowne subway station), and is open seven days a week from 10am to 7pm. 416-532-3665

Vena's has done important charitable work in the community

The goat and potato roti

See also: Michael's West Indian Flavor: Perfect Oxtail in New Toronto

See also: Swatow Restaurant -- Shrimp Dumpling Noodle Soup & more in the heart of Toronto

Michael's West Indian Flavor: Perfect Oxtail in New Toronto

In true take-out counter spot style, Michael's West Indian Flavor is simplicity itself. A small spot, it has the food counter, a small counter you can stand at if you want to eat inside, and a very small menu of three regular dishes that is expanded with other options depending on the day.

But this basic simplicity belies the tremendous complexity of flavour of their dishes, all of which are some of the best West Indian food I have had in Toronto (and I have had a lot of it!). 

Jamaican style Oxtail, Curried Goat or Stewed Chicken with rice or rice and peas are always on the chalkboard menu, while Jerk Chicken and Spicy Fried Chicken are regularly available as well.

Michael's incredible oxtail

Everything is perfectly done, and I have tried the lot multiple times. The goat, chicken and oxtail are always done bone-in, with a different saucing for each, and are dreamily moist and fall-off-the bone cooked. I have spent years trying to duplicate the oxtail gravy at Michael's. It is simply fantastic. If you are lucky you will get a piece of seeded Scotch Bonnet hot pepper "skin" in your dish

All dishes can be had with an optional creamy slaw. They are also all available small, medium or large (and the large is really large) and range from $5-$12. They all come with rice or rice and peas as well. 


If it is a nice day you can take your food and enjoy it at one of the neigbourhood's many parks. Colonel Sam Smith Park, one of Toronto's waterfront gems, is a short walk to the west. Michael's is also on the 501 Queen streetcar line. They are located at 3067 Lake Shore Blvd. W., which is about 4 blocks west of Islington Ave.

See also: Swatow Restaurant -- Shrimp Dumpling Noodle Soup & more in the heart of Toronto

See also: Going for Toronto's best chicken wings with Irish Socialist leader Joe Higgins