
Saltfish and Ackee
Buttery ackee with savory salt cod and peppers — Jamaica's national-dish breakfast.
- Total
- 35 min
- Serves
- 4
Jamaica's national dish: salt cod sautéed with ackee — a buttery, scrambled-egg-like fruit — along with onions, peppers, tomatoes and a hint of curry and hot sauce. Saltfish and ackee is the Jamaican breakfast institution, savory and rich with a delicate fruit at its heart. Served with bread or dumplings, it's the taste of the island.
Ingredients
- 450g Salt Cod
- 400g Ackee
- 1 chopped Onion
- 1 tsp Paprika
- 2 tsp Curry Powder
- 2 tsp Jerusalem Artichokes
- 1 tsp Hotsauce
- 1 sliced Red Pepper
- 1 sliced Yellow Pepper
- 200g Tomatoes
- to taste Salt
- to taste Pepper
- 250g Self-raising Flour
- 30g Suet
- pinch Salt
- for frying Olive Oil
Instructions
- For the saltfish, soak the salt cod overnight, changing the water a couple of times.
- Drain, then put the cod in a large pan of fresh water and bring to the boil. Drain again, add fresh water and bring to the boil again.
- Simmer for about five minutes, or until cooked through, then drain and flake the fish into large pieces. Discard any skin or bones.
- For the dumplings, mix the flour and suet with a pinch of salt and 250ml/9fl oz water to make a dough.
- Wrap the mixture in clingfilm and leave in the fridge to rest.
- Open the can of ackee, drain and rinse, then set aside.
- Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a pan and fry the onion until softened but not brown.
- Add the spices, seasoning, pepper sauce and sliced peppers and continue to fry until the peppers are tender.
- Add the chopped tomatoes, then the salt cod and mix together. Lastly stir in the ackee very gently and leave to simmer until ready to serve.
- When you’re almost ready to eat, heat about 1cm/½in vegetable oil in a frying pan and heat until just smoking.
- Shape the dumpling mix into plum-size balls and shallow-fry until golden-brown. (CAUTION: hot oil can be dangerous. Do not leave the pan unattended.)
- Drain the dumplings on kitchen paper and serve with the saltfish and ackee.
Nutrition (per serving)
- Calories
- 440
- Protein
- 26 g
- Fat
- 20 g
- Carbs
- 38 g
Adapted from bbc.co.uk. Rewritten and re-photographed by MealIdeas.
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