Duck Fesenjan

This particular dish, Duck Fesenjan, is a Persian stew -- a koresh or khoresht -- traditionally prepared with duck and a sauce made with walnuts and pomegranate. Much like the broader Persian cuisine from which it comes, the history of fesenjan dates back centuries. Indeed, some have traced that history as far back as the Sassanid era, which was from 224 C.E. to 651 C.E., and written recipes date back to at least the thirteenth or fourteenth centuries. 

Indeed, the long culinary history is as evident as the ingredients and cooking processes set forth in the black and white of the recipe. The use of pomegranate in Persian cooking predates the Islamic-era. Cooks used pomegranate in dishes to symbolize abundance, fertility, and/or the beauty of nature. Likewise, the cooking process of slow roasting or braising meat with fruits and nuts is also a centuries-old cooking technique in Persia cuisine. In this particular case, the combination of duck and walnuts was said, according to ancient Persian texts, to personify perfection. Indeed, if prepared properly (or even close to properly), then the resulting dish is perhaps as close as one can come to culinary perfection. 

The cooking process defines the dish. Walnuts need to be ground into fine crumbs, which can be done with a food processor or a spice grinder (although the latter takes more time). As the walnuts are ground, they will release their oils. The ground walnuts function as a thickener for the stew, aided by the pomegranate molasses, which also gives the stew its darker and richer flavor. The thickness and color are only achieved by cooking the ingredients for a long time. 

The recipe also calls for the use of chicken stock or duck stock. If you are using duck legs for the stew, then you should use chicken stock. If you use a whole duck, as I did, then I would consider making your own impromptu duck stock. You can break down the duck as you would a chicken into pieces (chicken breasts, wings, leg quarters -- or legs and thighs). You will then have the backbone and the neck, along with other bones, that can be combined with two chopped carrots, two chopped celery stalks, one chopped onion, a couple of bay leaves, a tablespoon of black peppercorns, a sprig (or two) of fresh rosemary and a sprig (or two) of fresh thyme. Also, as an option, you can add a tablespoon of dried juniper berries.  Add enough water to cover the duck, bring it to a boil, and reduce the heat to let it simmer for at least an hour (or, more preferably, longer).  This process is adjusted from the duck broth recipe created by Hank Shaw on his website, Hunter, Angler, Gardener, Cook, which is one of my go-to resources. I simplified the recipe and adjusted the amounts because, unlike Hank Shaw, I was not looking to make a lot of stock. 

The extra effort to make duck stock is clearly worth it, because Fesenjan is such an iconic dish in Persian cuisine. It is also considered a dish of the rich or upper classes, as illustrated by the Persian saying, "he behaves as if he has had partridge and fesenjan."  Although that saying typically refers to someone showing off or behaving pretentiously, the dish itself is often the centerpiece of festivals, like Nowruz, weddings, or other celebrations. Fesenjan is also popular among the Iranian Jewish community and diaspora, who enjoy the dish in connection with Passover or Rosh Hashanah. 

Finally, fesenjan is always served with rice, and, Persian cuisine offers a variety of rice dishes. However, given the status of the dish, I felt it was appropriate to serve it with Javaher Polow, or Persian Treasured Rice.  Together, the meal was fit for royalty, perhaps Shashid I or Khosrow I. However, if one does not have the time to make treasured rice, a standard Persian white rice recipe will do. 

DUCK FESENJAN

Recipe from Hunt Gather Cook

Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon duck fat or clarified butter
• 3 pounds duck legs or 1 duck 
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1/2 cup pomegranate molasses
• 2 cups walnut halves, toasted and finely ground
• 2 cups duck stock (or chicken stock)
• 1/4 teaspoon saffron
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
• Pomegranate seeds, optional, for garnish
• 3 tablespoons chopped parsley, for garnish

Directions:

1. Prepare the duck. If the duck is fat, pierce the skin of the legs (and other parts, if using a whole duck) all over with a need or the sharp point of a knife, do not pierce the meat. (For most wild ducks, you won't need to do this.) Salt well and set aside. 

2. Brown the duck. In a large sauté pan, heat the tablespoon of duck fat over medium heat. Add the duck legs (and other parts, if using a whole duck), skin side down and brown slowly, rendering the fat. Remove the legs (or other parts) as they brown and set aside. 

3. Continue the dish. Add the chopped onion and sauté until translucent. Add the duck legs and other parts to the pan, skin side up. Add enough duck stock (or chicken stock), cover and simmer gently for 1 hour. 

4. Continue to prepare the stew. Stir in the ground walnuts, pomegranate molasses and the spices. Cover and cook over very low heat until the meat is tender, stirring every 20 minutes or so to keep the walnuts from sticking to the bottom of the pan. Turn off the heat and add more stock or salt to taste. You want the stew to be very thick but not pasty. 

5. Finish the dish. Garnish with pomegranate seeds and parsley. Serve with rice. 

PEACE. 

Turkey Giblets a la Bourgeoisie

"... if it be true that real happiness consists in making others happy, the author can at least feel a sense of gratification in the thought that his attempts to satisfy the cravings of the inner man have not been wholly un-appreciated by the any he has had the pleasure of serving...."

-- Rufus Estes

Rufus Estes has a story, and quite the story it is. He was born a slave in 1857 in Murray County, Tennessee. He was the youngest of a family that included seven boys and two girls, all of whom -- with their mother -- were owned by D.J. Estes. When the Civil War broke out, the male slaves ran away to join the Union forces, leaving the younger kids to work the plantations. Rufus carried water from the spring to the house, drove cattle to and from the pasture, and did other work. 

After the war ended, Rufus's mother moved her family to Nashville, Tennessee. Rufus sought work, whether it was milking cows (for which he was paid $2.00 per month) or carrying hot dinners to workers in the field (for which he was paid $0.25 per month), Rufus gave all of his earnings to his mother. By the age of sixteen, Rufus got work at Hemphills, a fine dining establishment in Nashville. By the age of twenty-four, he had emigrated north and found a job at a restaurant in Chicago. 

Rufus Estes

Two years later, Rufus Estes started on a track that would define the rest of his life. He got a job with the Pullman Service, which he held for fourteen years. Estes recalled that "some of the most prominent people in the world traveled in the car assigned to me, as I was selected to handle all special parties." The "special parties" included Henry Morton Stanley, the explorer; two Presidents, Grover Cleveland and Benjamin Harrison; and many others.  After leaving the Pullman Service, Estes was hired to run a private car for the president of the Kansas City, Pittsburg & Gould Railroad, which he worked from 1897 to 1907, and, thereafter, he worked as a chef for United States Steel Corporation in Chicago. 

After a career of serving as a chef to the rich and powerful, Rufes Estes became an author, writing Good Things to Eat as Suggested by Rufus: A Collection Practical Recipes for Preparing Meats, Game, Fowl, Fish, Puddings, Pastries, Etc. Published in 1911, his book represents one of the first cookbooks written and published by an African American chef. The recipes contained in that cookbook represent, in Estes' own words, "the labor of years." Estes' labor opens windows into the past, offering glimpses of what people prepared and ate during the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, as well as views of what the elite ate in the palace cars that ran the rails from coast to coast. Dishes such as Bird's Nest Salad to Turkey Truffles (a "fat turkey" stuffed with a mixture that includes three to four pounds of truffles), that is not all, it also gives us a view into what the working class and poor ate as well, like Codfish Hash or Broiled Pig's Feet. 

I read Good Things to Eat and decided to prepare a recipe suggested by Rufus Estes. I wanted a recipe that could bridge the gap between the poor and the rich.  I wanted to prepare something that could have been just as likely to have been prepared for a working class person as it would some rich perosn. I found that dish in Turkey Giblets a la Bourgoisie. Estes's recipe uses the parts of a turkey -- the heart, gizzard, liver and turkey neck -- that most people would discard (especially today), and elevate those ingredients in a delicious way. The recipe produces a wonderful small plate or appetizer that can precede a roast turkey meal. I would suggest serving this dish with some toasted slices of bread, which guests could use to eat the flavorable mixture of turkey and herbs. 

Given I still have Rufus Estes's book, I plan on making more dishes suggested by the accomplished chef. All of these recipes, like this one, are part of my historical cooking journeys that are catalogued in my Federal Project Number One. So, please check it out every once in a while. Until then ....

TURKEY GIBLETS A LA BOURGOISIE

Recipe from Rufus Estes, Good Things to Eat

Serves 2-3

Ingredients:

• Turkey giblets (pinions, feet, neck and gizzard)
• Piece of butter
• Flat leaf parsley
• Sprig of thyme
• Green onions
• Garlic, 1 clove
• Bay Leave
• Flour, spoonful
• Stock, spoonful
• Salt
• Pepper

Directions:

The giblets of the turkey consist of the pinions, feet, neck and gizzard. After having scalded pick them well and put in a saucepan wiht a piece of butter, some parsley, green onions, clove of garlic, sprig of thyme, bay leaf, a spoonful of fluor moistened with stock, salt and pepper. Brown to a good color. 

PEACE.

Haitian Style Spicy Grilled Octopus

Octopuses can be found around the Caribbean Sea; and, as one could expect, they make their way onto the plates in restaurants and homes from Jamaica to Dominica. I recently decided to make a Caribbean-inspired octopus recipe. As I searched for a recipe to make, I came across a recipe from a Haitian blogger, food photographer and recipe developer, Annick Megie. The recipe looked like it was something I could make and the dish looked beautiful (Megie is, after all, a food photographer). 

The recipe was even simpler for me because I had purchased pre-cooked octopus. I have worked with raw octopus, and, I have a place where I could easily buy one, but the cooked version was what I had on hand when I was looking to make the recipe. If you have a pre-cooked octopus, you can skip to step 3 in the recipe below. If you don't, then you should follow steps 1 and 2 (especially the dipping the octopus first before you completely submerge it). 

In terms of white wines to use to cook the octopus, think of something that you could pair with the dish when it is ready to eat. Some easier to find wines might be an Albarino from Galicia, Spain; or a Vinho Verde from Portugal. If you are able to search a little more, perhaps a Vermentino from Sardinia, Spain; or a PicPoul de Pinet from Langudoc, France. Basically, you want a lighter, more mineral wine. The opposite of an oaked Chardonnay. (An unoaked Chardonnay would work well.)

As I researched the use of octopus in Haitian cuisine, I read an article (which I am now unable to find again), about how fishermen in the northern coastal cities (most likely Cap-Haitien, but I would like to think it included smaller cities like Labadee or Basse-Terre) would bring back octopus as part of their daily catch.  However, while most of those in the Haitian boat-fishing is done by men, there are women who catch octopus and turtles. That enables women to go beyond their traditional roles in the fishing industry, which focuses more on the processing and selling of the catch. 

Although it is not Haitian, this link will take you to a videostory, Felicia: The Life of an Octopus Fisherwoman, which tells the story of an octopus fisherwoman in Madagascar. While the film tells the story of a fisherwoman half-way around the world, there are commonalities in the life-experiences. Madagascar is one of the poorest countries in Africa, just as Haiti is the poorest country in North America and the Caribbean. Large populations live at or below the poverty line, doing the best to survive on a daily basis. They compete for resources, not just with each other, but with outsiders - like large fishing fleets - that often win the battle. The result is overfishing and environmental degradation, leaving less for the local fishermen and women to feed their families or sell at the market. The experience of Felicia may very well be the experience of women living in poverty along the coastlines of Haiti, or many other places around the world. 

A reminder that, behind a pretty plate of grilled octopus, there are people struggling just to survive. It is struggle shared by the poor around the world, from Haiti to Madagascar, from the United States to Australia.

HAITIAN STYLE SPICY GRILLED OCTOPUS

Recipe from Tchakayiti

Serves 4

Ingredients (for the broth):

• 1 medium-sized ctopus, previously cleaned
• 1 cup of white wine
• 2-3 cups of water, enough to submerge the octopus
• 3 bay leaves
• 3-5 garlic heads
• 1 teaspoon cayenne
• 1 teaspoon chile powder
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon pepper

Ingredients (for the sauce):

• 5 shallots chopped
• 1/2 red onion, chopped
• 1 piment bouc (or scotch bonnet) chopped
• 3 limes, juiced
• Olive oil
• Fresh parsley

Directions:

1. Prepare the octopus.  In a pot, combine all of the broth ingredients. Make sure to add enough water to cover the octopus. Bring all the ingredients to a boil. Let simmer for about 10 minutes for the flavors to be infused. Dip the octopus in the water 2 or 3 times for about 10 seconds each time. This helps the tentacles curl up. Submerge the octopus completely in the broth. 

2. Cook the octopus.  Cook for about 45 minutes to 1 hour, until the octopus is tender. Be careful not to overcook it for that can have the reverse effect and make your octopus chewy. Take the octopus out of the water and cut it into small pieces. 

3. Make the sauce. In a bowl, combine the spicy sauce ingredients. Drizzle the sauce atop the cut octopus. 

4. Marinate the octopus.  Cover and let marinate in the fridge for a few hours.  

5. Finish the dish.  Fire up the grill. Grill the octopus for about 5 to 10 minutes for each side or until it is crispy on the outside. Serve immediately. 

PEACE.

Chesapeake Oyster Dressing

The history of oyster stuffing can be traced back to the 17th century where, in Britain, cooks incorporated oysters with the ingredients used to stuff, among other things, chicken, fish, and rabbits. in the stuffing of for, among other things, chickens, fish, and rabbits. One of the earliest recipes can be found in The Accomplisht Cook (1685), where it appears in a recipe that called for the oysters to be cooked, mixed with herbs and spices, and then stuffed in a young hen's belly for roasting. 

The use of oysters in stuffing or dressing (the former refers to cooking it in the bird while the latter refers to cooking it separately), made its way across the Atlantic Ocean when the British colonized the new world. With oysters as plentiful up and down the east coast as they were in the British isles, it was only a matter of time before cooks would use oyster stuffings when preparing chicken, fish and, of course, turkeys. Thus, oyster stuffing itself migrated from New England down the coast to the Chesapeake Bay.

As the few who follow this blog know, I have an affinity for the Chesapeake Bay. I have spent a lot of time exploring various aspects about the Bay, especially when it comes to its cuisine. Recently, my beautiful Angel and our wonderful family spent some time during the most recent Thanksgiving holiday in Crisfield, Maryland. Crisfield is "the City Built on Oysters." It began as a small fishing village known as Sumer's Cove. However, John Crisfield had other ideas. He worked to get a railroad line built to the village, which was completed in 1866 when the first train pulled into the station. That railine, along with a steamboat wharf, turned the town into a transportation hub.  The residents renamed the town Crisfield. But, there was more in store for the town. 

Six years after that first train arrived in the city, there were 600 hundred registered oyster boats working out of the harbor. Thirteen years after that, an average of 400,000 bushels of oysters were arriving at the Crisfield Wharf annually. At its height, there were 40 to 50 seafod houses along the Crisfield waterfront. The city had become the "Seafood Capital of the World."  Oysters contributed more than just economic growth, their shells helped the city expand. People started taking the oyster shells from the shucking houses and using them to provide a building foundation. Those shells provided stability in an area that was primarily marshland prone to flooding. 

Maryland oysters.

Simply put, oysters were critical to the Crisfield's rise. So, it seemed appropriate that as the Savage Boleks had their Thanksgiving meal in Crisfield, I should prepare and serve an oyster dressing. The internet contains quite a few possible recipes, but I decided to prepare a recipe from the Oyster Recovery Partnership ("ORP"). The ORP is a non-profit dedicated to rebuilding the oyster population in the Chesapeake Bay. They do that through a variety of initiatives, including the restoration of public fishery reefs and the establishment of an oyster shell recycling program. The ORP has had an undeniable, beneficial impact on the oyster population, having planted more than 3.1 billion oysters on 3,000 acres of reef, and recycled more than 350,000 bushels of oyster shells. 

This recipe is very good and it was a hit at the meal. Just one note: I made one adjustment to the fourth step. As I was combining the ingredients, I noted that the mixture was a little dry. The recipe calls for adding some turkey stock to the mixture. I decided to add both stock and a little more white wine, roughly in equal proportions, until the mixture was moist enough. I have to admit that I did not measure as I worked, I just used my eye to make sure that the stuffing had the right moisture before being put into the oven. 

CHESAPEAKE OYSTER DRESSING

Recipe adapted from Oyster Recovery Partnership

Ingredients:

• 14 ounces of day-old bread, cut into pieces
• 8 tablespoons butter (1 stick)
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 3 celery ribs, chopped
• Sea salt, to taste
• Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 6 ounces of chicken (or turkey) broth, more if needed
• 4 ounces white wine
• 1 pint oysters (including liquor, strained)
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 1-2 teaspoons of hot sauce
• 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
• 1/4 teaspoon mace
• 1 tablespoon of Old Bay or XO spice
• 2 tablespoons of butter, cut into small pieces.

Directions:

1. Prepare the dressing. Place bread stuffing in a large bowl. Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the chopped onion and celery and saute for 6-8 minutes until soft and just beginning to brown. Season lightly with salt and pepper, deglaze the pan with chicken (or turkey) broth and white wine and cook for another 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool slightly. 

2. Prepare the oysters. In a medium bowl, mix lightly the oysters, lemon juice, hot sauce and parsley. 

3. Bake the dressing. Add the cooled onion mixture to the bread. Gently fold in the oysters, mace, and Old Bay or XO spice. Add the reserved oyster liquor and mix gently. Add more chicken (or turkey) stock if the stuffing seems dry. It should be very moist. Put the stuffing in a large greased baking dish. Dot the surface with small pices of butter. Cover tightly with foil and bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 30 minutes. Remove foil and bake for an additional 15 minutes. 

PEACE.

Salmoriglio

Its history is lost to time. That happens sometimes when a recipe has been around for so long, that people forget where it came from. Take, for instance, salmorigio (which comes from the Sicilian word, salmurigghiu, a lemony sauce made with parsley, oregano, and olive oil that has been used as a marinade or served alongside dishes for centuries in kitchens and restaurants across Calabria and Sicily. (Although one could indirectly date the sauce back to at least the 9th century C.E., when Arabs brought lemon trees to Sicily during their colonization of the island.)

When I first came across a recipe for salmorigio, my mind immediately associated it with the chimichurri sauces of Argentina. Fresh green herbs, combined with garlic, and then blitzed or mixed with olive oil and, in the case of salmoriglio, a little bit of water. 

As I would come to learn, salmorigio is separate and distinct from chimichurri sauce. For one thing, the prominent taste element in salmorigio is lemon, which is infused two-ways into the sauce: first, through the addition of lemon juice; and, second, through the use of lemon zest. The result is a sauce that features the citrus first and foremost, unlike a chimichurri, in which much more garlic is used to create sauce. The difference is notable: salmoriglio is a thinner, smoother sauce that has a lighter, fresher flavor.  

That texture and flavor may explain why Calabrians and Sicilians use salmoriglio as a sauce, dressing or marinade with chicken and seafood. I, on the other hand, decided to use it with beef. I came across a recipe for Carne Arustuta, which is a Sicilian grilled steak recipe. The recipe calls for marinading the beef with, among other things, lemon juice and lemon zest. I thought that those ingredients, which are shared by both salmoriglio and carne arustuta, could be what ties the two recipes together. And, it did. In this sense, the salmoriglio worked like a chimichurri, perfectly complementing the grilled meat. 

SALMORIGLIO

Recipe from Forager Chef

Ingredients:

• 1 cup packed flat leaf parsley, leaves only
• 1 cup packed fresh oregano leaves (or bee balm leaves)
• 1 large clove garlic
• 1/2 cup light olive oil
• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1/4 cup water
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• Zest from one large lemon
• Kosher salt and pepper

Directions:

1. Prepare the oil and herbs. Mix the two oils together. Bring a quart of salted water to a boil. Add the parsley and cook for 5 seconds. Remove the parsley and refresh in cold water. Squeeze the parsley dry and reserve.

2. Prepare the sauce. Add the garlic, lemon juice, water, oregano, and parsley to a blender. Begin pureeing the mixture, drizzling the oils until the sauce is smooth and emulsified. Double check the seasoning for salt and pepper and then transfer the finished sauce to a container. Stir in the lemon zest and refrigerate. 

PEACE.

Roast Turkey, Wild Onions, and Maple Squash

"We will be known forever by the tracks we leave." 

-- Words of wisdom from the Dakota People

Thanksgiving is supposed to be a day in which we give thanks for all of our blessings over the past year. The holiday draws inspiration from events, partly historical and partly fictional, that transpired in the fall of 1621. The pilgrims of the Plymouth colony (that is, white colonizers) organized a feast to celebrate their successful harvest, giving thanks for the cultivation of food that would support them through the winter. 

That's where the history ends and much of the fiction begins. Subsequent generations would be taught that the feast was one shared by grateful pilgrims and their neighbors, the indigenous Wampanoag people. That is not entirely accurate. The feast was initially a white person, pilgrim/colonizer affair, because they did not initially invite the Wampanoag to the feast. Rather, the Wampanoag arrived after hearing gunshots fired off by celebratory pilgrims, thinking that the pilgrims were under an attack. Only after they arrived were the indigenous people allowed to stay and join in the feast. 

Thanksgiving was, and continues to be, built upon a myth of celebration and cooperation between white colonists and the indigenous people. The actual history -- over four hundred years of it -- defined what would become the United States. That definition includes the forced displacement and death of a majority of the indigenous people, removed from the land upon which their ancestors built not only comunities but also entire cultures and societies. Much of those civilizations have been lost, as the United States established itself, and expanded itself, at the expense of the indigenous peoples, nation after nation. 

Those are the tracks that we have left as a country and as "the American people." It is a path hardly discussed because holidays like Thanksgiving have us looking anywhere but down at our feet. So, for this particular Thanksgiving in 2025, I thought I would do something other than express gratitude for my blessings. I am looking down at my feet, at the ground.

The particular context of my feast unfolded in the city of Crisfield, Maryland, where my beautiful Angel and my wonderful family took a short trip during the holiday weekend. I found a lovely house in Crisfield, Maryland (more about that in another post), where I would prepare our holiday feast with help from our family. The city of Crisfield lies on a peninsula that was originally the home of the Annamessex people, who, in turn, were part of the Pocomoke Paramountcy. As an aside, the colonizers who reached this penninsula referred to it as the "Annamessex Neck." 

It is difficult to find much about the Annamessex people, but there is more out there about the greater Pocomoke nation. That nation stretched across the eastern shore, particularly along the Annamessex, Manokin, and Pocomoke rivers. They were organized into communities, with women and younger children growing corn, beans and squashes, while men and older boys hunted, trapped and fished. The Pocomoke were also traders, producing wampum, which are the shell beads and belts, and peake, which are darker beads made from clams. In addition to trading wampum and peake, the Pocomoke also crafted dug-out canoes that they used for transport and trade. 

As European colonizers settled in Annamessex Neck, the indigenous people were driven from their lands. The colonizers claimed the territory, refused to allow indigenous people to hunt on the land, and, with the assistance of the local and state governments, forced the Annamessex onto a reservation located at Askiminokonson, near present day Snow Hill, Maryland. Eventually, the white colonizers claimed that territory, leaving the Annamessex, along with the greater Pocomoke nation, with nothing. 

I have been unable to locate any Annamessex or even Pocomoke recipes for a turkey. This particular roast turkey recipe comes from Sean Sherman, an Ogala Lakota chef who has made it his mission to preserve and advance indigenous cuisine. He focuses upon both the ingredients and cooking processes used by indigenous cooks across Turtle Island. (I also used his recipe for wojape to serve alongside the turkey). 

I have to admit that I had some concerns, because the recipe did not call for a stuffing. I have always prepared roast turkeys with stuffings, using the latter to help regulate temperatures and add flavors to the meat. Fearful that I would overcook the bird without a stuffing, I decided to utilize a stuffing from Renewing America's Food Traditons, a book written by Gary Paul Nabhan. A first-generation Lebanese-American, Nabhan is an Agricutural Ecologist, Ethnobiologist, and Franciscan brother. He has worked with indigenous peoples, particularly in the southwestern United States and Mexico to preserve their foodways and advocate for their sovereignty. This particular stuffing comes from the opposite side of the United States, with a recipe offered in connection with a discussion of the endangered Naragannsett Turkey. The stuffing is not a traditional one that would be served alongside the bird. Instead, it consists of ingredients intended to provide additonal flavors to the meat. 

With these recipes in hand, I proceeded with Chef Sherman's Roast Turkey, Wild Onions and Maple Squash recipe. The overall dish provided a great example of indigenous foods could be prepared by indigenous peoples like the Annamessex. Wild turkeys are found across the State of Maryland; and, as noted above, the Annamessex cultivated squash. They could have easily gathered wild onions from around their village, along with other ingredients, such as juniper berries, which could have been gathered from the eastern red cedar trees or perhaps the common juniper (before it went locally extinct in the State of Maryland). 

In sum, this dish and my heart is with honoring those who were originally present and thriving here, long before any Spanish explorer or English colonizer ever set foot on dry land in this hemisphere. I also want to acknowledge the tracks that have been left over the centuries, and, for what that means when it comes to the United States. Our greatness (if it can be called that) came with a tremendous cost, a price not paid by those who benefitted the most, year after year, decade after decade, generation after generation. If we want to truly be known as a great country (however that could be defined), then that requires us to come to terms with our past. Otherwise, we can never truly achieve greatness as a country.  

ROAST TURKEY, WILD ONIONS AND MAPLE SQUASH

Recipe from Sean Sherman, The Sioux Chef's Indigenous Kitchen, pg. 107

Additional cavity stuffing recipe from Gary Paul Nabhan, Renewing America's Food Traditions, pg. 125

Serves 8

Ingredients (for the roast turkey):

• 1 small turkey (about 10-12 pounds)
• 1/4 cup hazelnut oil
• 2 tablespoons chopped sage
• Coarse salt
• Crushed juniper
• 2 cups corn, wild rice, or turkey stock
• 4 wild onions or 2 large onions, quartered
• 1 cup wild mushrooms, chopped
• 2 cups winter squash, cubed
• 1/4 cup maple syrup

Ingredients (for the cavity stuffing):

• 2 tablespoon sea salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon dried marjoram or sweet basil leaves
• 1/4 cup finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
• 1/2 cup whole wheat bread crumbs
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 1/4 cup chopped celery stalks
• 1 small white onion, chopped

Directions:

1. Prepare the turkey. One hour before roasting, remove the turkey from the refrigerator and bring to room temperature. In a blender, puree the hazelnut oil and sage and rub over the turkey. Season with salt and juniper.

2. Prepare the cavity. Rub the cavity with a mixture of 1 tablespoon of salt, 1/2 teaspoon of pepper, all of the basil or marjoram, and some of the chopped parsley. Combine the bread crumbs, lump of butter (mixed with salt and pepper), the rest of the parsley, chopped celery and onion. Stuff the mixture into the cavities of the turkey. 

3. Roast the turkey. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit. Place the turkey in a roasting pan, add the stock and put in the oven. Roast until the turkey is a light golden brown, about 45 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and continue roasting. After about 1 1/2 hours, scatter the onions, mushrooms and squash into the roasting pan and baste the turkey and vegetables occasionally with the pan juices. Continue cooking until the an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thigh reads 160 degrees Fahrenheit, about 30 minutes to 1 hour longer. Brush the turkey with the maple syrup. 

4. Finish the dish. Remove the turkey from the oven and transfer to a cutting board. Arrange the vegetables on a platter. Carve the turkey and arrange over the vegetables. Drizzle the pan juices over all. Serve with wild rice and cranberry sauce or wojape.  

PEACE.

Akotonshi

Living in the Chesapeake Bay region, I often find myself having a parochial view about blue crabs. I know that blue crabs can be found around the world (see my post about their invasion of Italian waters), but I admittedly think very regionally about blue crabs when it comes to cooking. Bury them in Old Bay or XO and steam them. The only true crabcakes are Maryland crabcakes. It becomes ingrained in a person the longer they live in the area.

Yet, there is so much more to blue crab dishes. I previously posted about a crab dish from Ghana -- Ghanian Crab Stew -- but I spent more time talking about rice than I did blue crab. As it turns out, the crusteacean has quite the place in Ghanaian cuisine and culture. So, it seems appropriate to return to Ghana when I was looking to prepare a crab dish based upon a cuisine far beyond the waters of the Chesapeake Bay. My efforts would take me to the brackish waters in southern Ghana, such as the estuary of the Volta River, where the river waters meet the Atlantic Ocean, and the various lagoons that are parallel to that ocean.

At one point in time, there was an abundance of blue crabs, shrimp, shellfish, and fin fish in these brackish waters. These populations benefitted from mangroves, which sprouted up in various areas along the lagoons and deltas, and which provide protected areas for crabs, shellfish and fish. They also supported fisheries across southern Ghana. Those fisheries, in turn, provided incomes that sustained families from Agbletokwei to Kpotitsekopre. 

However, those fisheries have faced a range of issues in recent years. Much of the mangroves have been cut down, causing a loss of habitat for crustaceans like the blue crab. Overfishing generally, and the rise of industrial fishing and illegal fishing, have also contributed to the loss of populations, as has the increased amount of pollution from industrialization. As the populations of crab, shrimp and fish decline, so does the ability of small-scale fishermen and women to make a living and provide for their families. 

There have been efforts to try to support small scale, local fishing. For example, back in 2021, the U.S. Agency for International Development provided millions to help restore Ghanian fisheries. That program focused on sardines, mackerel and anchovies, which meant more of a focus on the Atlantic Ocean (which is still needed), than the brackish coastal waters. (The current Trump administration is trying to destroy USAID, depriving the entire world -- including the U.S. -- of the benefits from international development assistance.) More recently, in July 2025, the Ghanian government passed the Fisheries and Aquaculture Law, which helps protect small scale fishers who use traditional canoes from illegal fishing vessels. This law is also focused on the ocean, rather than the lagoons and rivers of the country. 

I hope that a more wholistic approach may be pursued, one that recognizes the interconnectedness of the rivers, lagoons and oceans, thereby addressing all of it. This effort would also require a focus not only on the water, but also the land, such as restoring the mangroves and the habitats for aquatic species, which is happening in certain parts of Ghana, like in the Keta Lagoon. These efforts have seen positive results, For an overview of what is being done in that lagoon, check out this video from Terraformation:

We have the power to undo the damage we have done, but it takes commitment and, most importantly, time.  With more mangroves come more aquatic species, like blue crabs. And, with more blue crabs come dishes like Akotonshi.

AKONTOSHI

Recipe adapted from African Food Network

Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 8 whole crabs or 1 pound of cooked crab meat
• 2 large fresh ginger pieces
• 2 cloves
• 4 tablespoons cooking oil
• 2 large onions, minced
• 2 teaspoons ground ginger
• 3-4 large tomatoes, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 2 large green bell peppers, finely chopped
• 2 teaspoons paprika
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 2 teaspoons ground nutmeg
• 2 teaspoons dried thyme leaves
• 2 teaspoons grains of paradise, growned to a powder (optiona0l)
• 4 medium minced African bird peppers (or hot Thai peppers)
• 1/2 to 2/3 cup dried shrimp
• Plain bread crumbs
• Parsley
• Salt 

Directions:

1. Prepare the crabs or crab meat. If cooking whole crabs, clean them and bring a large pot of water to a bowl. Add the ginbger cloves and crab and cook for 15 minutes. Remvoe crabs and meat, keep shells for plating. If using crab meat, mix crab meat with 1/4 cup of water that has been boiled with ginger piece and cloves for 15 minutes.  Drain the water, flake the meat and set aside.

2. Saute the onions, tomatoes and spices. In a heavy pot, heat the oil to medium and add the other ingredients in the following sequence, stirring for a minute for so between each ingredient: onions, ground ginger, tomatoes, tomato paste, green pepper, cumin, nutmeg, thyme, grains of paradise (if using), paprika, masked peppers and dried shrump. Reduce heat and simmer for about 4-5 minutes, stirting constantly until vegetables are cooked.

3. Add the crab meat. Then add the crab meat and stir for another couple of minutes to heat it through. 

4. Finish the dish. Remove from heat, and spoon the crab mixture into the crab shells or ramekins if you began with crab meat. Sprinkle breadcrumbs on top of each serving and toast under an oven broiler for a couple of minutes. Be careful not to let the crumbs scorch. Garnish with chopped parsley and serve immediately. 

PEACE.

Around the World in 80 Dishes: South Africa

I have gotten to where I am in life not because of something I brought to the world but through something I found - the wealth of African culture. 

-- Hugh Masakela 

When reading these words, they sound like the notes emanating from the trump of the famous South African jazz musician. "The Father of South African jazz, Masakela was known for his anti-apartheid songs, such as Soweto Blues and Bring Him Back Home." His music encouraged and inspired South Africans in their struggle to end the racist system of apartheid. That struggle eventually prevailed on May 4, 1990, when an agreement was reached to establish a democratic government -- of all the people and by all of the people -- by 1994. And, in that year, South Africa held its first fully democratic election, in which the Rainbow Nation (a term originated with Archbishop Desmond Tutu) elected Nelson Mandela as its first black President.

South Africa has always interested me, as it represents one of the best examples of how a diverse people can tear down a racist system and replace it with one based on equality and freedom. To be sure, South Africa has its issues, particularly economic issues which have perpetuated and, in some respects, worsened the economic divides amongst its people. But, there is a wealth of South African culture, one that transcends dollars and cents, or Rands. One that is truly invaluable.

My Around the World in 80 Dishes challenge invites me to learn more about this wealth. The Rainbow Nation, South Africa, is truly a diverse one, as evidenced by the fact that it has eleven official languages (Afrikaans, English, Ndebele, Sepedi, Sesotho, Setswana, siSwati, Tshivenda, Xhosa, Xitsonga and Zulu). This diversity presents a lot of potential dishes for a main course. There are, of course, many dishes from the various African nations who live in South Africa, along with dishes from other significant ethnic groups, such as curry dishes from India and Malaysia, who were brought or made their way during the colonial period. And, there are, of course, the dishes of the colonizers themselves, such as the English and the Afrikaans. There are so many options that it took a very long time to decide. And, in the end, the decision was made not by myself but, interestingly enough, by Chef Gordon Ramsay. 

While I was preparing a meal one afternoon, I happened to have Gordon Ramsay: Uncharted on the television in the background. The show chronicles Chef Ramsay's travels to various parts of the world, where he spends a week learning about the people, their culture, and their food, all tied together by a challenge to prepare a meal at the end. This particular episode followed Chef Ramsay as he learned about South African cuisine in the KwaZulu-Natal province, with a particular emphasis on the Zulu cuisine, but a recognition of other influences. He prepared a whole fish on the braai, learned how to make Ushatini and Chakalaka, and discovered the importance of pelepele or piri piri. 

Ramsay's adventures provided a roadmap for this particular challenge. I am going to make the principal dishes from that Uncharted show: whole fish on the Braai, which will satisfy the challenge, along with the sides of ushatini and chakalaka. I will even make pelepele (or peri peri).   

MAIN DISH

For the culinary challenge, I prepared a whole fish for the braai. Gordon Ramsay's preparation of this dish was very simple, basically just some salt on the fish before placing it on the grill. My recipe involves a little more preparation and ingredients. 

WHOLE FISH ON THE BRAAI

Recipe from Fish Wife

Serves 2

Ingredients:

• 1 whole fish (such as Red Roman, red snapper)
• 1 red onion
• 1 handful of cilantro
• 2 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1 teaspoon minced chiles
• 2 teaspoons grated ginger
• 1/2 cup soy sauce
• 1 lemon

Directions:

1. Prepare the fish. Score both sides of the fish.  Chop the red onion and the cilantro and stuff into the cavity of the fish. Grate some lemon rind and add to the cavity. Mix together the garlic, chiles, ginger and soy sauce. Spread one-half of the sauce over both sides of the fish. Keep the remaining half for basting the fish. Place the fish on a fish basket that can be flipped.

2. Grill the fish. Heat a charcoal or gas grill over high heat. Cook the fish over the heat for 20 to 25 minutes, flipping over 3 to 5 minutes. Using a basting brush, paint the fish with the marinade with every flip. When the fish is done, remove from the heat and allow to rest for a few minutes. 

SIDE DISH

Chakalaka is a South African side dish that is often served with the braai. Its origins lie in the townships around Johnannesberg, where Mozambican mineworkers lived and worked. These mineworkers would combine tinned food, like beans and tomatoes, with chiles to create a dish that they could eat with pap (porridge). Chakalaka represents an effort to take something that was brought to the region by colonialists (tinned food) and making it into something indigenous. 

CHAKALAKA

Recipe from Cooking Channel

Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 3 tablespoons oil
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 2 green Thai Bird's eye chiles, seeded and chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 2 ounces ginger, finely grated
• 2 tablespoons mild curry powder
• 1 green bell pepper, finely chopped
• 1 yellow bell pepper, finely chopped
• 1 red bell pepper, finely chopped
• 5 large carrots, scrubbed, topped, tailed and grated
• 14 ounces canned chopped tomatoes
• 12 ounces tomato paste
• 14 ounces canned baked beans
• 2 sprigs fresh thyme
• Salt
• Freshly ground black pepper 

Directions:

1. Saute ingredients. Heat the oil in a pan and fry the onions until soft and translucent. Add the chiles, garlic and half of the ginger (reserve the other half to add right at the end). Add the curry powder and stir to combine. Add the bell peppers and cook for another two minutes. Add the carrots and stir to make sure they are well combined with the other ingredients and coated in the curry powder. Add in the tomatoes and tomato paste and stir. Cook until the mixture is well combined and slightly thickened, about 5 to 10 minutes. 

2. Finish the dish. Remove from the heat and add the baked beans, thyme and remaining ginger. Stir to combine; season with salt and pepper. Serve hot or cold. 

RELISH

Ushatini is a South African version of a salad or relish that I have seen around the world. In the Americas, it resembles salsa or pico de gallo, with tomatoes, onions and chiles. In the Middle East, it is halfway to a salad e-shirazi (all it needs is cucumbers). Yet, ushatini is South African with its use of the piri-piri chiles (or, in my case, Thai green chiles). It is a great accompaniment to the Braai, as it should be spooned over the grilled meat or seafood.  

USHATINI

Recipe from Cookpad

Ingredients:

• 1 red onion, diced
• 2 big tomatoes, diced
• 3 chiles, minced
• Vinegar, to taste
• Salt, to taste 

Directions:

Combine all of the ingredients in a bowl and mix well. 

CONDIMENT

The final part of the Around the World in 80 Dishes challenge involves the preparation of peri-peri sauce, or what was referred to in Uncharted as "pele pele" sauce. This condiment was made possible by the Portuguese, who brought chiles to South Africa (as they did around the world), which served as the basis for the sauce. This is a very spicy sauce given the types of chiles used. 

SOUTH AFRICAN PERI PERI

Recipe from African Bites

Ingredients:

• 10 hot chiles (habanero, scotch bonnet or Thai chiles)
• 1 medium onion
• 4 cloves garlic
• 2 tablespoons bouillon powder or Maggi cubes
• 2 basil leaves
• 2 tablespoons parsley
• 1-3 roma tomatoes
• 1/2 to 1 cup vegetable oil
• Salt
• Freshly ground black pepper 

Directions:

1. Prepare the sauce. Coarsely chop the tomatoes and onions and discard the pepper stems. Then puree the tomatoes, onions, garlic, pepper, parsley, basil, and bouillon powder in a food processor with as much oil as needed to make a thick-ish puree. 

2. "Cook" the sauce. Pour the pepper mixture into a small saucepan, bring to a boil, reduce heat, and slowly simmer for about 15 minutes, stirring frequently to prevent burning. Adjust seasoning with salts.

 3. Finish the dish. Let it cool, pour into a mason jar or a container with a lid, and store it in a fridge for up to a week. For the pepper sauce to last longer, fully cover it with oil. 

*     *     *

In the end, I think these dishes turned out well, even if they may not have reached the standards of either Gordon Ramsey or his hosts when he visited South Africa. The dishes enabled me to participate in an endeavor to learn more about South African cuisine, especially the dishes of the indigenous peoples. This challenge was a success and motivates me to my next one. Stay tuned for more....

PEACE.

Poulet Basquaise

"The extent to which you can walk in someone else's shoes or at least eat their food, it's a plus for everyone." 

-- Anthony Bourdain

Although I have always been fascinated by other countries and other cultures, in many respects, Anthony Bourdain has been the one to introduce me to someone else's food. Whether it was No Reservations or Parts Unknown, I would watch intently as Bourdain traveled around the world and communed with people at a table eating food. It is one of the most basic ways to achieve a mutual understanding. 

One of the many places that Anthony visited was Basque country, a region that straddles both Spain and France. It was a place that returned to again and again. The reason, as he described it, was "my love for the Basque, for Basque culture, for my Basque friends, is absolute." If a region, its people and its culture can strike a feeling like that in Anthony Bourdain, then an exploration is a must. 

I have previously prepared dishes from Basque country, but mostly focusing on that part that lies within Spain. I wanted to cross the border into France, to learn more about the Basque who live in that country. Anthony Bourdain's recipe for Poulet Basquaise provided that opportunity. 

The dish, Poulet Basquaise, is said to have originated from the Soule province of southwestern France, which is deep in the Basque country. The original recipe called for creating a sauce from bread and vegetables; however, it evolved over time to require the use of a piperade, which is base of tomato, onion and bell pepper. The dish also features the espellete, a pepper grown in the region (but which can be hard to find elsewhere). While the use of espellete is a must in Basque cooking, adequate substitutes include paprika or, if you would like a little more heat, Aleppo pepper. The Basque are also known for their wines, which can sometimes be hard to find as well. If you cannot find a Basque white wine, an adequate substitute is Picpoul de Pinet, a wine that comes from the neighboring French region of Languedoc. (I used that wine because it is more available and, as an added bonus, reasonably priced.)

When one prepares a dish like this, it transports them to a kitchen of a house in a small village in Soule. A dish that brings together local produce, a chicken from a nearby farm or market, some wine in the house, and herbs from the garden to produce a dish that would be the centerpiece of the family dinner. Basque cuisine features heavily local ingredients, influenced by French cuisine more than Spanish cuisine. It evolved over time, as evidenced by the tomatoes and peppers in the piperade. But, just as French cuisine has influenced Basque cuisine, the reverse is also true, as this particular dish is not just popular in Basque country, but in other areas of France as well. 

The exploration will continue, both in Basque country and elsewhere. Stay tuned....

POULET BASQUAISE

Recipe from Food & Wine

Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 1 whole chicken, cut into 8 pieces
• Salt
• Pepper
• Pinch of cayenne pepper or piment d'Espelette
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 2 red bell peppers, thinly sliced
• 2 green bell peppers, thinly slice
• 1 onion, thinly sliced
• 1 can (16 ounces) Italian plum tomatoes
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 1 cup water
• 1/2 cub chicken bouillon or 1/2 cup light chicken broth or stock
• 3 sprigs of flat parsley, finely chopped
• Rice pilaf, for serving

Directions:

1. Prepare the chicken. Season the chicken all over with salt, pepper and the cayenne pepper. Heat the oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium high heat, about 2 minutes. When the oil is hot, add the butter. When the butter has melted and the foam has subsided, add the chickens, skin side down and brown on that side only, about 5 minutes. Remove the chicken and set aside on the plate. 

2. Saute the vegetables. Add the peppers and onion to the pot and reduce the heat to medium low. Cook for about 10 minutes, then add the tomatoes and cook until the liquid is reduced by half. Stir in the wine, scraping to get up the good stuff. Cook until the wine is reduced by half, then add the water and bouillon cube or broth. Return the chicken to the pot, making sure to add all the juices on the plate. Cover the pot and simmer on low heat for about 25 minutes. 

3. Finish the dish. Transfer the chicken to a platter. Crank up the heat to high and boil the sauce until it has thickened and reduced, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and add the parsley. Pour the sauce over the chicken and serve with rice pilaf. 

PEACE.

Arrachera Verde

My parents bought me Bricia Lopez's Asada, The Art of Mexican Style Cooking for my birthday. It is a cookbook that I have wanted for some time. I wanted to learn more about Mexican cooking, as well as to do more grilling and smoking of meats, seafood and vegetables. As I read the cookbook, I began to make mental lists of the recipes that I wanted to make. One of those recipes is Arrachera Verde. 

The name translates to green skirt steak, which raises a question and provides a nod to its preparation. First, the question is around the meat. While arrachera may mean "skirt steak," the recipe calls for flap steak. That latter is also known as bavette, a thin and chewy cut of meat that is very popular in France, Argentina and Uruguay.  However, I have found that flap steak is not very common or available, at least around where I live. So, I had to look for a substitute, which led me back to skirt steak. Flank steak is also a workable substitute. Both skirt steak and flank steak share many characteristics with flap steak, being thinner cuts, as well as more fibrous and chewy.

The nod goes to the marinade. Perhaps the most green of the marinades is chimichurri. Indeed, Bricia Lopez notes, Arrachera Verde utilizes a marinade that is inspired by chimichurri. The recipe calls for a lot of herbs -- basil, mint, parsley and oregano -- for the marinade. Other classic chimichurri ingredients, like garlic and olive oil, help to round out the marinade. As the photo to the right shows,  the marinade does look a lot like a chimichurri.

The one thing that I like about the marinade is that the recipe says that only thirty (30) minutes are needed before the meat is ready for the grill. (Obviously, one can marinate the meat overnight, but the fact that a short marinade period raises a question for me as to whether a long period is necessary - that may have to await another post.) More importantly, the short marinating period makes the recipe something that can be made as dinner on a busy weekday.

While this blog readily illustrates that I have made quite a few chimichurri recipes over the years, I have to admit that I have rarely made recipes that use flap steak, skirt steak or flank steak. That is another reason why I wanted to make this recipe. I wanted to use a cut of meat that has not been a regular part of my repertoire.

This recipe also led me to another recipe, Salsa de Pina Tatemada. This recipe takes a salsa two ways that are different. First, it incorporates grilled ingredients, like grilled garlic and red onions. Second, it incorporates pineapple, which I have to say I don't usually use when making salsas. But, this salsa really worked and it is amazing with the grilled skirt steak.

One last note, Arrachera Verde with Salsa de Pina Tatemada is best served with corn tortillas. That seems, at least for me, to take me to what asado really is in Mexico.

ARRACHERA VERDE

Recipe from B. Lopez, Asada at 74

Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 1 cup loosely packed basil leaves
• 1 cup loosely packed fresh mint
• 1 cup loosely packed fresh parsley
• 1/4 cup fresh oregano leaves
• 2 Fresno chiles
• 3 large cloves garlic, peeled
• 1 lemon, zested and juiced
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 teaspoon citrus vinegar
• 2 tablespoons sea salt
• 2 pounds flap steak
• Warm tortillas, for serving
• Salsa de Pina Tatemada, for serving

Directions:

1. Marinate the steak. In a food processor, add the basil, mint, parsley, oregano, chiles, garlic, lemon zest and juice, olive oil, vinegar and salt. Pulse until a smooth paste forms.  Pat the steak dry with paper towels and place it in a large bowl. Rub the paste mixture all over the meat. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or overnight.

2. Prepare to grill. Remove the meat from the refrigerator to allow it to reach room temperature before grilling if possible. Start a charcoal or gas grill. The gas should be set to high. If using a pellet grill, preheat your grill to 450 degrees Fahrenheit for at least 15 minutes. If using charcoal, the coals should be red but entirely covered with gray ash.

3. Grill the steak. Remove the meat from the marinade and put it on the grill directly over the fire. Close the lid and cook, turning once, about 4 to 5 minutes on each side. Transfer the meat to a cutting board and let rest for 5 minutes. 

4. Finish the dish. Slice the meat against the grain. Serve with warm tortillas and the salsa. 

PEACE.

Salsa de Pina Tatemada

Many towns are known from something or someone. When it comes to Loma Bonita, a town of about 41,000 people in Mexican State of Oaxaca, that something is the pineapple. Indeed, Loma Bonita is often referred to as the Pineapple Capital of the World.

The story of how Loma Bonita became that capital involves a yanqui named Frank Peters. Frank arrived in the area in 1906, working for an Illinois doctor who purchased land there. Frank later bought some land -- nearly 200 acres -- in the area for himself. Frank then planted pineapples on his land. And, by 1910, he was harvesting 20,000 pineapples per year. His success led to the purchase of more land (eventually reaching 7,400 acres) and, of course, many more pineapples. Things eventually went downhill for Frank Peters. The Mexican government seized most of his land in 1934.

While history may have been written about yanquis bringing pineapples to Oaxaca or Loma Bonita, one white man could not harvest all those pineapples. By 1952, the area was producing 40,000 to 60,000 tons of pineapples, which supported four nearby canneries. The focus primarily rests upon the growers, but it is the laborers whose work ensures that pineapple after pineapple, ton after ton, make it to the canneries and beyond. Those laborers are just as deserving of recognition for making the area, with Loma Bonita at its center, one of the most important pineapple exporting regions in Mexico. 

In Oaxaca, the pineapple is often used to prepare salsas. Those salsas are often cruda, incorporating raw pineapple, along with other raw ingredients like tomatillos. I came across a recipe from Salsa de Pina Tatamada when I made Arrachera Verde, which is a recipe for grilled flap steak (or, in my case, skirt steak). This salsa may be considered a variation of the traditional Oaxacan pina salsas in that the pineapples -- along with all of the other ingredients are grilled. 

I am a big fan of pineapple, but usually raw. However, I have to say that the use of grilled pineapple really worked in this recipe, because the heat brings out the sweetness and tames the citrus notes. That sweetness helps to balance the chiles in the salsa.

SALSA DE PINA TATEMADA

Recipe from B. Lopez, Asada at 195

Makes 2 cups

Ingredients:

• 3 cloves garlic, peeled
• 1 large red onion, minced
• 1 medium pineapple, cored and cut into 3/4 inch slices
• 2 habanero chiles
• 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
• 1 teaspoon sea salt, plus more as needed
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/2 cup flat leaf parsley, minced

Directions:

1. Start the grill. Start a charcoal or gas grill. Gas should be set to high. If using a pellet grill, preheat the grill to 425 degrees Fahrenheit for at least 15 minutes. If using charcoal, the coals should be red but entirely covered with gray ash.  

2. Grill the garlic and onion. Wrap the garlic and onion in separate aluminum foil packets. Place them on the grill until the garlic and onion have softened, about 15 to 20 minutes. 

3. Grill the pineapple and habanero peppers. Meanwhile, place the pineapple slices and habaneros directly on the grill. Cook until the pineapple has charred evenly on both sides and the skin of the habaneros has charred evenly too, about 5 to 10 minutes. Turn every 2 to 4 minutes for even cooking. When charred, remove everything from the grill.

4. Prepare the salsa. On a cutting board, chop the grilled pineapple into 1/4 inch cubes. In a serving bowl, mix the pineapple with the grilled onion and lime juice. Reserve. Add salt and garlic to a molcajete and grind until the garlic has dissolved into a paste. Next, slowly incorporate the habaneros and the olive oil, continuing to grind until you are left with a paste.  

5. Finish the dish. Add the habanero paste to the bowl of pineapple and onion, add the parsley, and stir to combine. Taste for salt, adding more as needed and serve. 

PEACE.