Recipe: Jamaican Fish Tea

JAMAICAN FISH TEA
Source: Island Cooking: Recipes from the Caribbean by Dunstan Harris, The Crossing Press: Freedom, CA. 162 pp.

During one of my theme dinners, I stumbled across this Jamaican classic. I was awestruck by the simplicity and ease coupled with profound flavor of this dish (it's a soup, but calling it a "tea" makes it a bit more exotic, don't you think?). You must try it!

1/2 to 1 lb fresh fish or seafood (I've used red snapper, ocean perch, shrimp and several others), skinless/shell-less, cut into " to 1" pieces
1 quart of water or fish stock (the water works really well, but use stock for a richer soup)
1 tsp thyme, crushed
1 chile, halved, seeds removed (use any variety, depending on your choice of heat; scotch bonnets are traditional and very fruity, but also incendiary)
1 tsp salt
2 cups starchy vegetables (use at least two of the following: potatoes, sweet potatoes, yuca (cassava), boniato (white sweet potato), yautia (dasheen)/malanga (taro)) cut into inch dice
2 cups plantains or green (to slightly ripe) bananas, cut into " dice
juice of 1 lime (about 2 T) or other citrus, optional

Combine the water/stock, thyme, chile, salt, starchy vegetables and plantains in a large pot. Bring to a boil, and then reduce heat to a simmer until vegetables and plantains are tender, about 20 to 30 minutes.

If you have purchased seafood with skins and/or shells, remove the skins and shells and let them simmer with the vegetables and fruits (or make a light fish stock to use instead of water); be aware that leaving the skins and/or shells on becomes a hazard at the dining table.

When vegetables and fruits are tender, remove the chile halves, and the fish skins if using (to facilitate removing shrimp shells, wrapping them in cheese cloth can be helpful). Add the seafood, and simmer until just cooked, about 5 minutes.

Variation: If you are vegetarian, omit the seafood, and be sure to use a nice vegetable stock (instead of water or fish stock) and perhaps some additional mild chiles in addition to the other ingredients.