Congolese Makayabu (Salt Fish)

 Angelique Bitshiluala moved to Maine from the Democratic Republic of Congo and submitted this recipe. I was unable to locate the seasoning called for, Maggi seasoning, but was able to use Tamari sauce instead. We also don't have amaranth leaves or fried plantains in this region, so had to do without.

Even so, this salt cod recipe compares favorably with the other salt cod recipe in this cookbook (see my blog on Salt Cod). I've never fried fish without a breading, so that was decidedly new for me. And I do wonder if a breading might have kept it moist. The fish was a little too dry/chewy for me, but maybe I overcooked it. We don't do much frying in this household, so I have limited experience in judging when to pull fish out of the oil.

I loved cooking the eggplant, bell pepper, onions, and garlic in the olive oil. It just looked joyous, all jumbled together, with the bright red of the bell pepper as the vegetable star. I'm personally not an eggplant fan, but the Resident Archaeologist loves 'em. And I have to admit that when you put this all together, the eggplant is not an overpowering flavor, such that even I liked it, mixed in with the other ingredients.

I'd like to try this recipe again, with the full experience of amaranth leaves and fried plantains. And maybe bread the fish before frying. Salt cod is not going to replace my love of fresh fish anytime soon, but it was actually really cool to experience eating fish that was packed who knows how long ago, and the "freshness" sticker on the wooden box indicated it was good until the year 2022. Thanks to salt, people were able to enjoy fish at all times of the year, prior to the advanced technology of refrigeration. And we continue to enjoy this ancient method of food preservation in the 21st century!



Comments

Post a Comment

I welcome your comments. Please be kind and considerate. Thanks for stopping by!

Popular posts from this blog

Maine Party Chicken

Image
 As I read the ingredients for this recipe, I had a flashback to my childhood. My parents enjoyed having friends over, and my mother was not a chef by any means, but she would look for recipes that were easy to prepare for a crowd. This is one of the recipes she used to make.  I used to be a can-of-soup cook, like my mom, when a white sauce was called for. But since I learned how to do a bechamel, oh my, there is no going back. Not that there is anything wrong with an easy pop-top cream of mushroom soup once in awhile. It does the trick, and you just tuck this dish in the fridge overnight and do a three-hour bake the next day, which gives you time to focus on putting up party banners, or whatever, for your company. I'm not sure I care for the dried beef in this dish. Awfully salty. But the bacon, when you do a slow bake, smells fantastic for three solid hours. Can you say Anticipation?! I say, when you go big, go easy. Try this recipe for a crowd. You'll be glad you did!
Read more

Riverhouse Scallops "Benedict"

Image
 If elegant and easy ever paired perfectly, this would be the recipe for such a happy marriage. I saw the minimal ingredients, and thought to self: "This is where the quick hors d'oeuvres meet the 'oh wow' from the guests, with the hostess barely lifting a finger, except to sip some wine." Now, that's my kind of hors d'oeuvres! Slice the very fresh scallops into thin circles. Drop them into fresh lemon juice to "cook." You are also supposed to slice the avocados into circles, to mirror the scallops, but mine ended up being whatever shape the avocado chose. I don't argue with avocadoes about their shape, I just eat them and am grateful they choose to show up on the plate at all. The recipe calls for a few shakes of hot sauce on each scallop slice. I used Cholula Sweet Habanero Hot Sauce.  This is a fabulous appetizer that will impress your friends and family!
Read more

Spruce Beer Uncorked

Image
 Yes, we are mid-January. 2021. Aaand I know my personal challenge was to finish all the recipes in the Maine Bicentennial Cookbook by the end of 2020. So what are we doing now? Well, beer has a life of its own, and I had to let the bottle sit around in the kitchen, doing its fermenting thing, for a week. Then sit around in a cooler location for a week. Today's the day! I chilled the beer, popped the cork, and boldly toasted the new year.  This beverage gives you the refreshing taste of sweet nature: essence of spruce, brown sugar, a splash of lemon juice, ale yeast, and water. On another go-round I'll try honey as the sweetener. And I'll be more adventurous with the spruce. I was so concerned that the spruce flavor would overwhelm. But it didn't! In fact, I could have added a wee bit more. Have you ever tasted mead? This beverage is really rather like mead. How do I know? I was gifted a bottle of mead at Christmas. No spruce essence, but it was pretty good. In fact, I
Read more