Caribbean Seafood Pepper Pot

Caribbean Seafood Pepper Pot

Recipe type: entrée Yield: 4-6 Prep time: 30 mins Cook time: 1 hour 45 mins Total time: 2 hrs 15 mins

This flavorful dish features fresh seafood, butternut squash and an array of Caribbean herbs and spices including lemongrass, ginger, and fennel.

Ingredients:

Lobster Stock

15         Lobster body

3           Onion – julienned

1           Garlic head – sliced in half

1 in       Ginger piece – chopped

2           Lemongrass piece – smashed

8           Star anise pod

1/4 C     Coriander seed

1/2 C      Blended oil

8 qt        Water

 

Pepper Pot Soup

4 qt      Butternut squash – diced

3          Onion – julienned

1          Ginger piece – sliced thinly

2          Habanero – chopped

2          Lemongrass piece – smashed

6 13 1/2 oz Coconut milk can

6 qt        Lobster stock * (recipe)

              Salt – to season

 

Escabeche Vegetables

4 Orange

4 Lime

4 Lemon

1 Fennel head – thinly sliced (reserve the fennel fronds for garnish)

2 Shallot – thinly sliced

1/8 C Sherry vinegar

1/2 C Extra virgin olive oil

 

Escabeche Fish

4-6 oz Grouper – sliced (approximately 1 -1 ½ oz. per person)

 

Butternut Squash Garnish

4 oz Squash – medium, diced

2 T Olive oil

1 Thyme sprig

Salt and pepper – to taste

Directions:

1. Lobster Stock
3. In a large stock pot, toast lobster bodies in blended oil and then add onions; sweat until lobster bodies are nicely toasted red, and onions are translucent.
5. Add spices and lemongrass; stir constantly for a few minutes.
7. Add 8 quarts of water, then cover and cook for 45 minutes.
9. Strain out the solids from the stock.
11. Pepper Pot Soup
13. In a large pot, sweat the onions, ginger, habaneros and lemongrass.
15. Add the diced squash and continue sweating until soft.
17. Cover with lobster stock and then add coconut milk and simmer until vegetables are tender. Remove lemongrass and puree until soup is smooth. If needed, warm up soup prior to serving.
19.  
21. Escabeche Vegetables
23. Juice all the fruit and strain to make sure there are no seeds (using the zest for fish).
25. Add sherry vinegar to citrus juice.
27. Place the olive oil in a pan and sauté vegetables on high heat, deglazing pan with vinegar and citrus juice mixture.
29.  
31. Escabeche Fish
33. Marinate the fish for one hour in the citrus zest left over from the citrus juice (above) and enough olive oil to cover the fish
35.  
37. Butternut Squash Garnish
39. Dice and season the butternut squash with salt, thyme and extra virgin olive.
41. Sauté seasoned squash on medium heat until golden brown; about 5 minutes.
43. Cool and reserve.
45.  
47. To Plate:
49. In a hot pan with a bit of olive oil, sauté the marinated grouper.
51. To portion, take four to six (4-6) soup bowls and add approximately 1 oz. of grouper, 4 oz. of the escabeche vegetables and about eight pieces of diced squash to each.
53. Pour the warm Pepper Pot Soup into each bowl.
55. Garnish with butternut squash, fennel fronds, fresh basil, mint, and cilantro.

Published on October 8, 2019 by Teri Williams