Sesame Crusted Catfish With Geechee Peanut Sauce And Sauteed Okra Food

SOUTH BY SOUTHWEST

Steps:

• Place all ingredients in a food processor and puree until smooth. Transfer to a bowl and refrigerate for 2 to 3 hours before serving.
• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
• Sift cornmeal, flours and baking powder into a large bowl. Mix well.
• In a separate bowl, whisk together the soy milk, oil, salt, and syrup. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry, stirring just until the dry ingredients are moistened.
• Oil an 11-inch round cast iron skillet with the olive oil. Over high heat, heat the oil until it starts to smoke. Pour the batter into the heating skillet. Bake approximately 40 minutes, or until the cornbread is firm to the touch and a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool before slicing.
• Drain and rinse the beans. Place the beans in a medium saucepan with the bay leaves and add enough water to cover the beans by 1-inch. Cover and bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 35 minutes. Add 1 teaspoon of salt in the last 5 minutes of cooking. Beans will still be tough. They will complete their cooking in the stew. Reserve both the beans and the cooking juices while completing the preparation of the stew.
• Over medium to high heat in a large pot heat the oil, onions and carrots, cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the celery, squash, bell peppers, jalapeno, and garlic, cook 5 minutes more. Add the okra, spices, remaining salt, and the tomato paste.
• In a food processor, puree the whole tomatoes with their juice until you have a tomato soup-like consistency. Stir the tomato mixture into the vegetables. Add the beans, the bean cooking juice, and the water or vegetable stock. Cover and simmer until beans are tender, about 20 minutes. Add the tamari and cilantro. Serve hot.
• Steam the greens about 2 to 3 minutes in a steamer basket. Set aside.
• Heat the oil and garlic in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the cooked greens and salt, tossing with the onions and garlic, cook until greens are softened, about 3 minutes. Sprinkle with the tamari and serve hot.

STEAMED FLYING FISH AND COU-COU

Steps:

• Make the Cou-Cou: Combine the water, okra, red pepper, salt, and hot sauce in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil and cook, stirring, until very thick. Transfer half of the okra mixture to a bowl.
• Add 2 tablespoons of the butter to the okra mixture in the saucepan, and reduce the heat to low. While stirring the mixture with a wooden spoon, sprinkle in the cornmeal a little at a time, and cook until thick. Add the remaining okra mixture and 2 tablespoons butter and stir until smooth. Cover to keep warm.
• Make the Flying Fish: Rub the flesh side of the fish with the Bajan seasoning and lime juice, and season with the salt, to taste. Roll each fish up tightly and secure with a toothpick.
• Heat the butter in a large skillet with a tight-fitting lid, over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, celery, and bay leaf and cook, stirring, until soft. Add the catsup, curry, mustard, and sugar and stir. Add the water, stir to combine, and bring to a simmer. Arrange the rolled fish in the skillet and cover with the bell peppers, tomato, herbs, and hot sauce. Cover and simmer until the fish is just cooked through, about 10 minutes. Season with salt, to taste.
• Divide the cou-cou among the plates, make a well in each, and spoon the fish and sauce over the top.

LIMPIN' SUSAN

Steps:

• Cut the bacon into 1-inch pieces a fry it in a heavy skillet until it is crisp and has rendered most of its fat. Add the okra and onion and saute them in the bacon drippings, stirring occasionally, until the onion is translucent and the okra is tender. Add the rice, water, and salt and pepper and continue to cook for 5 minutes, making sure that all of the ingredients are well mixed. Transfer the rice and okra mixture to top section of a steamer, add water to the bottom, cover, and cook until the rice is fluffy and dry. The cooking times will depend on the type of rice, but this should take between 45 minutes and 1 hour. Serve hot and use a rice spoon, if you have one. In the rest of the world, this is a long-handle stuffed spoon. In rice eating Charleston, it's a rice spoon.

SESAME CRUSTED FISH

Steps:

• Marinate fish in the soy and sesame oil for 15 minutes.
• Drain and dust the fish in flour.
• Dip into the egg and then roll in the sesame seeds.
• Deep fry the pieces in 360 degree oil for 4 or 5 minutes. No longer -- the sesame seeds scorch easily and will be bitter.
• Make a simple dipping sauce with some soy sauce diluted with about a 50/50 ratio of water and some fresh grated ginger. Delicious!
• You may need to cook this in two batches so that the temperature of the oil doesn't plummet. The oil needs to maintain a constant 360 temperature if possible.