Here is another of our favorite Caribbean one pot dish, oil down. If you are looking for a really good oil down recipe here it is. So for those of you who don’t like using too much utensils when cooking you will enjoy this. This dish is also one of my favorites. I’ve had it in so many different ways: with fish, pigtail, salt beef, saltfish… no matter what meat is used one thing remains the same, they all had breadfruit. Personally, I find that steamed breadfruit is a little dry so I like my oil down with some sauce, so I don’t feel like I am choking. This dish is ideal with a nice glass of lemon juice (lemonade) grapefruit juice or mauby.
Hope you enjoy it!
Oil Down Recipe
OIL DOWN
Ingredients:
3 pimento peppers, finely chopped
1 tbsp. fresh thyme leave
2 tbsp. chopped chive
4 slices fish
4 tbsp. of roucou liquid
1 small medium breadfruit
7 green figs (bananas), peeled
4 cups coconut milk
3 garlic
1 onion
1 bouillon cube (optional)
1 hot pepper
5 dasheen ( taro) leaves
Method:
The main ingredients needed for the dish.
Breadfruit, green fig, seasonings.
Chopped dasheen leaves
Coconut milk
Note: If you do not have fresh coconut milk you can use coconut powder. Just dissolve the coconut milk powder in 4 cups of warm water.
Peel and core the breadfruit. Cut into 2 inch slices. Place it into a large pot.
Add the rest of the ingredients, the roucou, and the coconut milk.
Pour coconut milk over the ingredients.
Cover pot and reduce heat to a simmer. Cook for about 40 minutes or until breadfruit is tender. Then add the slices of fish to steam over the ingredients until the sauce thickens a little.
Note: If other types of meat are used, e.g. pigtail or salt beef, it would be pressure cooked first and then added along with the other ingredients as shown before. In the case of saltfish, the saltfish will be boiled and then added along with the rest of the ingredients. In other words only fish is added after; all other meats are added before.
Here, the fish is added to the pot to be steamed.
Here we have the finished meal ready to be served.
Serves 4-6
I”m thinking of creating a personalised recipe book and oil down is definitely gonna make it on the front pages.
Oildown
Ingredients
- 3 pimento peppers finely chopped
- 1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves
- 2 tbsp chopped chive
- 4 slices fish
- 4 tbsp of roucou
- 1 small/ medium breadfruit peeled and sliced ino 2″ pieces
- 7 green figs bananas, peeled
- 4 cups coconut milk
- 3 garlic
- 1 medium-sized onion
- 1 bouillon cube optional
- 1 hot pepper
- 5 dasheen leaves
Instructions
- Place the breadfruit into a large pot. Add the rest of the ingredients. Cover pot and reduce heat to a simmer.
- Cook for about 40 minutes or until breadfruit is tender. Then add the slices of fish to steam over the ingredients until the sauce thickens a little.
eheh whey de banana leaf to cover de pot boy? Yuh forget? Yuh know dis is a Grenadian ting so we got to put we banana leaf on de top of de pot. LOL I have been looking for a good oil down reciupe for some time This is a keeper. Thanks.
No problem. I’ll do a post soon.
http://simplytrinicooking.com/coconut-milk/
Hi Felix. Could you explain how you prepare the coconut milk? No powder please! Here on Isla Margarita we have the american coconut which is not good for the traditional way of Asia which I learned in the Philippines, where they have the african coconut. The result of my attempts here is too waterish, very little taste. And to buy the milk in can from Thailand is pretty expensive.
@Ulrichmargarita
Ps. To the comment above: if you boil coconut milk and cover it, it cuts. The taste remains the same but it doesn’t look good.
Felix, Felix this is a winner it looks so good. I’m a porky myself but i’ll have to use fish for this receipe because my hubby does not eat pork, could u tell me which fish u used. I prefer red snapper myself but urs looks like king fish.
You’re correct. It is King Fish. In a dish like this you would want to use the larger less bonier fish like king fish,Carite, Blue Marlin etc. Thanks for the comment.
I mention your recipe in my blog http://www.mrgiftcateringservices-trinidad.blogspot.com, in a article about breadfruit. I found that your website about Trinidadian food is the most complete ever.
Thank you Erkarina. 🙂
Thanks for this tasty recipe!
Flex, good day to you. I love oi dwn and the best I have ever haad was from a Grenadian an my first time was in Grenada from my in-laws. I love the fact that you ave pictures,ppl tend to respond better and to be moe confident in cooking when they see pictures. I atttended chef chool, but nothing beats back yuh own cooking. Your page is a keeper.
Have a blessed day.
You should do a cookbook! I’ll do the photography for you! :p Great stuff man.
Hi Felix! Love ur website, great job! Would like to know if oil down has always been or is originally made with fish and other ppl have just included other meats? Thank’s much.
Like other peasant food in our cooking, the original recipe would is lost in time since it was passed down through the generations. Because of this I would like to believe the other variations using salted meats such as saltfish, pigtail, pigsnout or salt beef would have been the choice of meats since they lasted longer without refrigeration.
I THINK YOUR SITE IS AMONG THE BEST. YOUR DESCRIPTION AND INSTRUCTIONS ALONG WITH THE PICTURES IS A COMPLETE PACKAGE. NOW, IF YOU DO NOT HAVE DASHEEN LEAVES OR ROUCOU WHAT WOULD BE A SUBSTITUTE. IT’S BEEN QUITE A WHILE SINCE I HAVE HAD THIS MEAL AND WOULD LIKE TO TRY MY HAND AT IT. THANK YOU SO MUCH AND KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK.
You can omit those if you can’t get it. It would not affect the taste that much. Thank you for taking the time to leave a comment.
I made and ate oil down for the very first time in my life and I am very happy I used this recipe. I can safely say I have the Best Oil Down Recipe in The World!!! Thank You so much Felix
You’re Welcome Cassandra 🙂