Bajan Seasoning
Bajan seasoning is a staple in most
Barbadian homes. It is used mainly in meats and fish. I rarely saw it
being used in vegetable fare in the past but I do not see why not.
Actually Bajan Seasoning can save sauces and bean stews or help to
improve the flavour. There are always disputes to weather “X” person
makes a better seasoning than “Y”. The thing is there is no perfect
Bajan Seasoning recipe out there. There are some that are better than
others but there is no fixed rule of what ingredients to use. Some
people use parsley others cringe at using it, some people use sweet
bell peppers in their seasoning. There are however a few ingredients
that should be used
to make a typical Bajan Seasoning. A Bajan seasoning is a wet
seasoning. It can be brushed on tofu or tempeh, used in curries and
bean stews or it can be used to jazz up casseroles. It can be stored in
the fridge for a long time and you do not have to use too much to get a
good flavour. Bajan seasoning is found in most supermarkets in
Barbados, however many people make their own at home sometimes sans a
food processor. My parents use to make it just with a knife and it
would have the same smooth texture as if you used a food processor. It
is is 2009 and I will not slave over making seasoning like that. You
can pop chopped ingredients into the food processor and in 5 mins you
have homemade Bajan Seasoning. This is my version of Bajan Seasoning as
I said this recipe is not fixed and you can be very free with it. Enjoy
Bajan Seasoning
1 large bunch of eshallots,1 medium
large onion, 3 cloves of garlic (or more), 2 large limes juiced,2
Scotch Bonnet peppers(use 1 if you do not want the seasoning too
spicy), 1/3
cup of distilled vinegar( or more), handful sprigs of fresh thyme, a
handful sprigs fresh marjoram, 1 tsp curry powder, 1 tbs. black pepper,
1 tbs ground clove, 1tbs paprika.
Method
Chop onions coarsely and eshallots( large chives), garlic and peppers( use gloves or a knife and fork when cutting the peppers).
Add the remaining ingredients to the food processor and process until
smooth as in the photo above. At this point the seasoning taste is
deceiving. I would let this cure in a sterile bottle in the fridge for
about a week before I really taste it. After a week you can add more
spices if you wish. This batch was very good so I will not alter this.
If you use less spices, in terms of quantity you would get the same
basic Bajan seasoning. You can omit salt if you are diabetic, you can
omit the hot peppers if that is not your thing. I hope you enjoy this
condiment as much as I do. Remember it is not recommended you eat this
raw as a dip. It is better you use on your protein sources and cook.
This information is provided courtesy http://caribbeanvegan.wordpress.com/. For more information about this article and other great recipes, visit http://caribbeanvegan.wordpress.com/.