Bajan fish cakes

Ingredients

Salt cod

• 300 gsalted cod, soaked in several changes of cold water for 12 hours
• 1 litrewater, for boiling
• 1 sprigthyme

Batter

• 250 gplain flour
• 2 tspbaking powder
• 1egg, beaten
• 200 mlwater
• ½ tspblack pepper
• ¼ tspsalt (taste first, the cod is salty)

Bajan seasoning

• 4spring onions (eschallot), finely chopped
• 3garlic cloves, minced
• 1small onion, very finely chopped
• 2 tbspflat parsley, chopped
• 1 tbspfresh thyme leaves
• 1 tspfresh marjoram
• ½Scotch bonnet pepper, seeded and minced
• 1 tspyellow mustard
• juice of ½ lime

To fry and serve

• 1 litrevegetable oil, for deep frying
• Bajan pepper sauce, to dip

Directions

1. Drain the soaked cod, put it in a pan with fresh water and the thyme, bring to a boil and simmer 15 minutes until the flesh flakes easily.
2. Drain, cool, then pick the cod apart with your fingers, discarding skin and any bones, and shred it fine. Taste a shred: if it is still fiercely salty, rinse and press it once more.
3. Chop all the Bajan seasoning ingredients together on a board until they are almost a wet green paste — this mixture, not the batter, is what makes the cakes Bajan.
4. Whisk the flour, baking powder and black pepper together, then beat in the egg and the water to a thick, sticky drop batter that holds its shape on a spoon.
5. Fold in the shredded cod and the seasoning paste. Rest the mixture 20 minutes so the baking powder starts to work and the flavours bleed into the batter.
6. Heat the oil to 175°C (350°F). Drop in heaped teaspoons of the mixture, four or five at a time, using a second spoon to push them off.
7. Fry 3–4 minutes, turning once, until they are dark golden, hollow-sounding and puffed to nearly double. Cut one open: the inside should be light and steamy, not doughy.
8. Drain on a rack, salt lightly if needed, and serve very hot with Bajan pepper sauce, or squashed into a soft salt bread as a ‘bread and two’.

Technique

• The soaking is the recipe. Under-soaked cod makes cakes so salty they are inedible; over-soaked cod makes them bland. Twelve hours with three water changes is the safe middle.
• The batter must be thick enough that the spoonful holds a rough, craggy shape as it hits the oil — the crags are where the crunch comes from.
• Fried in bulk for a rum shop, these are eaten with a Banks beer and a bowl of pepper sauce, and they are always spooned, never shaped by hand.

Substitutions

• No salt cod: poach 300 g of fresh cod or pollock, flake it, and add 2 tsp of salt to the batter — the flavour is cleaner and less funky.
• Bajan pepper sauce can be approximated with 3 Scotch bonnets blitzed with 3 tbsp yellow mustard, 2 tbsp vinegar, 1 tsp turmeric and salt.

Variations

• Some cooks add 2 tbsp of finely grated pumpkin to the batter, which keeps the cakes moist.
• Flat, pan-fried fish cakes shaped into patties are the home version served with a salad rather than as a snack.

History

Salt cod fritters sold at rum shops and cricket grounds, often eaten inside a salt bread cutter.

Frequently asked questions

What is Bajan fish cakes?

Bajan fish cakes is a snack from Barbados: fluffy salt-cod fritters dipped in pepper sauce. Salt cod fritters sold at rum shops and cricket grounds, often eaten inside a salt bread cutter.

How long does Bajan fish cakes take to make?

Bajan fish cakes takes 25 min plus overnight soaking of preparation and 30 min of cooking. The recipe makes 4 servings (about 24 fish cakes). It is rated easy to make.

What can I substitute in Bajan fish cakes?

Yes, within limits. No salt cod: poach 300 g of fresh cod or pollock, flake it, and add 2 tsp of salt to the batter — the flavour is cleaner and less funky. Bajan pepper sauce can be approximated with 3 Scotch bonnets blitzed with 3 tbsp yellow mustard, 2 tbsp vinegar, 1 tsp turmeric and salt.

What is the most important thing to get right in Bajan fish cakes?

The batter must be thick enough that the spoonful holds a rough, craggy shape as it hits the oil — the crags are where the crunch comes from.