Ingredients
Peas
- 400 gdried pigeon peas
- water, for soaking
Salt meat
- 500 gsalt beef or salt pork
- water, for soaking
- or 500 g smoked ham hock
Grain
- 300 gguinea corn flour
- sorghum flour
- or 300 g fine cornmeal
Seasoning
- 2onions, finely chopped
- 6spring onions, chopped
- 4garlic cloves, crushed
- a large bunch of parsley and thyme
- 1sweet pepper, chopped
- 1whole scotch bonnet
- 3 tablespoonsbutter
- black pepper
To serve
- roast pork or ham
- sweet potato pie
- at Christmas dinner
Directions
- Salt beef and salt pork are Caribbean staples. They keep without refrigeration indefinitely. Rinse the surface salt off under cold water. Cover it with cold water in a bowl. Give it at least twelve hours. Taste a small piece to check the salt. It should be seasoned rather than harsh. Rinse the dried pigeon peas well. Pick out any stones or shrivelled peas.
- Cover them with plenty of cold water. Soak them for at least eight hours. Drain and rinse them before cooking. Put the soaked salt meat in a large pot. Cover it well with fresh water. Bring the whole pot up to a boil.
- Skim off any foam that rises up. Let it simmer for about forty minutes. Add the drained pigeon peas to the pot. Give them about forty-five minutes. Top up with hot water as it reduces. Keep all of that cooking liquid. Lift the meat out and let it cool. Chop it finely, discarding any bone. Drain the peas, keeping all the liquid.
- Melt the butter in a wide heavy pot. Add the chopped onions to the pot. Cook them for a good eight minutes. Add the spring onions and the garlic. Add the chopped sweet pepper in. Add the chopped parsley and thyme. Cook it all for about five minutes. Adding the scotch bonnet takes care. Add the scotch bonnet whole and unbroken. It must never burst in the pot.
- Add the cooked peas to the pot. Add the chopped salt meat with them. Stir it through the seasoning. Pour in the reserved cooking liquid. Bring the whole pot up to a simmer. Sprinkle the guinea corn flour in slowly.
- Stir hard and constantly as you add it. The flour lumps instantly in hot liquid. Stir it constantly without stopping. Give it about twenty full minutes. Taste a little to check for rawness. Judging when it is done is the whole skill. Add hot liquid if it goes too stiff. Stir in a good knob of butter.
- Taste it and adjust the pepper. Serving it is done piping hot. Spoon it onto plates in mounds. Serve roast pork or ham alongside. It keeps four days refrigerated.
Technique
- The Monmouth Rebellion of sixteen eighty-five failed and several hundred captured rebels were transported to Barbados into indentured servitude, giving the word Barbadosed; the claim that they adapted haggis into this dish is widely repeated on the island but is traditional rather than documented, with no firm evidence connecting it to those men.
- Barbadian plantations used both indentured and enslaved labour, with enslaved Africans by far the larger population and held in entirely different conditions, so attributing any dish to one strand alone is rarely safe.
- Guinea corn is the Caribbean name for sorghum, a grain native to Africa that came with the slave trade, grows well in dry conditions and gives a fine slightly grey flour with a distinct earthy flavour.
Substitutions
- Fine cornmeal stands in for guinea corn flour, though the flavour is milder.
- A smoked ham hock replaces salt beef or pork and needs less soaking.
Variations
- Some cooks mash the peas roughly and others leave them entirely whole.
- It is pressed into a mould in some households and spooned plain in others.
- Leftovers are commonly fried in slices the next day.
History
Eaten at Barbadian Christmas and often linked to Scottish exiles transported after the 1685 Monmouth Rebellion, who adapted haggis to local grains.
Frequently asked questions
What is Jug jug?
Jug jug is a main from Barbados: christmas dish of guinea corn and pigeon peas cooked with salt meat. Eaten at Barbadian Christmas and often linked to Scottish exiles transported after the 1685 Monmouth Rebellion, who adapted haggis to local grains.
How long does Jug jug take to make?
Jug jug takes 30 minutes plus soaking of preparation and 2 hours of cooking. The recipe makes serves 8. It is rated medium to make.
What can I substitute in Jug jug?
Yes, within limits. Fine cornmeal stands in for guinea corn flour, though the flavour is milder. A smoked ham hock replaces salt beef or pork and needs less soaking.
What is the most important thing to get right in Jug jug?
Salt beef and salt pork are Caribbean staples. They keep without refrigeration indefinitely. Rinse the surface salt off under cold water. Cover it with cold water in a bowl. Give it at least twelve hours. Taste a small piece to check the salt. It should be seasoned rather than harsh. Rinse the dried pigeon peas well. Pick out any stones or shrivelled peas.
