Starapples

During The Gleaner-sponsored Restaurant Week, some members of Lifestyle team dined on salt-fish dishes offered by the various participating restaurants. The chefs really put their new knowledge gleaned from seminars conducted by sponsor Norwegian Seafood Export Council to the test and here are the results.

As an appetiser, the codfish delight from Starapples was a good concept. The salt fish sticks were battered, fried and served with a vegetable salsa dip.

The dip

When I sampled the sticks last Wednesday, they were dry and chewy. However, the dip somewhat compensated for this.

The main course, coconut curried codfish supreme was a better representation of the possibilities that lie with salt fish. Unique in its composition, the dish was salt-fish cooked in coconut milk and curry sauce and wrapped in a roti. It was not as chewy as the appetiser but still could have been less dry. The overall flavour was good and the guacamole dip added a different dimension of flavour.

There is potential for Starapples' salt-fish dishes.

sacha.walters@gleanerjm.com

The Reef salt fish and gungo peas run-dung.

For this year's Gleaner-sponsored Restaurant Week, 13 of the 45 participating restaurants decided to incorporate salt fish in their menus. The Norwegian Seafood Export Council, one of the sponsors, encouraged this novel idea.

Terra Nova All-Suite Hotel - Grilled snapper in salt fish run-dung:

The meal was delectable. The salt fish in the sauce drizzled over the grilled snapper fish was subtle but not overpowering. The use of coconut milk in a run-dung style was an excellent choice as the blend of coconut, salt fish and local seasonings was well executed. An excellent gourmet product and a nice way to elevate salt fish.

- Dr Heather Little-White, Nutritionist and Chef

Dragon City - salt fish and chicken fried rice:

I'm glad you chose me to sample and critique the application of salt fish to Chinese cuisine as Chinese food was the first genre I learnt to cook.

I loved it as I suspected they cooked it in the rice like they would corned fish. This application is a lovely way to get Westerners to try corned fish in a way they would not have before.

- Debe Chen, Caterer

Starapples - Coconut curried salt fish supreme: The balance of the flavours in the roti wrap was not dominant at all. The flavours were not too spicy and worked well on the palate. It was a basic and simple dish that was filling and tasty. This would be ideal for a lunchtime meal - quite nutritious as it provides protein, omega 3 fatty acids from the salt fish and the starch and carbohydrates from the roti.

It is quite exciting to experience salt fish in this non-traditional way. This proves that the salt fish is versatile and can be used in a variety of other dishes.

- Brian Lumley - Personal Chef to the French Ambassador, Chef of the Year 2008

Guilt Trip - Grilled bass fillet topped with codfish salad served with warm savoury codfish bread pudding, green goddess dressing and four-citrus vinaigrette: It was my first time experiencing this fine restaurant which I consider an oasis. It is truly a hidden treasure in the city.

For the appetiser I chose the ackee and salt-fish bisque. When I tasted the dish my first reaction was WOW! The dish was courageous, bold and appealing to the palate. The creamy blend of the ackee with a hint of the taste of the salt fish on top only served as the encouragement to continue the experience.

With every spoonful, the dish progressed to excitement and surprises for me. Towards the bottom of the bowl were chunks of salt fish waiting to excite my dining pleasure even more. I was in seventh heaven. I love ackee and salt fish but I was truly pleased to experience an alternative way of preparing this dish.

Colleen has created a winner.

- Naomi Francis, producer/host, This Morning, Nationwide.

Gimblyn salt-fish chowder. - Contributed photos