Yellow Split Pea Rice & Salt Fish Gravy
Split peas can be difficult to come by outside of the Caribbean and South America. In other places of India, they're also a staple! The split peas are boiled with herbs and a pig tail that has been seasoned. Another Caribbean classic is pig tails, which are also popular in Chinese cuisine! The tail is dried, cured, and packaged for sale after being dried and cured with a large amount of salt. All of the salt and pork fat dissolve in the water when it is brought to a boil with the peas, adding to the flavor.
After the peas and pig tails have been cooked, the rice is added to soak up all of the flavor. The gravy is next. Salt fish is comparable to pig tail in that it is dried and cured in the same way. The gravy starts with some butter-fried fresh vegetables and herbs. The salt fish is mixed with water and added to the sautéed herbs, then heated to a boil until the gravy thickens. The final gravy is poured over the split peas and rice, which can be eaten at any time.
Ingredients
- 2 cup parboiled rice
- 1 lb salt fish (salted cod)
- 1 cup of water
- 1 cup of coconut milk (make your own)
- 4 cloves garlic, chopped or 2 tablespoons minced garlic
- 4 flavor peppers, chopped or 2 tablespoons Bertie's pimento sauce
- 2 tablespoons chopped chive
- 2 stalks celery, chopped
- 1 cup cut-up okra (I use the frozen okra from Goya)
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 hot pepper, whole
Instructions
- Soak and wash salt fish removing most of the salt.
- Place all ingredients except pepper into pot and stir.
- Add pepper to the top of rice mixture. (Do not stir)
- Select "rice" on instant pot and let come to the level
- Allow to self-release.
- Taste for salt. Add if needed
