Preserve & Pickle Jamaican Zest

Autumn is when the world looks to pickling & preserving to store flavours for a rainy depressing day when a hint of spice harkens back to summers of sun & seasonal tastiness…  Jamaica is famous for it fairly hot and fiery preserves, some such as Jerk Sauce now world-famous.  Many use both chilli and sweet bell peppers that are supposed to be great aphrodisiacs and good for the digestion.  We think it is actually the combination of the various ingredients that have these positive effects, including onions, garlic and Jamaican ginger which is supposed to be best in terms of its strength and flavour.

At the moment Jamaican bird peppers are in season so we are busy picking and sun-drying them. We finish the drying process by leaving them overnight in the Mille Fleurs oven after we have finished dinner service. The warmth of a turned-off oven is just right and once the peppers are really dry we just store them in clean dry bottles or make pepper sherry with them. For the latter we just insert some garlic cloves, sprigs of thyme and some bird peppers and then let it stand for a while to draw the flavours. A few drops of this will spice up any soup or sauce.

The mango season is sadly over, but we luckily have some bottles of our Jamaican Mango Chutney to remind us during the winter season of the delicious tangy mango taste. A dollop of this is great with homemade burgers or added to homemade mayonnaise for a lovely tropical Chicken Salad with bits of tropical fruit such as Pineapple and Papaya. Next week we will be sharing our Chef Junior’s recipes for Solomon Gundy & Escoveitch Pickle Sauce, Pickled Beetroot & Banana Chutney.

Mango Chutney Recipe

Ingredients

12 mangoes, halved, stoned and sliced
250 gm ripe tamarind (or tamarind paste)
1 sweet red pepper, seeded and diced
150 gm. seedless raisins
125 gm. Dates, stoned and chopped
3 garlic cloves
1 tbsp. finely minced fresh ginger
1 tsp. finely chopped bird pepper
1 tbsp. salt
1 onion, sliced
3 stalks Scallion, finely chopped
1 tbsp. lemon juice
1 tbsp. ground mustard seeds
2 tsp. each black peppercorns and pimento berries (allspice)
½ ltr. cider vinegar or malt vinegar

Method
Combine the raisins, dates, sweet pepper and half of the vinegar and let stand for 24 hours.
Mix the tamarind paste with the rest of the vinegar. 
Mix all the ingredients and boil gently for about 45 minutes in a heavy saucepan, stirring occasionally in between until the mixture is thick.
Bottle in sterilized bottles and seal immediately. If you do not wish to seal then place in a refrigerator…

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Food Miles Count

How do you like our new food miles poster? There are few restaurants in Jamaica that are more dedicated to making a menu from what's available from local suppliers than Mille Fleurs at Mocking Bird Hill

We'd love to draw the line at a maximum radius for each of our suppliers to be within 50 miles of the hotel, but due to Jamaica's various climatic, soil and vegetation conditions we do have to extend this a little further up to 90 miles. However we still feel exceptionally proud as in a country where most foods and products are imported, this is a great achievement.

Counting food miles can be quite challenging, it forces one to become more creative. It is food art; you look at what you have and then let it inspire you, a process contrary to how many Jamaican restaurants determine their menu.  We feel that one of the most fulfilling ways to explore a culture is by dipping into local cuisine and the only way we can do this is to use and showcase local seasonal foods. Part of sharing a new food dish, is uncovering its history; knowing the story of who grew or why ingredients are produced in a specific geographic area, the differing costs;  whether social, human, environmental involved in bringing it to table: all these combined are a great way of discovering a country whilst on holiday.

The menu at Mille Fleurs Restaurant is kept spar; a daily changing choice of 3-4 dishes that is entirely determined by what is being harvested at the moment. For the first course with a selection of soup and starters; for the mains 4-6 dishes including a selection of vegetarian options, and finally 3-4 desserts including the option for a savoury Cheese plate with artisan cheeses made at Tamarind Hill Farm by Joanna Slimforte.

Because we buy locally from small farmers, fishermen and other suppliers we are dependent on the vagrancies of the market. This can be determined by occasional rough seas, which in turn means that the fishermen in their small boats can't go out, or for example as has been the case after a hurricane when all the banana crop was destroyed and we had no bananas!  For that we reason we also specify on our menu which items are based on availability. It would be easy to look to imports to stop the gap, but as we said, we prefer to be creative with our menus and promote sustainable tourism, in which members of the local community all benefit from our guests visits to Jamaica.

Read more about Sustainable Tourism at Hotel Mocking Bird Hill

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Where are you Indulging Yourself this Christmas Time in Jamaica?

If you are looking to experience the most beautiful, locally-sourced Jamaican food available this Christmas and New Year holiday period on the island, we would recommend sampling Port Antonio’s Mille Fleurs restaurant’s wholly organic, delicious and inspired à la carte lunch & dinner menus. Not only has the restaurant received rave reviews from the international media including The Guardian, but it was voted “Best Kept Secret” by the Jamaican Observer 2009. 

Prices including local taxes start at:

First Course:  US$ 8.70-17.50

Main Course US$ 23.50-45

Dessert US$ 8.70-10.90

Here are the menus over the week ahead, to help plan when you would like to visit for the ultimate Christmas or New Year indulgence that is guilt free! For a reservation please call 993 7267 or 993 7134.

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Jamaican Cuisine Star at the Helm of Mille Fleurs

The team at the Caribbean’s No.1 Eco Friendly resort are delighted to welcome aboard their new fusion Jamican Cuisine Star, Chef Melvin Laidlaw.  Born in Jamaica and raised in Ontario Canada from the age of 8 his life and travel experiences have brought about a unique style of cooking that fuses European, Asian and traditional American with his rural Jamaican roots to create flavourful masterpieces.

As a young child Laidlaw followed his mother and grandmother around the kitchen, admiring the time and attention they applied in preparing local ingredients, infused & enthused by the subtle fragrance of the complementary herbs & spices. Then of course came the tasting and eating; the joyful sharing of these excellent dishes with family & friends, the pinnacle of every day.  Melvin believes it is this background which is at the heart of his unique blending of locally grown, organic, fresh ingredients prepared with love, to be enjoyed socially.

He attended Vancouver’s famous Dubrille Culinary School to gain his official Chef training and accreditation, after which he returned to Toronto and began creating his Mr Spinners brand, specialising in the making of organic pestos, pastas and energy bars to the local Farmers Markets and high-class restaurants.  This led to the opening of his ‘Fish Shak’ Restaurant in Toronto's Kensington Market that featured only ‘wild fish’ and organically-sourced food served in an authentic Jamaican style – a first for Toronto. Sadly the establishment closed its doors after 5 years, following the dropout of a bad investment partner.

Wanting to get back to his source has led Mel full circle back to where it all started, with a world of experience to share with people who visit or live in the land of wood & water; Hotel Mocking Bird Hill are proud that he will be taking Restaurant Mille Fleurs into new realms of gastronomic delight!

A few of Mel’s Favourite Things

1. Jamaican Thyme -  “ My ‘It’  factor herb which I cannot live without.” 
2.  Mr. Spinners sun dried tomato pesto with hemp seeds – “yes it is my secret recipe and brand but it is fantastic.  It goes great with cream cheese on a toasted bagel; added to goat cheese and yogurt it's a revelation for veg/bread sticks. Yucca Fries with a pesto and mayo dip is something no foodie can turn down!”
3. Fried, wild red snapper escabeche with bammy or yucca fries.3. Heirloom tomato salad with purple onion and feta cheese tossed in a DOC Olive Oil & lime juice.
4. Curry crab or lobster with steamed jasmine rice and fried plantains with sliced avocado.
5. Roast salt cod and yellow yam served with beautifully cool & refreshing jelly coconut water.
6.  Acai parfait topped with fresh diced banana and granola “oh so good…breakfast or snack.”

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Best Kept Secret Jamaica Winner!

We've just been voted winners of Jamaica's Best Kept Secret at the Jamaica Observer's Food Awards so you can imagine how big the smiles are this weekend amongst the Hotel Mockingbird Hill team. 

Chef Anthony Reid said:

"“The Jamaica Observer Food Awards, wow!!! This is where all the top restaurants in Jamaica showcase their talent. For me as the Chef at Hotel Mocking Bird Hill to win the award for the Best kept Secret is a magnificent feeling, to know that your hard work is recognized by people who appreciate fine dining and good quality food”.

On collecting the award Barbara, Hotel Mockingbird Hill Director proudly announced:

“The Jamaica Observer’s Best Kept Secret award is for a restaurant that’s under the radar which I suppose is true given the quality of our food and the total dining experience” and the few people who have found us so far. Hats off to Anthony Reid, ably supported by Junior Lyn. We hope that with the completion of the North Coast Highway more people will find their way here. In the meantime together with Anthony we will continue to work and create and improve (we have a few new ideas cooking in our heads) and maybe, one day Anthony will be selected as the Chef of the year –he really deserves it.

Since the North Coast Highway opened connecting Kingston to Port Antonio over half an hour has been knocked off the original journey.  Now not only can the journey be considered a reasonable commute from Kingston, but after your drive you can look forward to dining at Mille Fleurs our restaurant and winner of Jamaica's best kept secret.  Staying at  Hotel Mockingbird Hill and enjoying a Saturday night's fine organic dining in the Mille Fleurs restaurant offers the perfect weekend getaway for those looking for a brief respite to indulge and recharge away from Kingston.

Read "where excellence is rewarded in full" The Jamaica Observer

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