Oil Down — Print Recipe — The Culinary Codex

Breadfruit, callaloo, dumplings, and salted fish slowly cooked in coconut milk with turmeric until the oil 'comes down.' Grenada's national dish.

Ingredients

1 medium breadfruit (about 1kg), peeled, cored, and cut into 3cm chunks
400ml full-fat coconut milk
300ml water
200g salted fish (such as salted cod), soaked overnight and flaked
200g callaloo or fresh spinach leaves, washed and roughly torn
6 small flour dumplings (from 150g flour, pinch salt, 80ml water)
1 tsp ground turmeric
4 sprigs fresh thyme
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 small onion, diced
1 scotch bonnet pepper, left whole
2 tbsp vegetable oil
Salt to taste

Instructions

1 Soak the salted fish in cold water overnight, changing the water at least twice, then drain and flake it into bite-sized pieces, discarding any bones and skin to prepare it for the stew.
2 Prepare the dumplings by mixing flour and salt with just enough water to form a stiff dough, then pinch off small pieces and roll them into short cylinders about five centimetres long.
3 Heat the vegetable oil in a large heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat, saute the diced onion and garlic for three minutes until fragrant and softened, then stir in the ground turmeric until it colours the oil golden.
4 Layer the breadfruit chunks in the bottom of the pot, followed by the flaked salted fish, then the dumplings, and finally the callaloo or spinach on top, tucking the thyme sprigs and whole scotch bonnet among the layers.
5 Pour the coconut milk and water over the layered ingredients, ensuring the liquid comes at least three-quarters of the way up the pot. Do not stir, as the layers should remain distinct during cooking.
6 Bring the pot to a gentle boil, then reduce the heat to low, cover tightly with a lid, and simmer for sixty to ninety minutes until the breadfruit is completely tender and the coconut oil has separated and settled.
7 Check the pot occasionally to ensure it does not boil dry, adding a splash of water if needed, but avoid stirring so the layers maintain their integrity and cook evenly in the coconut steam.
8 The dish is ready when the liquid has reduced and a layer of fragrant coconut oil glistens on the surface. Remove the scotch bonnet and thyme sprigs before serving directly from the pot communally.