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Photo:Photographer: Rachel Marek, Food stylist: Holly Dreesman, Prop stylist: Addelyn Evans
Photographer: Rachel Marek, Food stylist: Holly Dreesman, Prop stylist: Addelyn Evans
Active Time:25 minsTotal Time:25 minsServings:6Jump to Nutrition Facts
Active Time:25 minsTotal Time:25 minsServings:6
Active Time:25 mins
Active Time:
25 mins
Total Time:25 mins
Total Time:
Servings:6
Servings:
6
Jump to Nutrition Facts
Jump to recipe
Tracing Heritage through Grilled Corn and the Memories of Summer Days
A strong sense of self seems to come with age. I find myself grateful for an aging mother who insists on cooking for me, even though it’s what I do for a living. Food has always been a big part of our family, and memories of eating together continue to shape me today.
I didn’t grow up cooking, more so eating, but when a look inward told me I needed to cook the food of my culture, I started the best way I knew how—with family recipes. For a couple of years, I cooked alongside my mother, asking her to show me how she made our dinner table’s most prized and requested dishes like sos pwa (Haitian rice and bean sauce), akra (crispy taro root fritters), legim (vegetable stew) and griyo (twice-cooked pork), the versions we grew up eating and loved so much.
On family trips to Haiti, we would pass the roadside vendors also selling this snack. Through my travels around the world, the sight and smell of a regional grilled corn always serves as a reminder of youth and times past as well as how ingredients connect us around the world. Grilled corn means many things to many cultures—in Mexico, there are elotes, in Cambodia, a version gets glazed with coconut, and Kenya has mahindi, where the corn is grilled and rubbed in chile-lime salt, just to name a few.
We openedSousòlright after openingKann, my wood-fired restaurant and love letter to Haitian history, culture and ingredients. While Kann focuses on Haiti and Oregon, Sousòl is a cocktail bar where we explore and honor the Caribbean through its drink and food. Jerk may be the king of Caribbean cooking methods, the way the Maroons, the runaway, formerly enslaved people, provided for themselves while seeking safety and solace in the mountains of Jamaica.
The tradition involves cooking meat in underground pits after rubbing or marinating it with a fiery mix of spices, including allspice and Scotch bonnet. The underground pits served to hide the creation of smoke so as not to give away their location. The indigenous Taino passed this method on to the Maroons, and it carried on as they gained their freedom. Traditionally the meats used were chicken and pork, and it was cooked over indigenous pimento wood. Today, jerk is loved worldwide and holds great meaning to the Caribbean diaspora. Barbecue—and grilling, in itself—represents important and often unsung history. The Taino were slow-cooking food with fire, smoke, spices and sauces far before Christopher Columbus made his way to the Caribbean in 1492.
While jerk is a cooking method and not a sauce, sometimes modern conventions blur the line. A good jerk has a few key ingredients, including chile and spices, and they all play well against the sweetness and char of grilled corn. This dish is on my table all summer and represents my past and present as well as the past and present of those who came before me. In this dish, I feel and taste the memories that define me, as well as the history of how Caribbean people have inspired and made the world a more delicious place even under the most unfair conditions.
Cook Mode(Keep screen awake)IngredientsRed Chile Jerk Sauce1/4cupavocado oil1/4cupcoconut aminosortamari2tablespoonsbrown sugar1tablespoonfresh thymeleavesor1/2 tablespoon dried1/2teaspoonblackpeppercorns1/2teaspoonallspice berries2driedorfreshbay leaves1moderately spicyfresh red chile, such as Fresno, stemmed1scallion, trimmed and roughly chopped1largeclove garlic, peeled1smallshallot, roughly chopped1/2Scotch bonnetorhabanero pepper, stemmed1(1-inch) piecefresh ginger, peeled and thinly sliced1/4nutmeg, grated or 1/8 teaspoon powdered3/4tablespoonkosher salt1lime, zested and juicedCorn6earsfreshcorn, husked1tablespoonavocado oil for grilling, plus more for grill1tablespoonextra-virgin olive oilCilantrosprigs for garnish (optional)
Cook Mode(Keep screen awake)
Ingredients
Red Chile Jerk Sauce
1/4cupavocado oil
1/4cupcoconut aminosortamari
2tablespoonsbrown sugar
1tablespoonfresh thymeleavesor1/2 tablespoon dried
1/2teaspoonblackpeppercorns
1/2teaspoonallspice berries
2driedorfreshbay leaves
1moderately spicyfresh red chile, such as Fresno, stemmed
1scallion, trimmed and roughly chopped
1largeclove garlic, peeled
1smallshallot, roughly chopped
1/2Scotch bonnetorhabanero pepper, stemmed
1(1-inch) piecefresh ginger, peeled and thinly sliced
1/4nutmeg, grated or 1/8 teaspoon powdered
3/4tablespoonkosher salt
1lime, zested and juiced
Corn
6earsfreshcorn, husked
1tablespoonavocado oil for grilling, plus more for grill
1tablespoonextra-virgin olive oil
Cilantrosprigs for garnish (optional)
Directions
To prepare sauce:Combine oil, coconut aminos (or tamari), brown sugar, thyme, peppercorns, allspice, bay leaves, red chile, scallion, garlic, shallot, Scotch bonnet (or habanero), ginger, nutmeg, salt, lime zest and lime juice in a blender; blend until completely smooth, about 1 minute.
To make aheadRefrigerate sauce (Step 1) in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
To make ahead
Refrigerate sauce (Step 1) in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
EatingWell.com, June 2024
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Nutrition Facts(per serving)212Calories11gFat30gCarbs4gProtein
Nutrition Facts(per serving)
- Daily Values (DVs) are the recommended amounts of nutrients to consume each day. Percent Daily Value (%DV) found on nutrition labels tells you how much a serving of a particular food or recipe contributes to each of those total recommended amounts. Per the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the daily value is based on a standard 2,000 calorie diet. Depending on your calorie needs or if you have a health condition, you may need more or less of particular nutrients. (For example, it’s recommended that people following a heart-healthy diet eat less sodium on a daily basis compared to those following a standard diet.)
(-) Information is not currently available for this nutrient. If you are following a special diet for medical reasons, be sure to consult with your primary care provider or a registered dietitian to better understand your personal nutrition needs.
