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SALTFISH FRITTERS WITH FIERY DIPPIN’ SAUCE

SERVES 4 (MAKES 12 FRITTERS)

CRISPY ON THE OUTSIDE and moist in the middle, saltfish fritters are traditionally eaten at breakfast in Jamaica, but I think they’re an ideal snack or party bite. Like the Callaloo and Smoky Gouda Fried Dumplings, they make a really fun add-on for herb-spiked dinner parties (see some sample menus here). Saltfish is essentially salt-preserved fillets of fish, usually cod, hake, or pollack. They can be found in most grocery stores, as well as Caribbean markets and health food stores. Before using in a recipe, you must soak the fillets to remove most of the salt, otherwise whatever you cook will be inedible! Many people soak the fish for 24 hours, changing the water every 4 hours or so, but a nice little island trick is to scald the fish instead—just drop the saltfish in boiling water and cook, covered, for 20 minutes. It’s how we always did it in my home and is much faster and easier than the soaking method. You can easily double this recipe for a party and you can always spike the dipping sauce with Herb if you want to give this dish a boost.

FRITTERS

½ pound saltfish (salt cod)

¾ cup all-purpose flour

1½ teaspoons garlic powder

½ teaspoon cayenne pepper

½ teaspoon fine sea salt

2 scallions, very finely chopped

½ medium tomato, finely chopped

½ small green bell pepper, minced

½ small red bell pepper, minced

1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh thyme leaves

1 Scotch bonnet pepper, seeded and finely chopped

¼ cup vegetable oil, plus more as needed

FIERY DIPPIN’ SAUCE

1 cup whole-milk or 2% plain Greek yogurt

1 tablespoon mayonnaise (optional)

1 teaspoon finely chopped canned chipotle peppers in adobo

Grated zest of ½ lime plus 1 to 2 tablespoons lime juice

1 to 2 teaspoons hot sauce (preferably Scotch bonnet–based)

2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil

¼ teaspoon fine sea salt

1. MAKE THE FRITTERS: Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the saltfish, reduce the heat to medium, set a cover halfway on the pot, and “scald” the fish at a gentle simmer for 20 minutes. Drain the fish, dry it between paper towels, pressing firmly to extract as much water as possible. Remove the skin and bones (if there are any) and finely chop the fish into small bits.
2. Whisk together the flour, garlic powder, cayenne, and salt in a medium bowl. Add the scallions, tomato, bell peppers, thyme, and Scotch bonnet. Stir in ⅔ cup water to create a batter with the consistency of a slightly runny pancake batter. Stir in the chopped fish.
3. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Use a soup spoon to add some batter to the pan, using the underside of the spoon to pat it flat. Fry until golden, about 4 minutes. Turn the fritter over and fry on the other side until the center of the fritter resists light pressure, about 4 minutes more. Transfer the fritters to a plate lined with paper towels while you fry the remaining batter (add more oil if needed).
4. MAKE THE FIERY DIPPIN’ SAUCE: Stir together the yogurt, mayonnaise (if using), chipotle, lime zest, 1 tablespoon of the lime juice, 1 teaspoon of hot sauce, the basil, and salt in a medium bowl. Taste and add more lime juice or hot sauce if needed. Serve the fritters with the sauce on the side.