Delicious Aruban style fish and funchi Recipe
Hey squad,
I grew up on the beautiful island of Aruba. And my grandmother, she passed away a few years ago, made the best fried fish recipe for dinner, especially during Lent. Its common to pair your fish with what we call Funchi (yellow cornmeal) in Aruba. She made her fish three ways; fried, salted and boiled. I don't know what took me so long but recently I attempted to make her fried fish recipe and it came out great. The family really enjoyed it. The crispy fried fish paired with the soft Funchi accompanied by some fried plantains makes for a delicious Caribbean inspired dinner.
Fish
I used the red snapper my husband caught the week before during his fishing trip. How cool are we, my man catching fish and me making a meal out of it?! I seasoned it with old bay, lemon, and garlic powder. Fry the fish in olive oil and fresh garlic until brown on the outside. You could dip it in flour for extra crispness.
Funchi
The funchi is the trickiest part of this dish. You want to cook the cornmeal for three minutes. Then you want to make sure stir the cornmeal vigorously into the boiling water, and Let it cook for an additional three minutes. When the mixture is stiff and pulls away from the fire and let cool.
Plantain
Before anything peel your plantain, cut them into diagonal chunks and place them in a bowl of salt water. This gives them tons of flavor without tasting too salty. After you’ve made the fish and funchi, fry the plantain in oil on medium/high heat until golden brown
Sauce
Cut up tomato, celery, bell peppers and onion. Drain the oil and cook this in the same frying pan you cooked the fish. Add all your ingredient plus a teaspoon of tomato paste. Cook until veggies are soft.
Ingredients:
Red Ted snapper
Garlic powder
Old bay seasoning
Lemon juice
Yellow cornmeal mix
Salt
Olive oil
Plantain
Celery
Onion
Bell pepper
Tomato
Tomato paste