A pickled saltfish snack — soaked, flaked salt cod tossed with lots of lime, raw onion, cucumber, sweet pepper, and scotch bonnet into a sharp, cooling souse eaten cold.
Souse is the Caribbean technique of 'pickling' cooked meat or fish in lime, onion, and pepper; the saltfish version is a quick, sharp Grenadian snack.
Spoon up saltfish souse — flakes of savory salt cod in a sharp lime bath with crunchy raw onion, cool cucumber, and a prickle of scotch bonnet. Bite: salty-savory fish, mouth-puckering lime, the vegetables crisp and fresh, the chili building heat. Cold, sharp, and refreshing — the Grenadian liming snack with a cold beer.
Soaking and boiling the salt cod removes excess salt and rehydrates it; the lime 'pickles' the flaked fish and softens the raw onion. Chilling melds everything — a no-cook (beyond boiling the fish) preparation defined by acidity and freshness.
Variations
With avocado. With tomato. Spicier with more pepper. With pickled green banana. With conch instead of saltfish. With a touch of oil.
On the Palate
Where Saltfish Souse sits in the Grenadian flavor cloud
Ingredients
Serves 4How it's made
8 steps · 20 min active + 20 min waiting
- 114 min
Soak 300 g salt cod overnight, changing the water; boil 10 min and flake.
Watch outTaste a flake after boiling — if it's still too salty, boil in fresh water another few minutes; it should read pleasantly savory, not harsh.
- 26 min
Thinly slice 1 onion, 1 cucumber, and 1 sweet pepper.
- 32 min
Finely chop a little scotch bonnet (to taste).
- 42 min
Combine the flaked saltfish with the vegetables in a bowl.
- 52 min
Pour over the juice of 4-5 limes and a splash of water.
Watch outThe lime juice should just about cover the fish — enough to wet and 'pickle' everything, but this is a souse, not a soup.
- 62 min
Season with black pepper and chopped chive.
- 720 min
Chill 20 min for the flavors to meld and the onion to soften.
Watch outGive it the full chill — the onion goes from sharp to mellow and the flavors settle; taste before serving and adjust the lime.
- 81 min
Serve cold as a snack with crackers or bakes.
