Cayman Islands Turtle Stew is a traditional Cayman Island recipe for a classic stew of green turtle meat in a tomato base with fish stock. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic Cayman Island version of: Cayman Islands Turtle Stew.
(click this button to prevent the screen from sleeping so Cook Mode is 'ON')
Turtle stew is the national dish of the Cayman Islands. This is still prepared on the islands using farmed green turtle meat from the Cayman Turtle farm.
The origins of turtle stew comes from the 1600 and 1700s, when the Cayman Islands became a provisioning stop for vessels sailing the Caribbean because of an abundance of green sea turtles. It was a means of income as well as a source of local food for permanent settlers. It's typically served accompanied by fried or boiled plantains.
The recipe below is Victorian in origin and is a traditional version of turtle stew. As a note, I used crocodile meat to cook mine as the closest meat to turtle I could find.
Ingredients:
1kg turtle meat, cleaned and cubed
2 tbsp lime juice
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 onion, diced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 green bell pepper, diced
2 celery stick, diced
2 tomatoes, diced
2 tbsp tomato purée
2 sprigs of thyme
2 bay leaves
1 scotch bonnet chilli, kept whole
1l fish or vegetable stock
Salt and freshly-ground black pepper to taste
Method:
Combine the turtle meat with the lime juice in a bowl. Set aside to marinate in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. This will help tenderize the meat and aids in removing any potential gamey flavour.
Set a large stock pot or cast iron casserole (Dutch oven) over medium heat. Once hot add the vegetable and use to fry the onion, garlic, bell pepper and celery for about 5 minutes, or until the onion is soft and translucent and the vegetables start to soften.
Stir the diced tomatoes and tomato purée into the contents of the pan, making sure the tomato purée dissolves completely.
Add in the marinated turtle meat along with the thyme, bay leaves and the whole Scotch bonnet chilli. Season to taste with salt and freshly-ground black pepper then stir gently to combine.
Pour in the fish or vegetable stock, stirring gently once more to make sure the ingredients are well covered. Bring the stew to a boil, reduce the heat to low and cover the pan.
Continue cooking for about 90 to 120 minutes, or until the turtle meat is tender. Stir occasionally during this time.
Once the sauce has thickened and the turtle meat is tender remove and discard the bay leaves and thyme sprigs. You can also remove the scotch bonnet at this point (reserve this and serve for any guests who want to mash it and add to their stew).
Adjust the seasoning is needed and serve the Cayman Islands turtle stew hot, garnished with parsley or coriander. Serve accompanied by plantains, white rice and/or crusty bread.
