From the Caribbean cuisine, a very satisfying soup, particularly during the winter months when we seek comfort and warmth in our food.
Ingredients (serves 4-8 depending on whether you serve as a starter or main)
- 1 large onion, finely chopped
- 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 400g Maris Piper potatoes, roughly chopped
- 150g peeled and chopped cassava
- 450g frozen corn
- 1 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 red pepper, cored and finely chopped
- 1 scotch bonnet, seeded and cut in the middle
- 1 Ltr vegetable stock
- 2 whole corn on the cob
- 2 sprigs of fresh thyme
- Extra virgin olive oil
- A small bunch of fresh coriander, finely chopped
- Lime juice to taste
Method
Rub the fresh corn with some extra virgin olive oil, season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper and cook over high heat to blacken slightly. Keep to the side.
Bring a large pan with 2 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil to a medium -high heat and add the chopped onion and cook until soft. Add the garlic and cook for a minute or two longer. Add the cayenne pepper, chopped potato, cassava and sprigs of thyme and stir for a couple of minutes before adding the stock. Bring to the boil, reduce the heat, cover the pan and cook until the potatoes are soft, approx. 20 minutes.
Add the coconut milk (reserve some to drizzle over the soup) frozen corn, half the chopped red pepper and the scotch bonnet. Cook for a further 15 minutes. Leave the soup to cool a little and blitz in a blender. Return the soup to the pan, season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Use a sharp knife the cut the corn kernels off the browned fresh corn and sprinkle over the soup together with finely chopped coriander and a drizzle of lime juice when serving.