Grenadian Oil Down: One-Pot Breadfruit, Coconut Turmeric Broth and Dumplings

Rinse the soaked salted meat, cover with fresh water in a heavy pot, and simmer 20 minutes to draw out the remaining salt. Drain and set aside.

Serves 6

Ingredients

• 1 medium breadfruit (about 2 1/2 lb), peeled, cored and cut into 2-inch wedges
• 12 oz salted pork or smoked turkey, soaked 1 hour and cut into chunks
• 2 cups thick coconut milk
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 1 tbsp ground turmeric
• 1 large onion, sliced
• 4 garlic cloves, sliced
• 6 sprigs fresh thyme
• 2 scallions, bruised
• 1 whole scotch bonnet pepper, left intact
• 2 carrots, cut into thick coins
• 1 cup sliced okra
• 1 cup all-purpose flour plus 1/3 cup water and a pinch of salt, for dumplings
• Salt and black pepper, to taste

Instructions

1. Rinse the soaked salted meat, cover with fresh water in a heavy pot, and simmer 20 minutes to draw out the remaining salt. Drain and set aside.
2. Make the dumplings: rub the flour, salt and water together into a stiff dough, knead 2 minutes, then roll into 12 small torpedoes between your palms. Cover.
3. Wipe out the pot and layer in the onion, garlic, thyme, scallions and the drained meat. Scatter the breadfruit and carrot over the top in an even layer.
4. Whisk the turmeric into the coconut milk and water and pour it over everything. The liquid should come about two-thirds of the way up, not cover the pot's contents.
5. Set the whole scotch bonnet on the surface. Do not pierce it. It will perfume the broth without releasing serious heat, and you lift it out whole at the end.
6. Bring to a bare simmer, cover tightly, and cook 30 minutes over low heat without stirring, so the layers stay intact.
7. Tuck the dumplings and okra into the surface, cover again, and cook 20 minutes more, until the breadfruit is tender to a knife and the coconut milk has cooked down into a thick golden sauce that clings.
8. Lift out the scotch bonnet and the thyme stems. Taste and season, then let the pot stand off the heat for 10 minutes so the sauce settles and the last of the liquid is absorbed.
9. Serve directly from the pot, giving everyone breadfruit, meat, a dumpling and a good spoonful of the turmeric coconut sauce.
10. Oil down takes its name from the final stage of cooking, when the coconut milk breaks and its oil rises to coat everything in the pot. It is the national dish of Grenada, cooked outdoors in a single vessel at beach limes and family gatherings, and the layering matters: nothing is stirred, so each ingredient steams in coconut rather than boiling into mush. Breadfruit comes into its long main season in late summer, when the fruit is mature but still firm enough to hold its shape.

Nutrition (estimated, per serving)

• Calories: 640 kcal
• Protein: 24g
• Fat: 32g
• Carbohydrates: 66g
• Fiber: 9g
• Sugar: 11g
• Sodium: 780mg