A complicated, surprising, rich medley of flavors…just like Belize itself.
When you celebrate a birthday abroad, your birthday dinner might be an unexpected gift. This was the case on a recent trip to Belize, when I joined an all-women’s fly fishing trip on Ambergris Caye in Belize. The last time I visited Belize, it was mostly for scuba diving; this time I stayed above the water. Both visits included a lot of excellent seafood and tropical fruit–two of my favorite food categories!
Belize food draws flavors from Caribbean, Mexican, and Mayan influences. The sauces are rich and flavorful, the spicy kick is generous. Most dishes are enhanced with a Belikan, the local beer, and a few fry jacks, the puffy fried bread.
Each night, two Belizean chefs served up local favorites like conch fritters, ceviche, fried snapper, and chicken stewed in annatto sauce. Every night was delicious but it was not until our final evening that they pulled out all the stops. One of the women on our trip had a birthday, and she asked one of our local fishing guides what he would choose for a special birthday dinner–a traditional Belize food. Without hesitation he answered “Black Rellano Stew.”
A classic dish in Belize cuisine
When the request came in, our fabulous chefs were not at all sure that they wanted to make this dish for us. And once I saw it, I understood why. Of all the traditional Belize food favorites, black rellano stew may be the most complicated dish to prepare.
From the chef’s point of view, it’s a ton of work: making pork meatballs, hardboiling eggs, stewing chicken and veggies, and balancing a number of herbs and spices. And as you can see in the photo above, it looks like a hot mess when finished. It’s dark and muddy and swirling with unidentifiable objects, the kind of dish that makes you eat slowly to savor and try to parse out the deep umami flavors. A chef would want to be sure that their audience was a group of curious eaters open to new dishes. Fortunately, we were–and all the work of chefs Norma and Delsia did not go unappreciated.
Recado seasoning in Belize food
Recado is the spice mix that sets Belize food apart. Annatto seeds are at the base of this mixture, along with allspice, oregano, and garlic. From what I have gathered, red recado is made from lightly smoked annatto chilies, and black recado is made from charred chilies. Any readers with more exact information or a correction on that? Please do share what you know!
The red recado paste or red annatto powder is easily purchased at local markets. The paste in local markets comes in small balls wrapped in plastic, often unlabeled. They’d be difficult to pack and get through customs. Sealed jars, like shown below, cost much more but they travel well.
Norma and Delsia gave a few hints about the preparation but kept quiet on their exact recipe, but I dug around for some online versions. Caribbean Lifestyle’s recipe seems like a good one to try!