~452 cal · 41g protein · 38g carbs · 14g fat (estimated, per serving)
🍽️
Golden salt cod fritters piled on paper
🇧🇧 Bridgetown
Bajan fish cakes are a national habit: salt cod beaten into a light herb-and-pepper batter and fried into crisp, cloud-soft fritters. Sold from rum shops and vans and made at home on weekend mornings, they are eaten hot with a dab of Bajan pepper sauce or tucked into a salt-bread "bread and two".
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🥕 Vegetarian
🌱 Vegan
🌾 Gluten-Free
🥛 Dairy-Free
🥜 Nut-Free
🥚 Egg-Free
Ingredients
Serves 4 —
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8 oz salt cod (saltfish), soaked and flaked
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1.5 cups all-purpose flour
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1/2 onion
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2 scallion
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1 tsp thyme
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2 tsp baking powder
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3/4 cup water
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to taste hot pepper and black pepper
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3 cups neutral oil, for frying
Instructions
1
Soak the saltfish to remove excess salt, then boil briefly, drain, flake, and pick out bones.
2
Mix the flour and baking powder with the herbs, onion, and pepper, then stir in the flaked fish and water to a thick batter.
3
Heat the oil to 350°F and drop in spoonfuls of batter, a few at a time.
4
Fry until golden and puffed, turning once, then drain and serve hot with pepper sauce.
Barbadian rum-shop and home cooking.
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🌏 While it simmers — know your destination
📍
Bridgetown. The Bajan capital and home of the national fish.
🗺️
Barbados. Coral-island cooking crowned by the flying fish.
🌍
North America. A collision of Indigenous, colonial, and immigrant tables.
The story behind this dish is up top — worth a read while the pot works.
👩🍳
Richard Moore & Kelsey Tucker
Recipes cooked, tested, and researched by the creators of Spin the Globe. How we build our recipes →
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