Suriname: Pork and shrimp pepper pot

Suriname sure sounds like one of those obscure places where an interesting meal could be hard to come by. At least that's what I thought. Talk about a misjudgment. The dish I served up from this South American country is probably one of my favorites since I started cooking my away around the world. Who knew!

Like every other kitchen voyage, I pulled Suriname out of the wine bag and then started with some research and planning. I learned that its location in the northeastern part of South America has given it both Latin and Caribbean influences. Its culture and food has also been inspired by the various and eclectic mix of cultures that colonized it over the years, including French, Dutch, Indian and Indonesian. In some U.S. cities - namely NY - Surinamese cuisine appears to be popular enough to sustain entire restaurants.

Now I see why. Some of the popular foods are similar to Indian dishes - curries, chutneys and flat breads. I found recipes that seemed to be the Surinamese take on chicken and rice or pork and beans. Even Emeril has a recipe for a Surinamese vatapa, a shrimp and fish stew.

As tempting as any Emeril recipe is, I opted instead for a pepper pot, a meat and vegetable stew spiced with habanero peppers. I found this recipe on the Food Network web site and made a few alterations, namely using pork instead of chicken. My Publix was out of okra so I threw in a few brussels sprouts (don't ask me why ... I always thought the two veggies tasted kind of similar). And I seasoned the meat with the Badia Sazon Tropical spice blend that I picked up at the SoBe food festival.

The result was a thick and flavorful stew with layers of complex, yet complimenting flavors. The sweet potatoes end up melting into the broth, making for a creamy backdrop to the meats and kale, and balancing the kick of the habanero pepper! This one was a huge winner.