[Cameroon]-Roasted Fish and Fried Ripe

By Verdzekov Bernard

By Verdzekov Bernard

Fish is a local cuisine eating in Cameroon. The preparation of this dish is quite easy if you follow the steps, I will give to you in this article. Firstly, I will like you to note that, fish has been one of the oldest meals eating as a main dish on earth. This can be traced back since the time of Jesus Christ on earth. Most people ate fish and bread as it gave them satisfaction and too, it was usually in abundance. Those who make sure we have fish to eat on land, do a great job. What do I mean? The risk their lives and too not any type of fish is being extracted from the ocean. Embargoes have been levied to avoid the catching of any type of fish from the ocean. In Cameroon, we have the resource that enables us to be able to have fish in abundance. This resource is the sea and a couple of rivers found in the Littoral region of Cameroon (Douala) and is the largest city in Cameroon, then we have Limbe, which is the seaside city in the southwest region of Cameroon.

This is where most of the large-scale fishing is being carried out. Talk less of the small rivers and lakes still found in Cameroon where fishing takes place. Below are the steps you should take to roast fish.

Ingredients.

• 2,3,4,5,6 whole fresh fish. (depends)
• Onion (depends)
• Ripe plantains 
• White pepper
• Njangsa seeds
• Ginger
• Green spices
• Salt to taste 
• 1 stem of celery
• Maggi
• Vegetable oil 
• Carrot 4-5 (optional)
• Marinade 

Procedure:

• Looking at the ingredients above, some will say, why all this ingredient just for fish. Yes. You need all this ingredient to prepare fish in Cameroon. The ingredients above solely depend on the number of fishes you will want to grill. So, I will go ahead to tell you a general step you will use to grill your fish.
• Prepare your fish. When you bring your fish let’s say from the market and you not ready yet to start preparing it, or let’s say it is from the cold store and you want the ice on the fish skin to melt without flies landing on the fish, put salt in the water before putting in your fish. 
• If using ripe plantains, slice ripe plantains and fry and keep aside. Some people prefer bobolo. Bobolo is also a nice accompaniment to eat with roasted fish. 
• When you ready to start roasting or grilling, remove one fish after the other, remove its gills and fins. Below the fish towards its tail, cut open, and remove the bile from the fish. Rinse thoroughly using clean fresh tap water.
• Turn the fish on one side and cut four times, turn on the other side and cut four times. This cuts is to enable the spices you will make to get in to the fish when you roasting.
• The spices, wash and clean. Put all in a blender and blend except carrot and onions. Put the spices in a pot and heat it up with salt to taste. You will slice carrot into thin lines of carrot, and onions. This will be used as an accompaniment for eating the fish.
• After blending, put some Vegetable oil in the blended spices and steer. Let this quantity you use, that is the spices be of large quantity since you will use some it to roast the fish and some to use as an accompaniment to eat the fish.
• Put some more quantity of vegetable in another dish and keep aside.
• Prepare your grilling pan, with charcoal to use. Light it up and make sure the coal is all burning and hot. 
• Take each fish from the bowl in which the where kept and apply the blended spices on them. After applying put the fish on the grill pan where you have your charcoal already burning, do that until the grill pan is full. But this depends on the number the grill pan can take and secondly, if you are capable of roasting more than one fish too. Experts will roast five at once and even more, and this is mostly done by people who sell or take it as a business in a restaurant. 
• When fish is on heat already, make sure you apply the oil you kept in a small bowl on the fish so as to prevent it from getting dry. Make sure you don’t see flames. What you should see as concerning the heat emitted from the grilling stand, should be the burring charcoal. Off all flames using a little spring of water. 
• When one side is ready turn the other. Do that for all the fish make sure you are doing checks on the side which is kept directly on the side of heat. Turn when it is ready.
• Make sure you applying oil to it.
• When the fish is ready, serve with already made spices, carrot and onions and plantains as seen in the picture above.

Enjoy your Meal. Thank You.