One of such specialty dishes is the Fish and Brewis. This dish is typical of the coasts of Canada and more precisely it comes from Newfoundland.
This recipe was designed for sailors and is therefore genuine but very substantial: it is based of cod or another fish, bread and pork fat.
Another discovery was the Canadian cheese soup. It is excellent for warming you up in winter; this cheddar cheese soup is tasty and very original and the peculiarity of the recipe is the addition of a little beer in it. In addition to cheese and beer it contains vegetables such as broccoli, potatoes, carrots and turnips.
Last but not least a Canadian specialty that I have recently discovered and that I have tried making since I was following said Canadian cooking show is the Pâté chinois.
Pâté chinois is French for Chinese Pâté but it’s not a Chinese dish as one might deduce from its name.
This specialty is a Canadian, or better it is from Québec and it is a variant of the worldwide known English Shepard’s pie.
The Pâté chinois is composed of three layers arranged horizontally: the first is made up of minced meat, which is then covered with a soft cream of corn and then garnished with a layer of mashed potatoes. In addition to the traditional recipe, there are many variations that include the addition of onion, peppers, mushrooms or a variety of other vegetables. There is also some ketchup added as a final garnish.
It is one of those dishes that Canadians call ‘comfort food’, or those home recipes that they are also used to prepare in the kitchen and which remind them of their childhood.
The name seems to date back to the construction period of the Canadian railway. The workers, mostly Asian, were fed the ingredients of this dish which are minced meat, potatoes and corn.
The recipe that I propose to you is very easy to make, as in all traditional dishes, sometimes sees the ingredients change that are enriched according to taste, such as sprinkling paprika over the mashed potatoes, or adding ground pepper.
This dish can be served with red turnips and pickled eggs (boiled eggs, peeled and preserved submerged in a solution of vinegar, salt and various spices to keep them for several months).
Ingredients
4 potatoes,
500 grams of minced beef,
2 cans of sweet corn,
1 onion,
2 cloves of garlic,
salt and pepper,
olive oil virgin,
butter,
200 ml of milk
First you shall boil some water with a little salt for cooking the potatoes; peel the potatoes and cut them into small pieces, then cook them in boiling water and drain as soon as they are ready; meanwhile, peel and chop the onion and garlic.
Heat a pan with the oil, garlic and chopped onion.
Fry everything over medium heat, then add the minced meat.
Cover the pan and leave to cook, turning from time to time, until the meat is cooked.
Season with salt and pepper and drain the excess fat.
Take a rectangular oven mould that can contain the ingredients and adjust them in three layers and grease it a little.
Add the meat, corn and onion layers; Now mash the boiled potatoes along with the hot milk and melted butter, working it as a puree; season it with salt and pepper and using the spatula spread it over the sweet corn forming the last layer of the dish; Garnish it with small pieces of butter and bake it for half an hour at about 180 degrees, until the surface is golden.
Pâté chinois :
