Pepperpot
Updated Jan. 29, 2024
- Total Time
- About 4½ hours
- Prep Time
- 15 minutes
- Cook Time
- About 4¼ hours
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
Yield:6 to 8 servings
- 1bunch thyme, stems removed
- 1bunch basil, leaves and tender stems
- ½bunch parsley, leaves and tender stems
- 10 to 12scallions, chopped
- 1head garlic, peeled
- 1large yellow onion, chopped
- 3 to 4wiri wiri peppers or 1 whole Scotch bonnet
- 4pounds bone-in stew meat (oxtail, beef chuck, goat or mutton), cut into 3-inch pieces
- Kosher salt and black pepper
- 2 to 3tablespoons vegetable oil
- 2Scotch bonnet or habanero peppers, chopped, plus more to taste
- 1large onion, chopped
- 6garlic cloves, chopped
- 1cup cassareep
- ¼(lightly packed) cup brown sugar (dark or light)
- 1tablespoon grated fresh ginger
- 1tablespoon whole cloves
- 3medium cinnamon sticks
- Peel from 1 medium orange
- 4scallions, cut into 4-inch lengths
- 1bay leaf
- 2tablespoons cornstarch (optional)
- Bread, roti and rice, for serving
For the Green Seasoning
For the Pepperpot
Preparation
- Step 1
Prepare the green seasoning: Add all ingredients to a food processor. Blend, adding water a few tablespoons at a time, until you get a thick purée. (You’ll have 3 cups. Keep any extra in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.)
- Step 2
Season the meat with ¼ cup green seasoning, 2 teaspoons salt and 1 teaspoon pepper. Marinate at room temperature for 1 hour or overnight in the refrigerator.
- Step 3
Heat the oven to 375 degrees. In a large Dutch oven over medium heat, add 2 tablespoons oil and transfer the meat into the pot, leaving behind any excess marinade. Brown the meat in batches. Transfer to a plate.
- Step 4
Add 1 tablespoon oil to the pan, if necessary. Add Scotch bonnets and onion; sauté until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, another 30 seconds.
- Step 5
Add in the cassareep, brown sugar, ginger, cloves, cinnamon sticks, orange peel, scallions and bay leaf. Add back the meat and the juices from the plate, and add water to cover the meat. Let come to a boil over high heat.
- Step 6
Cover the pot, transfer to the oven and cook, covered, for 2 to 2½ hours, until the meat is tender. Skim as much fat as possible from the top.
- Step 7
Remove the meat from the pot, and, once cool enough to handle, strain the liquid through a fine-mesh strainer set in another bowl.
- Step 8
Carefully add the reserved liquid back into the pot and bring to a boil.
- Step 9
If you'd like to quickly thicken the stew, you can add cornstarch and 2 tablespoons water to a cup, and mix well. Add the slurry, if using, to the pot and mix until thick enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon. (You may have to boil a bit longer to let the liquid reduce to this consistency.) Taste and readjust your seasoning with salt and pepper. Add the meat back to the pot. (Alternatively, you can skip the cornstarch and make the soup up to 3 days in advance. Refrigerate until ready to reheat and serve.)
- Step 10
Serve with bread, roti or rice.
Private Notes
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Cooking Notes
Rabia
Pepperpot (from Guyana!) is a derivative of an Amerindian dish. Cassareep was used to preserve a stew of mixed meat that was made, served and added to over many days. No green herbs or onions, these make pepperpot go bad when not refrigerated. In my mother's kitchen, not Amerindian, pepperpot was made a day or two before Christmas, so it could be aged to perfection by Christmas morning. To prevent spoilage, pepperpot is brought to a boil at least twice/day. Oxtail, not cornstarch, for thickener!
GuyaneseFusion
There is no true substitute for the casareep, which is stated in the recipe. This dish is meant to preserve meats for days on the stove top. Please do your research before adding subs and comments on your own subs. If you want to create your own recipe, that is lovely - but comments on the original recipe are appreciated.
Karen Kressenberg
The head of garlic. Just like that into the food processor? Or peeled. More info please.
Nathan
The meat is pretty central to this dish, bone-in. The collagen and fat released from the bones--especially from tougher meats like goat or mutton over the long cooking time--is crucial as a modulating medium for the heat of the peppers, and brings an unctuousness to the dish that has been in my experience a standout feature of pepperpot. I'm skeptical gelatin or seitan would work half as well.
Cutter
Whilst that looks delicious, can you make it without meat and meat byproducts? Say using root veg - taters, sweet taters, cassava, rutabaga, etc.? I love molasses style dishes like Boston Baked Beans.
MLeary
How do you define a "bunch?"
Rev. Gloria
I am a Guyanese, and I grew up watching my grandmother making Pepperpot. As was stated above, the secret to this dish is the casreep. Some vendors improvise by selling molasses and burnt sugar, as casreep me. That's a total disaster.Only an expert in making Pepperpot can "wing that". With respect to the kinds of meat that can be used for this dish, my preference has changed, as I have grown older. I have discovered that smoked turkey wings, thighs and neck make an excellent Pepperpot as well.
Robert Fogel
This must be cooked with oxtail!!!!!
rak
Of course the garlic is peeled. Ahem.
Lauren
Yes, you would peel the garlic and then add to the food processor.
Bea from Philly
Do not confuse Guyanese Pepper Pot with Philadelphia Pepper Pot, which uses Tripe, and dated to pre-revolutionary times.
christine
Not sure why this recipe calls for so much seasoning purée, when you only use a small amount of it. Any suggestions on how to use the seasoning in other recipes?
Roaky
I'm looking at the green sauce ingredients and I can't see how leaves and one onion makes 3 cups of sauce. Is that right?
Jan
What is bone-in stew meat? Stew meat to me is always boneless. Would it be like short ribs?
MoB
You can make this with oxtail, pork shoulder (trimmed), short ribs, beef chuck, beef shin or shank, or a mix. Make sure to use some meats that have bone and collagen. Chicken is also sometimes used— bone in! It’s not traditional to use root veggies but I am sure you will get something edible but not really pepper pot.
Loves_to_cook
This came out even better than I imagined. I ordered cassareep from my favorite and best shop in Manhattan, Kalusytan’s which had it along with other items. I had bone in beef short ribs with a lot of meat. I ended up with 3.5 cups of the green of which I used the leftovers in another recipe, a pork roast and it came out even better than the ribs. Really versatile recipe. It’s a keeper.
Gary Robe
I made this with venison and it was fantastic! I entered it into a chili cook-off and it was the runaway favorite of the group.
Robyn
I added a diced sweet potato the last 30 minutes and the counter texture and sweetness was amazing. Served over quinoa. Used a combination of beef short ribs and stew beef . Instead of adding water I added about 6 cups of homemade stock (chicken and mixed bone, but mostly chicken). There was a lot of dark residue after browning the three batches of meat so I deglazed with a generous cup of red wine
Curtis Mobley
I got 1.75 cups of the green seasoning, not 3. The recipe says use 1/4 cup to marinade the meat, but doesn't say what to do with the rest. I marinated the meat overnight with half of the green seasoning, and threw the rest into the Dutch oven to cook with the meat. That worked well. I did not strain the sauce at the end. I fished out the cinnamon sticks and bay leaf, but the whole cloves cooked away to nothing. 1 habanero in the seasoning was just right (and no more peppers with the meat).
John R.
This was perfect for a northern winter afternoon with its layers of savory, sweet, and warm spice flavors. Definitely adding it to the cold weather stew rotation.
Anne
Prep time 15 minutes? That's only got to be the case if you're working in a commercial kitchen with a staff. In my home kitchen, it was closer to an hour.
Scott
I followed the recipe closely using cross-cut beef shanks. I purchased the cassareep at a local Caribbean foods store. End the end, I'm not a fan. I'm always on the lookout for new flavor combinations but the molasses-like baking spice sweetness in this beef braise clashed for me. All the best to those who grew up with it and have fond memories. I couldn't surmount my own cultural preferences, I suppose. Perhaps it would have worked better for me with pork and half the cassareep.
Steve L
I made this following your recipe..Looking forward to it this weekend. Question: The recipe for the green seasoning makes 3-4 cups worth but I only see 1/4 cup being used in the marinading. process (and not in the cooking). Is the remainder to be used in other cooking later? It is not something that would keep for very long.
Anne
I ended up freezing mine in ziplock bags, which also works for things like pesto and chimichurri. That way, it doesn't go to waste.
Phil
I have made a plant based version of pepperpot (much missed meal from home) using root vegetables, jackfruit - provides a great subsitute with meaty texture - and beans for a meatless version. Cassareep is an essential ingredient.
Rachel
This was so worth the trip to my local West Indian grocery store to find some cassareep! Only substitution was pork shoulder - boneless and cut into cubes. I kept in some fatty pieces during the cooking process because of the reader note on this dish needing unctuousness, then skimmed off all the oil before separating the meat and reducing the liquid. Would add an extra orange peel next time as the orange pieces really elevated the dish. So good!
Allen
I'm assuming the green sauce does more than just marinate the meat. I piled it on top of the meat and gravy and it was quite good. Made it as per the recipe and really enjoyed it. I didn't bother to strain the sauce afterwards just left it and ate it as is. I like a chunky sauce.
christine
Not sure why this recipe calls for so much seasoning purée, when you only use a small amount of it. Any suggestions on how to use the seasoning in other recipes?
Anthony
Per other commenters, why did I use ingredients and time to make 3 cups of green sauce to use 1/4 cup. The recipe says I can keep it in the refrigerator for 2 weeks. Should I make this recipe 11 more times in the next 2 weeks? Also, this recipe overall is poorly written. Steps are different in the description from the cooking instructions.
Rae
If a recipe asks you to use 2 tbsps of butter, do you rail at the recipe writer for not having told you how to use the remaining stick of butter? Or the rest of your worcestershire sauce/black pepper/soy sauce, etc when you only used a small amount after purchasing the whole unit? Taste the green sauce and explore other dishes you think might benefit from that flavor profile: soups, curries, salads. Google other similar green sauces - sofrito, epis. Use your imagination.
colin
i have dried wiri wiri peppers. How do i adjust the recipe to use these?
Andrea S
What the heck is Cassareep and where do you find it? And is there a substitute?
drmilktruck
I got it on Amazon. A suggested substitute online is 1/3 cup molasses, 1 tablespoon soy sauce, and 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce.
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