Small puffed fritters made with desalted cod, flavored with chives, garlic and chili, deep-fried in hot oil. Crispy on the outside, soft on the inside, eaten burning hot, with the fingertips.

Why this dish? In Césaire's Martinique, accras are sold on street corners in Fort-de-France and nibbled at ti-punch time. A son of the land, he grew up with these golden fritters which are, for every Martinican, the first taste of celebration and of the return to the native land.

Listen to me, you who read me: before any discourse, there is the accra. At home, in Fort-de-France, we never receive anyone without this little golden fritter that sings in the oil. My mother desalted the cod for two nights, flaked it by hand, then bound it all with a living batter where chives and chili made their racket. We ate them standing, burning hot, laughing — for the accra, you see, is already the native land rising back to your mouth.

How it was made : Salt cod, imported from the North Atlantic since colonial times, became a staple of Antillean cuisine for lack of fresh fish preservation in the tropics. Women desalted it at the well and fried it on charcoal stoves, selling accras by auction at markets.

The contemporary twist : Served in a pyramid on a banana leaf with a chien sauce (lime, chives, chili) for dipping.

Aimé Césaire · Charactorium