Buccan of Turtle and Meat (Buccaneer Style)
Long strips of meat or turtle flesh, rubbed with salt and allspice, dried and smoked slowly over a greenwood fire until dark, firm, and imperishable. They were nibbled as is or thrown back into the stew.
Long strips of meat or turtle flesh, rubbed with salt and allspice, dried and smoked slowly over a greenwood fire until dark, firm, and imperishable. They were nibbled as is or thrown back into the stew.
You want to survive at sea, mate? Learn the boucan, like the old hunters of the island. We cut the flesh into long strips, rub it with coarse salt and allspice berries, and hang it over a greenwood fire that smokes without blazing. You leave it there until it blackens and hardens like leather — then it keeps for weeks in the hold, and feeds you when the hunt is poor. That's where we get our name, us others: the buccaneers.
- •Sea turtle or wild boar flesh — in strips (base)
- •Coarse salt — generously (preservation)
- •Allspice berries (Jamaica pepper) — crushed (signature spice)
- •Greenwood for smoke — as needed for fire (smoking)
Buccan of Turtle and Meat (Buccaneer Style)
Long strips of meat or turtle flesh, rubbed with salt and allspice, dried and smoked slowly over a greenwood fire until dark, firm, and imperishable. They were nibbled as is or thrown back into the stew.
Why this dish? Before becoming captains of their own ships, many Caribbean pirates learned from the buccaneers the art of smoking meat on a greenwood grate — the 'boucan', which gave them their name. For a crew like Rackham's, hunting sea turtles along the coasts, smoking the flesh allowed them to fill the hold without it rotting under the Caribbean sun.
You want to survive at sea, mate? Learn the boucan, like the old hunters of the island. We cut the flesh into long strips, rub it with coarse salt and allspice berries, and hang it over a greenwood fire that smokes without blazing. You leave it there until it blackens and hardens like leather — then it keeps for weeks in the hold, and feeds you when the hunt is poor. That's where we get our name, us others: the buccaneers.
Ingredients (period version)
- Sea turtle or wild boar flesh — in strips (base)
- Coarse salt — generously (preservation)
- Allspice berries (Jamaica pepper) — crushed (signature spice)
- Greenwood for smoke — as needed for fire (smoking)
Ingredients
- Duck breast or beef steak in thin strips — 500 g (base (ethical substitute for turtle, a protected species))
- Coarse salt — 3 tbsp (salting)
- Ground allspice — 1 tsp (signature spice)
- Coarsely ground black pepper — 1 tsp (spice)
- Beech wood smoking chips (optional) — a handful (smoking)
Method
- Cut the meat into thin strips along the grain.
- Rub with salt, allspice and pepper; marinate in the fridge for 12 hours.
- Rinse quickly, pat dry, then dry at low temperature: oven at 70°C with door ajar for 4-6 hours, or use a smoker if available.
- The meat is ready when dark, dry and pliable without breaking.
- Store in a clean cloth or airtight container; nibble as is or rehydrate in broth.
How it was made : The real boucan was done on a grate of green sticks (the 'barbacoa' of the Caribbean) over a slow fire, sometimes for days. Buccaneers mostly smoked wild boar and beef from Hispaniola, but sea turtle — abundant and easy to catch — provided meat, fat and eggs for crews. Today sea turtles are protected; substitute farmed meat.
The contemporary twist : Serve these strips as 'buccaneer jerky' in a paper cone, with a little rum for dipping — an appetizer that tells the story of the buccaneers.
Sources : Alexandre-Olivier Exquemelin, Histoire des aventuriers flibustiers (1678) · David Cordingly, Under the Black Flag (1995)
Calico Jack · Charactorium