Newfoundland Cuisine Catching On: ST. JOHN'S, Nfld. (CP) Move over
brie and quiche. Bring on the bang belly and damper dogs. And leave room
for seal flipper pie. Newfoundland cuisine has come into its own. Once
restricted to the kitchens of the island's outport folk, food like
brewis and figged duff is finding its way to Toronto or any big centre
in Canada where transplanted Newfoundlanders are found. The only thing
that might be tricky to obtain nowadays is seal flipper pie. With the
collapse of the seal hunt due to lobbying by environmentalists, there
are fewer flippers to be had, but independent sealers still steam into
St. John's Harbor every spring and sell flippers off the wharf. In
April, community clubs all over the city hold flipper pie dinners. The
flippers are tender and tasty but it's said few mainlanders acquire a
taste for them.
Seal Flipper Pie
- 4 Seal flippers
- 1/2 Cup diced pork fat
- 1 tsp flour
- cold water
- 2 onions, chopped
- 1 tsp soda
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp worcestershire sauce
Soak flippers in water and soda
for 1/2 an hour. Trim excess fat. Dip the flippers in seasoned flour
and pan fry in the pork fat until browned. Add the chopped onion.
Make
a gravy of flour, 1 cup water, and Worcester sauce. Pour over the
flippers. Cover and Bake in a moderate oven (350f) until tender.. which
should be two to three hours. Cover with pastry and bake at 400f for 1/2
an hour. From: Rachel M. Brodie.
