After exploring the island of Trinidad for several days, my friends and I hopped a quick flight over to its sister island of Tobago to explore the food and culture there. We started with some amazing fried Caribbean chicken!
Our first adventure on the island was in the city of Canaan. My friends Chef Jason Peru, Candice Mohan, and David and I set off to Block 22 Restaurant & Bar, the number one spot on the island to have fried chicken.
Jason had never had the chicken from Block 22 either, so it was a first for him as well! I learned that they also sell fish, but they’re famous for their fried Caribbean chicken sandwiches. They also offer tons of sauces.
The pieces of chicken they use are massive. They’re bigger than the bread for the sandwiches!
I headed into the back, where they were breading and frying some kingfish. They were also frying some chicken in a huge pot.
They use coconut bake as the bun for the fish, it’s called bake and fish. They also serve the kingfish with fries, and they put the chicken on a hops bun.
In the back, I watched the cook flour 30 pieces of chicken. It fries for 20 minutes, and even though it was 9 at night, she had a lot more to fry!
First, we started on the fried Caribbean chicken, which was so simple but very tasty and juicy. The crunch on the outside was fantastic. I really loved the sauces and the fluffy hops bread. The tamarind sauce added some sweetness and tartness!
I really liked the mustard, too. The best thing about the chicken was how fresh it was. It doesn’t sit for a long time and was perfectly fried and battered.
I’d never had chicken like this before. The skin was almost like chicharron. There are many tamarind trees on the island, so tamarind is popular on Tobago.
Next, we jumped on the kingfish and fries, which looked crispy and amazing. It was so fresh, and the batter took it to the next level.
The coconut bake was amazing with the tamarind sauce. It soaked up the sauce well and pairing it with fish was amazing.
Finally, I ended with some Carib lager. It was a light, crisp lager, probably around 4.2% alcohol content. It would be perfect for the beach! This food was so good, I was at a loss for words! Don’t miss out on this fried Caribbean chicken and kingfish when you visit Tobago!
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