Story and photos by Margo Ask
We prepared this Caribbean meal with Susanna in August 2023. She was talking about her plans for the future, saying that by the next August, she would build a barbecue station and possibly a pizza oven, and she was already planning which new recipes she would show me.
But unfortunately, Hurricane Beryl disrupted those plans.
Chatham Bay and the entire Union Island were almost completely destroyed. Of course, I tried to contact Susanna right away, but she’s not very attached to her mobile phone, especially when she’s deeply involved in her restaurant work. She got in touch a week after the hurricane.
The only thing she could say then was that she had been in Chatham Bay, completely absorbed in building the barbecue and pizza station, and didn’t realize how serious the weather forecast was because she didn’t have a radio, and her mobile phone was dead. So she only learned about the severity of the approaching storm shortly before it hit, from her neighbors.
“Oh, my dear, let’s not talk about how it was. I can’t bear to remember. Beryl took my home and my restaurant, but I’m grateful that it left me my children,” Susanna told me.
“Let’s talk about the future instead,” she said.
That’s what I’ve always admired about her — she never gives up. She was staying in a temporary shelter with her five children, and all her thoughts were on how to find a new home, provide a stable life for her children, and return to doing what she loved.
She was told that building in Chatham Bay wouldn’t be allowed for the next two years (the reasons are unknown to us).
I spoke again with Susanna in mid-August, and she happily told me that she was preparing her children for school on St. Vincent and had applied for assistance to start building a restaurant. “I will reopen Sunn Dipp, even if it’s in a different location, because I want to cook and make our traditional food popular. I’m already thinking about new dishes I’ll happily prepare for my guests, and I’m considering a new spot at Canash Beach.”
This woman deserves respect and admiration — alone with five children, having lost her home and the restaurant that allowed her not only to do what she loved but also to feed and raise her children, giving them the opportunity to get an education.
She gathered her strength and started over from scratch. It’s just the beginning, and there are still many questions about where exactly the restaurant will be, when it will open, and so on. But I believe that even strong people need support, so if you’re in the St. Vincent area, google Sunn Dipp — it may already be open — stop by for lunch at Susanna’s place; that would be the best support. And if you have any other ideas on how we can support this strong and passionate woman, let me know (https://www.instagram.com/sailingkanoa), and I’ll connect you with Susanna.
Daily Food from Union Island
Summer in the Caribbean brings hurricanes and camaraderie among liveaboard sailors who navigate the islands. Many of us had already crossed paths in Spain before embarking on our island-hopping adventures. Sometimes, serendipity brings familiar faces to unexpected places, as it did on Union Island.
Amid the fleet of boats anchored in the bay, we found ourselves among old friends. Susanna (Susan Hilora noel (nee) Jacobs), the owner of a beachside café in Chatham Bay, offered to teach me the secrets of local cuisine. I was not going to miss the chance to learn about the island’s recipes while enjoying a Caribbean feast with liveaboard friends. I asked Susanna to prepare a meal she would cook if her five children and their families visited her unexpectedly.
Cooking for a large company was familiar to Susanna. Within the next hour, she transformed our gathering into a Caribbean palette of flavors and colors, from saffron rice and stuffed potatoes to fried plantains, fresh green salad, and fried mahi-mahi. She explained that playing with colors in food was crucial to her; each dish should combine flavors and create a visual feast for the eyes.
Just as simple colors create masterpieces, Susanna combined essential recipes to create unique blends of vibrant colors and flavors. Her artistry extended beyond combining dishes; timing was imperative to ensure each dish was served at the right temperature.
As I savored each bite, I marveled at how simple ingredients were transformed into a work of art. The palette of colors on our plates mirrored the vibrant surroundings of the Caribbean.
This Caribbean feast was more than a meal; it embodied the region’s lively, diverse, and captivating spirit. Each stroke of Susanna’s culinary prowess brought us closer to the heart of Caribbean cuisine. As the sun set over Union Island, our senses were sated, and our souls were nourished.
Caribbean Symphony of Flavors and Colors
Yellow-Green Saffron Rice
1 cup rice
½ tsp turmeric
1 onion
2 cloves of garlic
2 cups water
1 tbsp dried parsley
1 green pepper
salt and oil for sautéing
Sauté onion and garlic in oil, add turmeric and soaked and rinsed rice. Cover and let the color envelop the rice for 3 minutes without adding water. Stir from time to time. Add the water and dried parsley and cook until ready. Sauté green pepper and garlic and add to the cooked rice before serving.
White-Orange Stuffed Potatoes
8 medium potatoes
2 cloves of garlic
1 carrot
salt and oil for sautéing
Boil potatoes in their jackets until tender. Sauté finely chopped garlic and carrot with salt. Stuff the potato halves and sauté the stuffed halves before serving. Optionally, add salted fish to the mixture for an extra burst of flavor.
Golden-Brown Plantains
2 ripe plantains and oil for frying
Slice plantains into 1.5-2 cm thick slices and sauté them in oil until golden brown on both sides.
White-Green Salad
2 cups shredded fresh cabbage
1 green pepper
1 cucumber
vinegar and oil
salt and sugar
Finely shred fresh cabbage, green pepper, and cucumber. Dress the salad with vinegar and oil, season with salt, and balance the taste with a touch of sugar.
Golden-Red Fish with Signature Sauce
4 fillets of mahi-mahi
Or other local fish
salt and pepper
1 onion
2 cloves of garlic
2 tbsp. tomato paste
2 tbsp. soy sauce
1 tsp. ground coriander
A drop of chili sauce
water for sauce consistency
oil for searing
The fish is usually whatever the village’s fishermen catch; in our case, it was mahi-mahi. Season the fish and sear the fillets, then prepare the sauce by sautéing onions and garlic with tomato paste, soy sauce, coriander, and a drop of chili sauce. Add water as needed for the desired consistency. Serve the sauce with the fish.
Margo Ask and her partner Joerg sailed the world aboard their Lagoon 380 catamaran, immersing themselves in local cultures, with particular emphasis on food as it is cooked and enjoyed in the kitchens and on the tables of the people they met. In 2022, their journey took them to the Caribbean, where they visited islands and dined and met the people who created the meals, and who shared their recipes. The result is the work by the author under her pen name, Margarita Askolskaya: Sail, Spice & Savory Seas. Find it at on Amazon here
Susanna cooks for you in her Caribbean kitchen on YouTube:
