Recipe: Suya Bruschetta

I’ll start by saying that suya (spicy skewered meat) is life, right after plantain, of course! On its own it’s amazing, but try adding it to various things – e.g. poutine, sushi, wraps, fish and your meal goes from normal to amazing. In fact, there are very few things that aren’t made better by adding suya. Frankly, at this point, I can only think of one thing, oatmeal. And even then, I’m not sure it would be all that bad.

I combined it with one of my favourite appetisers, bruschetta. Bruschetta is an Italian appetiser that consists of a mix of fresh tomatoes, basil, garlic and olive oil on a lightly toasted baguette. These flavours work beautifully with the spiciness of the beef suya and make a flavourful and delicious appetiser for your guests. And, even better, it is super easy to make.

Ingredients

•    5 ripe plum tomatoes
•    1 garlic clove, minced
•    1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
•    1 tsp balsamic vinegar
•    8-10 fresh basil leaves, chopped
•    1 tsp salt, to taste
•    Freshly ground black pepper to taste
•    1 baguette
•    Olive oil, for brushing
•    Beef suya, chopped

Instructions

1.    Prep tomatoes by making shallow cuts at the bottom end of the tomato.
2.    Bring water to a boil in a medium pot, blanch the tomatoes by putting them into the boiling water for one minute, then take the tomatoes out and leave to cool.
3.    Peel tomatoes and cut in quarters. Remove seed and pulp/dice tomatoes.
4.    In a bowl, combine tomatoes, basil, garlic, salt, pepper, vinegar and extra virgin olive oil. Set aside.
5.    Preheat oven to 450F (230C).
6.    Slice baguette into half-inch pieces and brush one side of the slices with olive oil. Place olive oil side down on a baking pan and bake for five minutes until edges are golden brown.
7.    Arrange toast olive oil side up and spoon some of the tomato mixture on top. Top off with suya pieces and serve.