Pepper Pot

Ingredients

 * 1 lb cow heel
 * 1 lb Oxtail
 * 1 lb beef, cubed
 * 1 lb pork, cubed
 * 1 lb salted pigtail, pre-cooked to get excess salt out
 * 1 lb beef shin with bone in
 * 5 cloves garlic, crushed
 * 2 tablsps. brown sugar
 * Broadleaf thyme, chopped up ( to taste)
 * Fine leaf thyme, chopped up ( to taste)
 * a few leaves of fresh basil
 * 5 hot peppers
 * 3/4 cup cassareep ( extract from cassava root)
 * 1 small piece of spice
 * 3 cloves
 * salt to taste
 * black pepper to taste
 * 1 large onion
 * oil for frying

Directions

 * 1) Wash cow heel - mix with all the other meats, except the salted pigtail
 * 2) Season meats with salt, black pepper, thymes, garlic, onion,brown sugar, cloves, basil and piece of spice
 * 3) In a large heavy pot, like an iron pot, heat up oil ( about 3 tablespoons) and fry meat for about 5 - 10 mins, turning it with a pot spoon until all pieces are "browned" ( they do not actually have to look brown at this stage, but should not be looking pink again )
 * 4) Boil salted pigtail for 5-10 mins, drain and add to other meats
 * 5) Pour cassareep over meat and stir through- cook for 5 mins more, then add water to cover and simmer meat for about 6 hours or until meat is very soft and comes off the bones
 * 6) About 1 hour before finishing the pot, float the hot peppers on top of the meat, one at the time- Keep tasting the meat for hotness- Some people like it hotter than others. Bursting these peppers will result in a very hot pepper pot, so watch out
 * 7) Serve with root vegetables. I usually cook this dish for Carnival Sunday and keep some for Monday after playing Mas