With Saltfish and ducana, this Phoenix chef shares a personal, Caribbean Easter tradition

“Saltfish and ducana reflect a mix of colonial Spanish, French and British ingredients intertwined with local and African traditions. The salted cod was introduced to the Caribbean via the triangular slave trade between Britain, West Africa and the Caribbean colonies in the 18th and 19th Centuries. The cold water fish had to be salted to make the journey. The inexpensive, long-lasting ingredient was a food of survival, used to feed enslaved people brought to the islands to work on sugar plantations. It has since become a vital part of the local cuisine. It's still salted and imported, typically from Canada, to this day.”