Spices feauture heavily in traditional Jamaican cuisine.
Traditional Jamaican cuisine is filled with fresh fish, beans and vegetables, making it a healthy diet to consume. Jamaican food is also well-known for its use of aromatic spices either singularly or in palatable combinations. The most common example of a Jamaican spice combination is "jerk" which is rubbed onto the surface of meats and fish before cooking. Add this to my Recipe Box.
Jerk
In Jamaican cuisine, meat is rubbed with a jerk paste before being cooked. Jerk is a combination of spices that generally includes Scoth bonnet peppers, escallions, ginger, thyme, cinnamon, nutmeg, pimento, garlic and peppercorns. Jerk stands can be found on roadsides across the island, particularly in and around tourist areas.
Scotch Bonnet Pepper
Scotch bonnet peppers are similar in look and taste to a habanero pepper. The seeds of the pepper contain most of the heat. To avoid an overly-spicy dish, the peppers are often added whole to soups and stews during cooking and removed before serving. Popular Jamaican dish using Scotch bonnet peppers are ital stew peas and sorrel chutney.
Pimento (aka Allspice)
Jamaica is the largest producer of pimento in the world. The spice is referred to as allspice in other parts of the world due to its complex flavor reminiscent of cloves, nutmeg, cinnamon and pepper combined into one. Pimento is one of the main ingredients in jerk and is also used in baking treats such as Easter bun, barbecue sauces and pickling.
Vanilla
Vanilla beans come from a tropical orchid plant, which can grow to 5 feet in height. Vanilla has a mild, soothing flavor and is generally used in desserts such as black cake and beverages like Irish moss.
Curry
Curry is a combination of a number of different spices including turmeric, cardamom, cumin, cinnamon and nutmeg. Curry is a feature of traditional Indian cuisine and its use in Jamaican dishes comes from the island's Indian history. A well-known Jamaican curry dish is shrimp in coconut cream sauce.
Ginger
Ginger is aromatic and mildly spicy. In Jamaica, ginger is used in food dishes such as Jamaican ginger bulla as well as in ginger beer and ginger wine.
Nutmeg and Mace
The nutmeg tree grows naturally throughout the island of Jamaica. The tree provides two spices -- nutmeg from the seeds and mace from the stringy-casing around the seed. Nutmeg is used in Jamaican cooking and is often found sprinkled on top of alcoholic beverages such as rum punch and in traditional Jamaican desserts, such as grizzada.
Related posts
World War II inspired many artistic movements in all genresAfter World War II, the entire world was changed. Many artists used music as an outlet to vent the frustration associated with the war or...
Basics of MP3A MP3 file is a digital audio file, usually containing music or other audio information. Coveted for their CD-level of quality, despite their small file size, MP3 files have a variety...
Eggs and toast are traditional American breakfast fare.The city of Phoenixville, Pennsylvania has numerous highly rated restaurants. But when it comes to the city's breakfast options, it can be ha...
Roman policemanSeeking out an American restaurant in a foreign capital like Rome need not be a cowardly--or chauvinistic--retreat into the familiar. If you choose well by avoiding golden arches an...
The 1950s kitchen was both a study in economy and style.Bright floral patterns and muted greenish browns may not be the definition of popular interior design in the 21st century, but it was the no...
