Caribbean The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...

cuisine is a fusion of

West African West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Mali, Ma ...

,"Cuisine."
(Caribbean.
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Accessed July 2011. Creole,

Cajun The Cajuns (; French: ''les Cadjins'' or ''les Cadiens'' ), also known as Louisiana ''Acadians'' (French: ''les Acadiens''), are a Louisiana French ethnicity mainly found in the U.S. state of Louisiana. While Cajuns are usually described as ...

Amerindian The Indigenous peoples of the Americas are the inhabitants of the Americas before the arrival of the European settlers in the 15th century, and the ethnic groups who now identify themselves with those peoples. Many Indigenous peoples of the Am ...

European European, or Europeans, or Europeneans, may refer to: In general * ''European'', an adjective referring to something of, from, or related to Europe ** Ethnic groups in Europe ** Demographics of Europe ** European cuisine, the cuisines of Europe ...

Latin American Latin Americans ( es, Latinoamericanos; pt, Latino-americanos; ) are the citizens of Latin American countries (or people with cultural, ancestral or national origins in Latin America). Latin American countries and their diasporas are multi-eth ...

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...

South Asian South Asia is the southern Subregion#Asia, subregion of Asia, which is defined in both geography, geographical and culture, ethno-cultural terms. The region consists of the countries of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, ...

, Middle Eastern, and

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...

. These traditions were brought from many different countries when they came to the Caribbean. In addition, the population has created styles that are unique to the region.

History

The Caribbean is a fusion of West African,

East Asian East Asia is the eastern region of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The modern states of East Asia include China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan. China, North Korea, South Korea a ...

Arab The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, ...

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

and French cuisines. In 1493, during the

voyages of Christopher Columbus Between 1492 and 1504, Italian explorer Christopher Columbus led four Spanish transatlantic maritime expeditions of discovery to the Americas. These voyages led to the widespread knowledge of the New World. This breakthrough inaugurated the per ...

, the

Spaniards Spaniards, or Spanish people, are a Romance peoples, Romance ethnic group native to Spain. Within Spain, there are a number of National and regional identity in Spain, national and regional ethnic identities that reflect the country's complex Hist ...

introduced a variety of ingredients, including

coconut The coconut tree (''Cocos nucifera'') is a member of the palm tree family ( Arecaceae) and the only living species of the genus ''Cocos''. The term "coconut" (or the archaic "cocoanut") can refer to the whole coconut palm, the seed, or the ...

chickpeas The chickpea or chick pea (''Cicer arietinum'') is an annual legume of the family Fabaceae, subfamily Faboideae. Its different types are variously known as gram" or Bengal gram, garbanzo or garbanzo bean, or Egyptian pea. Chickpea seeds are high ...

cilantro Coriander (;

eggplants Eggplant ( US, Canada), aubergine ( UK, Ireland) or brinjal (Indian subcontinent, Singapore, Malaysia, South Africa) is a plant species in the nightshade family Solanaceae. ''Solanum melongena'' is grown worldwide for its edible fruit. Mo ...

onions An onion (''Allium cepa'' L., from Latin ''cepa'' meaning "onion"), also known as the bulb onion or common onion, is a vegetable that is the most widely cultivated species of the genus ''Allium''. The shallot is a botanical variety of the onion ...

and

garlic Garlic (''Allium sativum'') is a species of bulbous flowering plant in the genus ''Allium''. Its close relatives include the onion, shallot, leek, chive, Allium fistulosum, Welsh onion and Allium chinense, Chinese onion. It is native to South A ...

Caribbean dishes

Ingredients that are common in most islands' dishes are

rice Rice is the seed of the grass species ''Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice) or less commonly ''Oryza glaberrima ''Oryza glaberrima'', commonly known as African rice, is one of the two domesticated rice species. It was first domesticated and grown i ...

plantain Plantain may refer to: Plants and fruits * Cooking banana, banana cultivars in the genus ''Musa'' whose fruits are generally used in cooking ** True plantains, a group of cultivars of the genus ''Musa'' * ''Plantaginaceae'', a family of flowerin ...

bean A bean is the seed of several plants in the family Fabaceae, which are used as vegetables for human or animal food. They can be cooked in many different ways, including boiling, frying, and baking, and are used in many traditional dishes th ...

cassava ''Manihot esculenta'', common name, commonly called cassava (), manioc, or yuca (among numerous regional names), is a woody shrub of the spurge family, Euphorbiaceae, native to South America. Although a perennial plant, cassava is extensively ...

cilantro Coriander (;

bell pepper The bell pepper (also known as paprika, sweet pepper, pepper, or capsicum ) is the fruit of plants in the Grossum Group of the species ''Capsicum annuum''. Cultivars of the plant produce fruits in different colors, including red, yellow, orange ...

chickpea The chickpea or chick pea (''Cicer arietinum'') is an annual legume of the family Fabaceae, subfamily Faboideae. Its different types are variously known as gram" or Bengal gram, garbanzo or garbanzo bean, or Egyptian pea. Chickpea seeds are high ...

tomato The tomato is the edible berry of the plant ''Solanum lycopersicum'', commonly known as the tomato plant. The species originated in western South America, Mexico, and Central America. The Mexican Nahuatl word gave rise to the Spanish word ...

es,

sweet potato The sweet potato or sweetpotato (''Ipomoea batatas'') is a dicotyledonous plant that belongs to the Convolvulus, bindweed or morning glory family (biology), family, Convolvulaceae. Its large, starchy, sweet-tasting tuberous roots are used as a r ...

es,

, and any of various meats that are locally available like beef, poultry, pork or fish. A characteristic seasoning for the region is a green herb-and-oil-based marinade called sofrito, which imparts a flavor profile which is quintessentially Caribbean in character. Ingredients may include garlic, onions, scotch bonnet peppers, celery, green onions, and herbs like cilantro, Mexican mint, chives, marjoram, rosemary, tarragon and thyme. This green seasoning is used for a variety of dishes like curries, stews and roasted meats. Traditional dishes are so important to regional culture that, for example, the local version of Caribbean goat stew has been chosen as the official national dish of

Montserrat Montserrat ( ) is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory in the Caribbean. It is part of the Leeward Islands, the northern portion of the Lesser Antilles chain of the West Indies. Montserrat is about long and wide, with r ...

and is also one of the signature dishes of St. Kitts and Nevis. Another popular dish in the Anglophone Caribbean is called "cook-up", or

pelau Pelau is a traditional rice dish of the West Indies ( Guadeloupe, Dominica and Caribbean countries such as Trinidad and Tobago, Grenada, Barbados and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines). Main ingredients are meat (usually chicken or beef, rice, pig ...

Ackee and saltfish Ackee and saltfish is the Jamaican national dish prepared with ackee and salted codfish. Background The ackee fruit ('' Blighia sapida'') is the national fruit of Jamaica. It was imported to the Caribbean from Ghana before 1725 as 'Ackee' or ' ...

is another popular dish that is unique to Jamaica.

Callaloo Callaloo (many spelling variants, such as kallaloo, calaloo, calalloo, calaloux or callalloo; ) is a popular Caribbean vegetable dish. There are many variants across the Caribbean, depending on the availability of local vegetables. The main in ...

is a dish containing leafy vegetables such as

spinach Spinach (''Spinacia oleracea'') is a leafy green flowering plant native to central and western Asia. It is of the order Caryophyllales, family Amaranthaceae, subfamily Chenopodioideae. Its leaves are a common edible vegetable consumed either f ...

and sometimes

okra Okra or Okro (, ), ''Abelmoschus esculentus'', known in many English-speaking countries as ladies' fingers or ochro, is a flowering plant in the mallow family. It has edible green seed pods. The geographical origin of okra is disputed, with su ...

amongst others, widely distributed in the Caribbean, with a distinctively mixed African and indigenous character. The variety of dessert dishes in the area also reflects the mixed origins of the recipes. In some areas,

black cake A rum cake or black cake is a type of dessert cake which contains rum. In most of the Caribbean, rum cakes are a traditional holiday season dessert, descended from the holiday puddings (such as figgy pudding). Traditionally, dried fruit is soa ...

, a derivative of English Christmas pudding, may be served, especially on special occasions. Over time, food from the Caribbean has evolved into a narrative technique through which their culture has been accentuated and promoted. However, by studying Caribbean culture through a literary lens there then runs the risk of generalizing exoticist ideas about food practices from the tropics. Some food theorists argue that this depiction of Caribbean food in various forms of media contributes to the inaccurate conceptions revolving around their culinary practices, which are much more grounded in unpleasant historical events. Therefore, it can be argued that the connection between the idea of the Caribbean being the ultimate paradise and Caribbean food being exotic is based on inaccurate information.Graziadei, Daniel. “The Fierce Questioning of Fictional Caribbean Communion in Édouard Glissant’s Ormerod and Fortuné Chalumeau’s Désirade, ô Serpente!” In Caribbean Food Cultures: Culinary Practices and Consumption in the Caribbean and Its Diasporas, edited by Wiebke Beuhausen, Anne Brüske, Ana-Sofia Commichau, Patrick Helber, and Sinah Kloß, 89-96.

By location

Anguillian cuisine Anguillian cuisine is the cuisine of Anguilla, a British overseas territory in the Caribbean, one of the most northerly of the Leeward Islands in the Lesser Antilles. The cuisine is influenced by native Caribbean, African, Spanish, French and Engl ...

Antigua and Barbuda cuisine Antigua and Barbuda cuisine refers to the cuisines of the Caribbean islands Antigua and Barbuda. The national dish is fungie (pronounced "foon-jee") and pepperpot.

Barbadian cuisine Barbadian cuisine, also called Bajan cuisine, is a mixture of African, Portuguese, Indian, Irish, Creole, Indigenous and British background. A typical meal consists of a main dish of meat or fish, normally marinated with a mixture of herbs and sp ...

Bahamian cuisine Bahamian cuisine refers to the foods and beverages of The Bahamas. It includes seafood such as fish, shellfish, lobster, crab, and conch, as well as tropical fruits, rice, peas, pigeon peas, and pork. Popular seasonings commonly used in dishes ...

* Cayman Islands cuisine *

Cuban cuisine Cuban cuisine is largely based on Spanish cuisine with influence from African and other Caribbean cuisines. Some Cuban recipes share spices and techniques with Spanish, African and Taino cooking, with some Caribbean influence in spice and flavor ...

* Curaçaoan cuisine *

Dominica cuisine Dominica cuisine is the cuisine of the island nation of Dominica. The cuisine is rooted in creole techniques with local produce flavored by spices found on the island. Foods Dominica's cuisine is similar to many other Caribbean islands inc ...

Dominican Republic cuisine Dominican cuisine is made up of Spanish, indigenous Taíno, Middle Eastern and African influences. As in Spain, the largest, most important meal of the day is lunch. Its most typical form, nicknamed ''la bandera'' ("the flag"), consists of ...

Grenadan cuisine Grenada's French colonists brought their culture, as did the African slaves they brought across the Atlantic for agricultural work. Indians have also influenced the island culture in more recent years. With the passing of the Slave Trade Act ...

Haitian cuisine Haitian cuisine consists of cooking traditions and practices from Haiti. It is a Creole cuisine that originates from a blend of several culinary styles that populated the western portion of the island of Hispaniola, namely the African, French, ...

Jamaican cuisine Jamaican cuisine includes a mixture of cooking techniques, flavours and spices influenced by Amerindian cuisine, Amerindian, Cuisine of Africa, African, Irish cuisine, Irish, English cuisine, English, French cuisine, French, Portuguese cuisine, Por ...

* Martinique cuisine * Monserratian cuisine *

Puerto Rican cuisine Puerto Rican cuisine has its roots in the cooking traditions and practices of Europe (mostly Spain), Africa and the native Taínos. History Puerto Rican cuisine has been influenced by an array of cultures including Taino Arawak, Spanish, an ...

* Saint Kitts and Nevis cuisine *

Trinidad and Tobago cuisine Trinidad and Tobago has a unique history and its food is influenced by Indian-South Asian, West African, Creole, European, American, Chinese, Amerindian, and Latin American culinary styles. Trinidad and Tobagonian food is dominated by a wi ...

* Virgin Islands cuisine

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Caribbean Cuisine

History

Caribbean dishes

By location

See also

References