The

Turks and Caicos Islands The Turks and Caicos Islands (abbreviated TCI; and ) are a British Overseas Territory consisting of the larger Caicos Islands and smaller Turks Islands, two groups of tropical islands in the Lucayan Archipelago of the Atlantic Ocean and n ...

consist of 30 islands situated in the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

, southeast of the

Bahamas The Bahamas (), officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the West Indies in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic. It takes up 97% of the Lucayan Archipelago's land area and is home to ...

. Local cuisine employs rare species,

banana A banana is an elongated, edible fruit – botanically a berry – produced by several kinds of large herbaceous flowering plants in the genus ''Musa''. In some countries, bananas used for cooking may be called "plantains", distinguis ...

citrus ''Citrus'' is a genus of flowering plant, flowering trees and shrubs in the rue family, Rutaceae. Plants in the genus produce citrus fruits, including important crops such as Orange (fruit), oranges, Lemon, lemons, grapefruits, pomelos, and lim ...

corn Maize ( ; ''Zea mays'' subsp. ''mays'', from es, maíz after tnq, mahiz), also known as corn (North American and Australian English), is a cereal grain first domesticated by indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 10,000 years ago. Th ...

and ocean salt. Because the territories are situated in the

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 ...

zone and belong to the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

, many elements from these cultures can be found in the local diet. The variety of meat ranges from fish,

fish roe Roe ( ) or hard roe is the fully ripe internal egg masses in the ovaries, or the released external egg masses, of fish and certain marine animals such as shrimp, scallop, sea urchins and squid. As a seafood, roe is used both as a cooked ingr ...

, crabs, and lobster, to poultry, pork and beef. Meat is typically served with local corn, rice and vegetables and is topped with local sauces and spices. A traditional Turks and Caicos meal comprises grits, which are made with dried conch or peas, various local vegetables, and chicken or fish. Conch is present in a large number of dishes including conch salad,

conch fritter Conch fritters are a dish commonly served in The Bahamas and the Florida Keys. History Conch, especially in fritter form, has been widely consumed in The Bahamas since the settlement of the islands by the Lucayan people although the increasing ...

s, and cracked conch. Rum is an important drink and flavoring for cakes and even steaks. A rum-based punch is served during celebrations, and is a popular drink in the coastal bars and eateries. These islands host approximately 50,000 tourists per year, so the local cuisine has to accommodate the tourist trade. In

Cockburn Town Cockburn Town ( ) is the capital of the Turks and Caicos Islands, spreading across most of Grand Turk Island. It was founded in 1681 by salt collectors. Geography Cockburn Town is located on the largest island in the Turks Islands archipelago, ...

, cafes and open bars on the coast produce fish and seafood dishes, as well as exotic desserts.

References

{{North American cuisine Turks Turks and Caicos Islands culture