Caribbean Island Recipes and Cuisine

The word creole, taken in its meaning of "mixture," fits most Caribbean cooking. Pre-Columbian Arawak and Taino people subsisted on the fruits of the sea and starchy cassava root. Imperial designs, slavery and merchant immigration brought succeeding influence from the British, Spanish, French, Dutch, African, Indian and Chinese.

Each island has signature dishes reflecting its particular history. Seafood is widely eaten, as is chicken and goat. Okra, greens, taro and yams are popular, as well as plantains, limes, sour oranges and other tropical fruits.

Typical Caribbean Dishes

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A list of typical Caribbean dishes and foods. Use it to help you plan a Caribbean-style meal, party or festival.

Pan-Caribbean Recipes

Foo-Foo (Mashed plantains)
Pepper Vinegar (Vinegar infused with hot chilies)
Pepper Wine (Rum infused with hot chilies)
Planter's Punch (Rum with fruit juice)
Sopa de Frijoles Negros (Black bean soup)

Antigua

Conch Fritters
Ducuna (Boiled sweet potato cakes)
Fungi (Cornmeal mush)
Bread Pudding
Papaya Pie

Aruba

Keshi Yena (Stuffed cheese shell)
Webo Yena (Deviled eggs)
Funchi (Cornmeal mush)
Sopito (Fish and coconut milk chowder)
Sancochi di Galinja (Chicken stew)
Conch Stew
Ayacas (Meat tamales wrapped in banana leaves)
Keri-Keri (Fish hash with vegetables)
Scabechi (Pickled fish)
Stuffed Crab Back (Crab stuffed with seasoned bread crumbs)
Coo-Coo (Cornmeal porridge with okra)
Pan Dushi (Sweetrolls with raisins)
Banana Bread
Cashew Nut Cake
Papaya Pudding

Bahamas

Cracked Conch (Deep-fried conch strips)
Pea Soup with Dumplings
Souse (Pickled pork)
Ham Loaf
Boiled Fish with Grits
Crab 'n' Rice (Crab simmered with rice)
Curried Rock Lobster
Smudder Fish (Fish simmered with tomatoes)
Peas and Rice (Pigeon peas with rice)
Johnnycakes (Cornmeal pancakes)
Banana Bread
Guava Duff (Steamed guava pudding)

Barbados

Salt Fish Cakes (Salt cod fritters)
Jug-Jug (Meat stew with pureed pigeon peas)
Rice and Stew (Beef stewed with vegetables and rice)
Cornmeal Fried Chicken
Pudding and Souse (Pork with sweet potato pudding)
Fried Flying Fish
Sea-Egg Roe (Sea urchin roe)
Coo-Coo (Cornmeal mush with okra)
Cassava Biscuits
Conkies (Steamed pumpkin and sweet potato cakes)
Coconut Sweet Bread (Coconut flavored bread)
Mauby (Tropical bark beverage)

Curacão

Keshy Yena (Baked stuffed edam cheese)
Pastechi (Meat- or cheese-filled pastry)
Jambo (Seafood and okra soup)
Kadushi (Cactus soup)
Sopi Mondongo (Tripe stew)
Sopito (Fish and coconut milk chowder)
Stoba (Goat and pepper stew)
Cachapas (Cornmeal pancakes)
Funchi (Cornmeal mush)
Pan Serra (Country bread)
Ko'i Lechi (Milk and sugar sweet)

Dominica

Manicou (Curried opossum)
Mountain Chicken (Frog's legs)
Fungi (Cornmeal mush)

Dominican Republic

Frituras de Ñame (Yam fritters)
Asopao de Mariscos (Seafood stew)
Sanchoco de Seite Carnes (Stew of Seven Meats)
Sopa Boba ("Silly" vegetable soup)
Chicharrones de Pollo (Rum- and lime-marinated chicken)
Mangú (Dominican mashed plantains)
Plátanos Fritos (Fried ripe plantains)
Avena (Oatmeal beverage)

French Antilles

Fricassée de Poulet (Chicken fricassee)
Féroce (Salt cod with hot peppers)
Christophene au Gratin (Baked chayote stuffed with cheese)

Grenada

Oildown (Saltbeef, saltfish and breadfruit simmered in coconut milk)
Roast Pork with Orange Sauce
Stuffed Breadfruit (Breadfruit baked with a ground beef stuffing)
Nutmeg Ice Cream

Guadeloupe

Accrats de Morue (Codfish fritters)
Calaloo (Soup with taro leaves)
Pâté en Pot (Goat's head stew)
Féroces d'Avocat (Avocado and salt cod salad)
Jerk Chicken (Spicy grilled chicken)
Pineapple Chicken Rundown (Grilled chicken with a pineapple-cream sauce)
Mechoui (Spit-roasted lamb)
Huile de Rou-Cou (Annato oil; see Achiote recipe)
Sauce Chien (Hot pepper sauce)
Souskaï de Mangues Vertes (Mango appetizer)

Martinique

Blaff (Lime-scented fish soup)
Pâté en Pot (Goat's head stew)
Soupe à Congo (Vegetable soup)
Court Bouillon (Fish simmered with tomatoes)
Mechoui (Spit-roasted lamb)
Poisson Frit (Fried fish fillets)
Poisson Grillé Sauce Créole (Grilled fish with creole sauce)
Poule Épi Diri (Chicken with rice)
Dombrés (Dumplings)
Huile de Rou-Cou (Annato oil)

Montserrat

Goat Water (Goat stew)
Souse (Pickled pork)
Braised Turtle
Iguana Stew
Mountain Chicken (Frog's legs)
Beans with Rum

St. Vincent

Curried Goat and Rice
Breadfruit and Saltfish

Trinidad and Tobago

Kachoris (Chickpea and scallion fritters)
Sahinas (Taro leaf fritters)
Callaloo (Soup with taro leaves and coconut milk)
Buljol (Spicy saltfish salad)
Breadfruit Oil-down (Ham and breadfruit simmered in coconut milk)
Pelau (Meat, rice and pigeon peas with coconut milk)
Pepperpot (Meat stew with cassareep)
Bakes (Fried quickbread)
Cassava Bread (Cassava root flatbread)
Roti (Fried flatbread)
Rou-Cou (Annato oil)
Mango Relish
Pitch Lake Pudding (Mocha mousse)

Virgin Islands

Conch Fritters
Cactus Soup
Kallaloo (Soup with taro leaves and coconut milk)
Souse (Pickled pork)
Curried Chicken
Fried plantains (See Plátanos Fritos recipe)
Fungi (Cornmeal mush)
Johnnycakes (Cornmeal pancakes)
Key Lime Pie
Mauby (Tropical bark beverage)
Sea-Moss

Caribbean Island Recipes

Plátanos Fritos

(Latin fried ripe plantains)

Fufu

(West African mashed yams)

Tostones

(Caribbean fried plantains)

Pollo en Fricasé

(Caribbean chicken fricassee)

Conch Fritters

(Caribbean deep-fried conch snacks)

Coo-Coo

(Bajan cornmeal mush with okra)

Boiled Green Bananas

(Jamaican starchy side dish)

Sopa de Frijoles Negros

(Caribbean black bean soup)

Blaff

(Caribbean lime-poached fish)

Planter's Punch

(Caribbean rum punch)

Pineapple Chicken Rundown

(Guadeloupe chicken and pineapple in a coconut cream sauce)

Souskaï de Mangues Vertes

(French Caribbean mango appetizer)

Funchi

(Aruban-Curacaoan cornmeal mush; see Ugali recipe)

Sopi Mondongo

(Caribbean tripe and vegetable soup; see Sopa de Mondongo recipe)

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