Caribbean Diet

The Caribbean diet is rich in spices with fresh ingredients including, fish and seafood. The diet includes beans and legumes like chickpeas, lentils and black-eyed peas. Common dishes include rice, beans, fish cakes, stews, and plantain as a side to traditional meals including rice and peas, and curry goat.

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What is the food culture like?

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Ingredients that are common in most dishes are rice, plantains, beans, cassava, coriander (stem and leaves), bell peppers, chickpeas, tomatoes, sweet potatoes, coconut, and various meats such as beef, poultry, pork or fish.

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What are some common foods consumed?​

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Common meals include jerk chicken or goat curry. The fusion of spices, herbs and seasonings makes for mouth-watering meals. 

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Ackee and saltfish is a popular breakfast.  Ackee is a savoury fruit, soft in texture and slightly sweet when cooked. The flavours and textures, carefully combined with seasonings, spices, onions and pepper, make this dish wholesome and filling.

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Plantain is a core ingredient. It resembles a banana and has a starchy but soft texture when cooked and a sweet flavour, Plantains are the used as an accompaniment to many Caribbean dishes.

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Yams are a staple of the caribbean diet and can be eaten in a variety of ways. Yams come in a range of colours and can be served as part of a thick soup or as a boiled, mashed or fried accompaniment. 

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High in protein, filling and energising, breadfruit is considered a wonder food. Related to the popular jackfruit, breadfruit can be eaten raw or cooked, but is usually peeled, chopped, boiled or roasted like a potato, then served up as a side dish. It’s great in soups or spicy curries and tastes a bit like bread (as the name suggests). 

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