Location: CaribbeanPopulation: 11.2 millionCapital: HavanaGeography: A tropical island of flat fertile terrainLanguage: SpanishSignature flavours: Beef, pork, rice, beans, plantain, tropical fruit, spearmint, tomato The Menu Eric’s father was Cuban, and Eric lived in Havana until he was eight years old, so he is familiar with traditional Cuban fare, like ropa vieja (shredded beef), bistec de…
Tag: Caribbean
Assignment 96: Bahamas
Location: The CaribbeanPopulation: 386,000Capital: NassauGeography: A tropical archipelago of over 700 islands with coastal areas, forest, and mangrovesLanguage: EnglishSignature flavours: Seafood, corn, nutmeg, ginger, coconut, tropical fruits, rice The Menu Incredibly, on the underused shelves of our local rural library, Eric discovered a Bahamian cookbook. He used it exclusively to create his menu, although it…
Assignment 88: British Caribbean
Location: The Caribbean Population: 158,000 Capital: Various Geography: Various tropical islands Language: English Signature flavours: Seafood, corn, coconut, allspice, thyme, chicken, greens, rice, chilli peppers The Menu When we first conceived the Wooden Spoon Wanderer blog, one of our first tasks was to create a list, as exhaustive as possible, of places we wanted to…
Assignment 85: St Kitts and Nevis
Location: The Caribbean Population: 52,400 Capital: Basseterre Geography: Two main islands with central rainforest-covered mountainous terrain and coastal flats nearer the coast Language: English Signature flavours: Coconut, plantain, seafood, pork, breadfruit, rice, tomato, peppers The Menu It’s been over 25 assignments since we last visited the Caribbean, so I was looking forward to the fish…
Assignment 59: St Vincent and the Grenadines
Location: The Caribbean Population: 109,600 Capital: Kingstown Geography: A collection of 32 islands, the largest of which is St Vincent Language: English Signature flavours: Breadfruit, coconut, seafood, root vegetables The Menu St Vincent cuisine was not easy to research, and there was a definite dearth of resources. I didn’t get anywhere in my quest for…
Assignment 56: Guyana
Location: South America Population: 773,000 Capital: Georgetown Geography: A densely forested country with areas of savannah, mountains, and coastal plain Language: English Signature flavours: Cassava, garlic, wiri wiri pepper, curry, vanilla, cinnamon, demerara sugar, beef The Menu Eric’s main resource was a blog called Alica’s Pepperpot. He built his menu around her recipes as well…
Assignment 53: Jamaica
Location: The Caribbean Population: 2.9 million Capital: Kingston Geography: A tropical island of diverse ecosystems over coastal plain and mountains Language: English Signature flavours: Seafood, curry, beans, rice, hot peppers, chicken, pork, beef The Menu I was really excited for my Jamaica assignment. I love Caribbean food, and have enjoyed it done well in a…
Assignment 50: Antigua and Barbuda
Location: The Caribbean Population: 101,000 Capital: St John’s Geography: Two main islands and a collection of islets, mostly consisting of sandy soil and limestone Language: English Signature flavours: Seafood, rice, coconut, corn, thyme, banana, sugarcane The Menu Here we are at assignment 50! It’s hard to believe we’ve cooked so many meals from around the…
Assignment 38: Puerto Rico
Location: The Caribbean (a territory of the US) Population: 3.3 million Capital: San Juan Geography: A mountainous island with large areas of tropical rainforest Language: Spanish, English Signature flavours: Plantain, rice, beans, coconut, achiote, green olives, seafood, pork The Menu This is the first assignment from a place we’ve actually travelled to together. Eric and…
Assignment 34: Trinidad & Tobago
Location: The southern Caribbean, off the coast of Venezuela Population: 1.35 million Capital: Port of Spain Geography: Two islands with a mix of mountains and plains Language: English Signature flavours: Corn, rice, scotch bonnet peppers, turmeric, lentils, chickpeas, chicken, seafood The Menu I don’t think our house had ever smelled as good as it did…
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