There is nothing like Jerk Chicken that is grilled on Pimento wood on a hot summer day. Jamaica food is a feast for the taste buds. Around every corner on this small island you will find something that will make your mouth water. 

Local food will teach you about Jamaican history and culture.  

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Jerking meat is originally a Maroon tradition. Maroons escaped the British colonizers and settled in the remote and hard to reach mountains areas. In those days the Maroons would cook their meat in a pit made out pimento wood and coals underground and cover it with herbs to hide the smoke in order for the colonizers not to find them. 

Breadfruit e.g. has its origin in Africa and was brought to Jamaica by Captain Bligh in the 18th century as a cheap way to feed slaves but didn’t realize it was a “superfood”. Captain Bligh brought many other fruit and vegetable seeds including Ackee, which has become Jamaica’s national fruit while in other countries the Ackee tree is mostly seen as an ornamental tree. 

Herbs and spices to preserve meat and fish were also brought from Africa and Asia, many food styles and dishes were also introduced to Jamaica with the slave ships. 

Indian and Chinese immigration waves influenced the local cuisine with curries and Chow Mein Noodle dishes. Fruits are in abundance across the island, each in their season but due to the tropical climate food can grow all year round. At least 30 types of mangos, a variety of pineapples, papayas, bananas, otehiti apples, soursop, sugar cane, avocado, starfruit and a lot more… Many deserts are made of local fruits with condensed milk. 

Jamaica is the birthplace of some of the most exquisite rums (Appletons, Worthy Park, Wray and Nephew, Blackwell, John Crow…) and coffees. The Blue Mountain Coffee is considered one of the best coffees in the world due to the climate and altitude in the stunning Blue Mountains in the east of the country.  

Jamaican food burst with flavor as Jamaicans love their natural seasoning in their pots. You will rarely see a meal cooked without scallion, thyme, pimento and scotch bonnet pepper and most likely coconut milk, and people are not afraid of spice here. A hot climate requires a hot mentality and a spicy palate. Jamaican cuisine is celebrated around the world for its unique caribbean flair and flavorful dishes. 

Jamaica is also a vegan paradise. Vegan in Jamaica is called Ital - standing for natural. You will hear many rastafari saying Ital is Vital - meaning that eating natural food that nature and farming provides is vital to a healthy lifestyle. You will find ital cookshops and restaurants around the island, most of them are rastafari businesses you will oftentimes recognize by red green and gold colored shops and flags. The food is mainly vegan - no dairy, no meat, no preservatives, no chemicals. Many people living by rivers or the sea will include fish in their diet as natural fishing is part of many people’s lifestyle who live by the water and is considered a natural part of the ecosystem, as that fish is not domesticated like cows, pigs, goats or chicken. In cooking ital no processed food is being used, that also includes spices. Most dishes are spiced and seasoned with herbs, leaves, seeds, roots etc. When spiced right, only little salt is needed, and many exclude processed salt and sugar from their diet completely. Just like eating kosher has a different meaning to every family, eating ital has different traditions in each family based on the natural surroundings. Most ingredients are found on the farm or at the markets  and not in the supermarkets. Traditionally and still very common at river cookups and Sunday family gatherings people will cook on open fire. 

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Patties

Jamaican patties are famous around the world. They are delicious, stuffed, golden crusted pastries. Patties have their origins and influence from the British. Tastee’s, Juicy’s and Mothers are the most common patty chains around the island. Patties are sold at any time of the day and are a common snack and on the go street food. The commercial patties are stuffed with curry chicken, ground beef, ground beef with cheese, callaloo or soy. Ital patties are oftentimes called Yatties and are not sold commercially. You will have to ask your way around who in the area makes vegan homemade patties. These are mostly filled with ackee, vegetable, callaloo, pumpkin or lentils. 

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Desserts: 

Gizaada - small grated coconut pie seasoned with ginger and nutmeg

Coconut drops - coconut pieces cooked in caramelized sugar

Blue Draws - sweet groundfood mash (puddin) cooked in taro or banana leaves 

Tamarind drops - tangy tamarind fruit rolled in sugar

Chocolate tea -  hot chocolate made from exquisite Jamaican cocoa and cooked with coconut milk, nutmeg & cinnamon. 

Some unique fruits and vegetables you shouldn’t miss out on trying: 

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Ackee - the eggless egg. As it grows the fruit is poisonous. Only once it opens on the tree the fruit is ready to harvest and prepare. In order to eliminate the poison, the fruit has to be cleaned (black seed and red vein has to cut out) and boiled. After that it can be added to rice or pastas, or fried with onions and tomatoes like scrambled egg. It is traditionally eaten for breakfast but during the season you can find it throughout the day. It is a very good source of fiber and protein. 

Breadfruit - basically like a mix of bread and potato grown on a tree. The big green round fruit is roasted in fire (or on the stove top) until completely black. After you peel it you can slice it and eat the soft yellow mellow sweetish fruit. The other common way is to fry the slices after being roasted. Young breadfruits will not roast well are cooked in stews usually with coconut milk. 

Eating breadfruit and ground food is more common the the consumption of bread. 

Callaloo - the most commonly used grean leafy vegetable that is used as any side dish. It resembles spinach but due to its high nutritional value and high content of iron callaloo is more sturdy than spinach. It is usually steamed with natural seasoning and vegetables. You can find callaloo at any time of the day. 

Chocho - a pear shaped light green / dark green or white fruit from the squash family grows on a vine. The taste is similar to kohlrabi and can be eaten raw, roasted and cooked. 

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Guinep - very similar to lychee and in season sold at every corner for very cheap. 

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June plum - this Jamaican plum is a wonderful source of iron and protein, juice and sour. It is usually made into and sold as juices. When unripe it is very delish with salt, lime and chilly. 

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Otehiti Apple - a refreshing, sweet and juicy Jamaican apple. This dark red or pink on the outside and white on the inside pear shaped fruit is sold at every corner and most commonly on the street side to passer-bys when in season. Otehiti Apple has been used to treat diabetes and other diseases. 

Star Fruit - this delicious fruit comes in dark purple or bright green. When you cut it in the middle the seed pockets form a star like shape inside. Only a small amount of the fruit can be eatin - the part between the seed pods and the skin as the fruit contains natural laxative that can cause constipation. In Jamaica it is often referred to as “evil” as it never drops off the stem and will just rot on the tree. 

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Stinking Toe - this strange but super healthy pod gets its name from its appearance of looking like a big fat toe accompanied by its smell that will make you cringe once you open a fresh pod. The outside is hard like a rock and has to be cracked open with a machete, a stone or a hammer. The seeds inside are surrounded by a brown furry pulp that is sweet and delicious. Those who don’t mind the smell snack on it, but more commonly it is blended into juices, smoothies and roots. Stinking toe is filled with nutritional values and used to cure diseases. 

Susumba - also known as gully beans, are small green berries growing on mostly wild bushes, and are also known as the Jamaican olive due to its bitter taste. It is oftentime cooked in coconut milk with salt fish. 

Bush Medicine: 

Many people rely on natural remedies and herbs to cure and prevent many diseases and ailments. Jamaica is blessed with a large variety of herbal medicine growing cultivated and in the wild. These include ginger, turmeric, aloe vera, a large variety of bitter herbs (cerasee, dog bitters, shame-me-darlin, jack in the bush, chaney root etc.) soursop leaf, bissy, cinnamon, fevergrass, leaf of life and endless more… Every plant has a different medicinal value and treat different ailments and most country and hills people have a good knowledge about what is good for/against what. So when you have cuts, stomach- or headaches, certain chronic diseases don’t hesitate to ask about bush medicine. 

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Alcoholic drinks:

Jamaicans love to party and to have a good time. You will see almost every bar playing loud music and serving drinks, mostly rum with energy drinks. Alcohol, especially local rum and beer, is very easy to come across anywhere you are. Jamaica must have the most bars and churches per capita. 

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Rum - you have white and dark rum. White rum is over proofed and dark rum is aged in oak barrels. Rum is made from sugar cane and is actually a byproduct of the sugar production. Jamaica has been producing rum at an international level and has had several award-winning brands for centuries. Factories such as Appleton Estate and Worthy Park Estate can be visited to learn about sugar and rum production. 

A shot of rum is very cheap, not more than $2US in local bars. Usually it is served with a chaser such as energy drinks, natural juice or just water and lime. 

Unfortunately Appleton and Wray and Nephew have been bought up by Campari, an Italin company making the Jamaican made rum not Jamaican owned. 

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Beer - Red Stripe is a local beer that uses local cassava as its starch input. The flavor is very nice, and served ice-cold very refreshing, no wonder the beer is dubbed the coolest beer in the world. It is a pale lager filled in brown 0,3l glass bottles, that used to be used as medicine bottles in pharmacies. If you like dark beer go for the Dragon, a local stout, or the Firespit for a slightly different taste. It is a sweet, heavy dark stout beer. Guinness Export and heineken are the two other most common beers. When ordering a beer you will often be asked whether you want it hot or cold, meaning out of the fridge or room temperature as many Jamaicans prefer to have their dark beers “hot” and beer (lager) cold. 

Blue Mountain Coffee:

Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee is considered to be one of the most expensive varieties in the world, largely sold to Japan. The Blue Mountains are the tallest mountains in Jamaica, with its peak lying at 2300m / 7400ft. Blue Mountain coffee only gets its name once grown in the altitude 900 - 1500m / 3000 - 5000 ft in the Blue Mountain range on the east side of the island. Blue Mountain coffee has been grown in Jamaica since 1728 when coffee was first introduced to the island. It is an Arabica coffee with a sweet hue, easy to consume without added sugar, contains vitamins and nutrients which makes it beneficial for health for daily consumption and is grown in nutrient-rich and volcanic soil. The Area is blessed with its own microclimates and significantly cooler temperatures due to its foggy and moist cloud forests