The Tainos, the ancient people of Jamaica, preserved meat by mixing peppers, allspice and sea salt, a condiment now known as Jamaican jerk spice. Along with influences from British colonists, African immigrants and others, jerk is one of the focal points of modern Jamaican cuisine.
ackee—vegetable that, after cooking, resembles scrambled eggs; when served with saltfish (cod) it's the national dish
bammy—flat cassava cake
boiled green banana—unripe banana, boiled and salted
bulla—a ginger sweetcake or hard cookie
cow foot soup—cow hooves and vegetables in soup
escoveitch—pickled fish, lightly cooked
festival—a deep-fried, sweet cornbread
Irish moss—gelatinous extract of seaweed which can be mixed with milk, nutmeg, or rum and used as a drink or jelly; said to be an aphrodisiac
janga—small crayfish
jerk—slow-roasted meat prepared with a mixture of pepper, pimento, nutmeg, cinnamon, garlic, scallions, salt, and the cook's secret ingredients
mannish water—sounds like a Muddy Waters tune, but it's actually a soup of goat meat and vegetables
matrimony—dessert of orange segments with crushed apple in cream
mauby—strong drink made from the eponymous tree; tastes like muscular sarsaparilla
patty—spicy ground meat baked in a pastry shell
rice and peas—popular side dish; the peas are kidney beans
run down, run dun—sauce made from coconut cream
Salomon gundy—pickled, spiced herring
saltfish—salted cod
sea grape—shrub found near coastal regions that produces a grape-size, sweet fruit
sorrel—flowering plant from which sweet jams, candies, drinks, and wine are made, often served during the Christmas holidays
More information in our Caribbean section
Back to the main Jamaica page
Jamaica on Wikipedia
More country Destinations
This page modified January 2007

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