Why Buying Organic Doesn’t Need To Cost The Earth

Whenever I talk about buying organic food the first concern most people have is how expensive it is, however, shopping and cooking organically can be done more cheaply than you may think. The truth is that it does require organization, creativity and lifestyle changes, but these changes have the potential to make you healthier and … Continue reading Why Buying Organic Doesn’t Need To Cost The Earth

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Recipe of the Day: Jamaican Jerk Seasoning

Jamaican Jerk Seasoning Recipe

We all love some good Jamaican Jerk food, whether its chicken, pork, fish, shrimp, etc.

Jerk just adds a whole new flavor to your meat. You can find Jerk Seasonings almost anywhere around the world, some authentic, some are not, but if you want to guarantee that you are using the best Jerk spice on your meat is to make your own.

Today we give you a quick and easy recipe to always have Jerk Seasoning on hand. Check it out below.

Ingredients for Jerk Seasoning Recipe

  1. 2 tablespoons dried minced onion
  2. 2 1/2 teaspoons dried thyme
  3. 2 teaspoons ground allspice
  4. 2 teaspoons ground black pepper
  5. 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  6. 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
  7. 1/2 teaspoon salt
  8. 2 tablespoons vegetable oiI

Directions for Jerk Seasoning Recipe

In a small bowl, stir together the dried onion, thyme, allspice, ground black pepper, cinnamon, cayenne pepper, and salt. Coat meat lightly with oil, then rub seasoning onto meat.

Enjoy

 

Re-blogged from ReCaFo:

JamaFo Jamaican Food

We all love some good Jerk food, whether its chicken, pork, fish, shrimp, etc., Jerk just adds a whole new flavor to your meat. You can find Jerk Seasonings almost anywhere around the world, some authentic, some are not, but if you want to guarantee that you are using the best Jerk spice on your meat is to make your own. Today we give you a quick and easy recipe to always have Jerk Seasoning on hand. Check it out below.

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons dried minced onion

  • 2 1/2 teaspoons dried thyme

  • 2 teaspoons ground allspice

  • 2 teaspoons ground black pepper

  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

  • 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oiI

Directions

In a small bowl, stir together the dried onion, thyme, allspice, ground black pepper, cinnamon, cayenne pepper, and salt. Coat meat lightly with oil, then rub seasoning onto meat.

Enjoy

Let us know what you think about your homemade Jerk Seasoning?…

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Jamaican Gungo Peas Soup

Recipe of the Day: Tasty Jamaican Gungo Peas Soup

Tasty Jamaican Gungo Peas Soup

There is no soup like a real Jamaican Gungo Soup.

We all remember the days from our childhood days coming up when mom and dad or grandma and grandpa would cook some rich gungo soup on the weekend and it would be filled with peas.

Today we give you a recipe to cook up your own no matter where you are. Check it out below.

Preparation time: 10m
Cooking time: 30m

Ingredients for Jamaican Gungo Soup

For 6 people

Jamaican Gungo Peas Soup

Jamaican Gungo Peas Soup

  • 2 medium irish potato
  • 1 medium cho-cho
  • 6 cups water
  • 1/2 cup Coconut Milk
  • 2 stalks escallion, crushed
  • 2 sprigs thyme
  • 4 small pimento berries
  • 1 packet Cock Soup Mix
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon Black Pepper
  • 1 can Gungo Peas
  • 1 cup carrots,sliced

Directions for Jamaican Gungo Soup

  1. Peel and dice potatoes and cho-cho, cover with 2 cups water and set aside.

    Jamaican Gungo Peas Soup

    Jamaican Gungo Peas Soup

  2. Bring 4 cups water to a boil and add the diced Irish potatoes and cho-cho.
  3. Add Coconut Milk, escallion, thyme, pimento berries, Cock Soup Mix, salt and Black Pepper, and simmer until potatoes and cho-cho are tender.
  4. Drain Gungo Peas and add to the soup mix along with the sliced carrots.
  5. Lower flame and continue to simmer until soup thickens.
To Serve: Soup should be served hot.
Recipe brought to you by Grace Foods.

JamaFo Jamaican Food

There is no soup like a real Jamaican Gungo Soup. We all remember the days from our childhood days coming up when mom and dad or grandma and grandpa would cook some rich gungo soup on the weekend and it would be filled with peas. Today we give you a recipe to cook up your own no matter where you are. Check it out below.

Preparation time: 10m
Cooking time: 30m

Ingredients

For 6 people ()

  • 2 medium irish potato
  • 1 medium cho-cho
  • 6 cups water
  • 1/2 cup Coconut Milk
  • 2 stalks escallion,crushed
  • 2 sprigs thyme
  • 4 small pimento berries
  • 1 packet Cock Soup Mix
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon Black Pepper
  • 1 can Gungo Gungo Peas
  • 1 cup carrots,sliced

Directions

  1. Peel and dice potatoes and cho-cho, cover with 2 cups water and set aside.
  2. Bring 4 cups water to a boil and add the diced Irish potatoes and cho-cho.
  3. Add Coconut Milk, escallion, thyme, pimento berries, Cock Soup Mix, salt and Black Pepper, and simmer until potatoes and cho-cho are tender.

View original post 78 more words

Jamaican Food: The Jamaican Ackee

This is another element of Jamaica that I would love to share. I absolutely love this fruit and its dishes.

The Ackee is the national fruit of Jamaica

The Ackee is the national fruit of Jamaica

The Ackee is the national fruit of Jamaica. Its name is derived from the West African Akye fufo. It is widely consumed in Jamaica, and Jamaicans are among the only people who eat it. The first evidence of ackee growing in Jamaica was found in the 1700s.

The ackee tree grows eight to fifteen meters tall. It flowers biannually, occasionally more often. The most popular Jamaican dish is known as Ackee and Saltfish (Salted Codfish), but ackee is also combined with callaloo and corned pork, mackerel, bacon or beef for other dishes.

Ackee is such a universal dish, it is even eaten for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. The fruit of the ackee is not edible in its entirety, only the inner, fleshy yellow parts are consumed. The red outer shells are discarded. The presence of hypoglycin A in the immature and over-mature fruit is found in ackee and this makes it poisonous at certain stages in its development, this is why Jamaicans believe that ackee must open naturally to avoid toxicity. It MUST be cooked fully before consumption.

Unripened Ackee Pods

I have two ackee trees in my backyard, so my family and I enjoy ackee whenever the tree blooms, without having to buy any. Ackee trees are very common in Jamaica. After Christmas, the leftover ham from Christmas dinner was always the central meat in most of what we ate until it was all done. One year, my mother combined ackee with ham, and it has been a favorite among my family ever since.

Since I’m all about experimenting, I decided to play with ackee and chicken. I sauteed some chicken breast, along with other seasonings such as sweet peppers (green, yellow, or red), onions, and tomatoes, and behold! Ackee and chicken! I even used leftover jerk chicken from Friday night once to make a Saturday evening dinner. The flavor from the jerk chicken was just absorbed by the ackee and gave it an exquisite taste. I was quite impressed with myself

One of my favourite breakfast dishes: Ackee and Ham with fried dumplings and fried plantains

My mother’s Ackee and Ham with fried dumplings and fried plantains.

Ackee is such a flexible delicacy, and we Jamaicans are very unique with the myriad of ways we consume it. You can eat it with just about any meat, or any starch. For a quick breakfast or lunch, I like to mush the ackee and spread it on two slices of toast or spread it on crackers. It is more often served with fried dumplings for breakfast and boiled dumplings for lunch/dinner. It is also served with starches such as Yams, Potatoes, Dasheen, and Pumpkin.

*****

Check out her book Treasures of Colombia

Treasures of Colombia by Denise Fyffe and Stacey Ann Smith

This book shares some of the delicious cuisine found in Colombia; from empanadas to arepa boyacense, and bandeja paisa to arepa de huevo. Colombian street food is especially important in Colombian culture because it brings people together. They enjoy sitting in groups with family or friends, blocking off the sidewalks and alleyways as they devour tasty morsels of Colombian cuisine steeped in spices and ingredients.

Available at all online book retailers and Amazon.com.

Copyright © 2021, Denise N. Fyffe

 

Take A Bite

This is another element of Jamaica that I would love to share. I absolutely love this fruit and its dishes.

ackee-scaled1-600x448

The Ackee is the national fruit of Jamaica.  Its name is derived from the West African Akye fufo.  It is widely consumed in Jamaica, and Jamaicans are among the only people who eat it. The first evidence of ackee growing in Jamaica was found in the 1700s. The ackee tree grows eight to fifteen metres tall. It flowers biannually, occasionally more often. The most poular Jamaican dish is known as Ackee and Saltfish (Salted Codfish), but ackee is also combined with callaloo and corned pork, mackerel, bacon or beef for other dishes. Ackee is such a universal dish, it is even eaten for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.The fruit of the ackee is not edible in its entirety, only the inner, fleshy yellow parts are consumed. The red outer shells are discarded. The presence of…

View original post 438 more words

Jamaican Blue Moutain coffee

Recipe of the Day: Jamaican Coffee Yogurt Shake

Coffee is a household beverage in Jamaica, just as it is in America. Many people, especially the older generations make coffee a part of their daily routine and our Blue Mountain Coffee which comes from the island’s highest peak is among the best in the world. Today we add a twist to your morning coffee with some yogurt. Check out the recipe below for Jamaican Coffee Yogurt Shake.

Preparation time: 10m
Cooking time: 0m

Ingredients

For 1 person ()

  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 1 teaspoon Instant Coffee
  • 1/2 cup plain unflavoured yogurt
  • 1 cup soda water
  • 6 whole ice cubes
  • 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon powder

Directions

  1. Combine all ingredients except ice cubes in a blender.
  2. Blend adding the ice cubes one at a time, until smooth.

JamaFo Jamaican Food

Coffee is a household beverage in Jamaica, just as it is in America. Many people, especially the older generations make coffee a part of their daily routine and our Blue Mountain Coffee which comes from the island’s highest peak is among the best in the world. Today we add a twist to your morning coffee with some yogurt. Check out the recipe below.

Preparation time: 10m
Cooking time: 0m

Ingredients

For 1 person ()

  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 1 teaspoon Instant Coffee
  • 1/2 cup plain unflavoured yogurt
  • 1 cup soda water
  • 6 whole ice cubes
  • 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon powder

Directions

  1. Combine all ingredients except ice cubes in a blender.
  2. Blend adding the ice cubes one at a time, until smooth.

via Grace Foods

Visit us at jamafo.com.

Irie

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jamaican bammy

Recipe of the Day: Jamaican Bammy

The Bammy is a popular Jamaican starch that is well known because it goes great with the national dish, Ackee and Saltfish. Today we give the extra simple recipe for this side dish, it will be the easiest thing you have ever made in your life, not even water has this few ingredients.

JamaFo Jamaican Food

The Bammy is a popular Jamaican starch that is well known because it goes great with the national dish, Ackee and Saltfish. Today we give the extra simple recipe for this side dish, it will be the easiest thing you have ever made in your life, not even water has this few ingredients (lol). Check it out below.

Ingredients

For 1 Dozen(s) ()

  • 2 pound(s) cassava
  • 1 teaspoon(s) salt

Bammy Directions

Peel and grate cassava.  Place it in a muslin cloth, wring out and discard the juice.

Add salt to the cassava flour and mix together.

Heat bammy griddle or fry pan over moderate heat.  Place about 1 cup of the mixture in a bammy ring on the heated griddle, if not, place on a greased shallow baking or fry pan.  Press down on the mixture to flatten.  A regular bammy should be at least (6″) or 15 cm in diameter, or…

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red stripe beer

Jamaican Food: Vacation in Negril – Jerk Chicken, Curry Goat and Soursop

Ackee and saltfish? Jerk chicken?

I was very excited about these Jamaican dishes. I had no idea what ackee was, and did not know what spices are in the jerk seasoning. Aside from all kinds of drinks with Jamaican rum, I set it as my mission to find soursop juice. Another ingredient I did not know.

The common carbs on a plate is of course rice and peas ─ rice and usually kidney beans cooked with coconut milk. We were at a supermarket in Negril. Those kidney beans looking beans were labeled as “red peas.”

During our five-day trip, I tried jerk chicken from five different places and jerk pork from two. Jerk seasoning is the

Jerk chicken from Margaritaville at the Montego Bay airport.

Jamaican style barbecue rub. Some are spicier than others. You can find jerk pork, jerk conch and other grilled meat with jerk seasoning, but jerk chicken is the most popular. Be sure you look for street food stands with a grill made out of an oil barrel. Highly likely that’s where you would find the best jerk chicken of your trip.

If you happen to stay in Grand Palladium resort, the jerk chicken that comes with paella from the Jerk Hut at Sunset Cove is probably the best you would get in the resort. Check their hours so that you don’t miss it. The jerk chicken at the second floor restaurant Xaymaica was good. Don’t get it from the Poseidon restaurant at Sunset Cove! (In fact, don’t eat there…) If you try jerk chicken from the buffet, chances are what you have does not do this famous dish justice.

The best jerk chicken we had was from a stand at a parking lot across the street from Rick’s Cafe. Our tour guide said this guy

won a national “jerk off” jerk chicken contest before.

We got an order of jerk chicken for six dollars. Aaron said it was the best six dollars we spent over there. It was so good that I forgot to take a picture. The chicken was so tender, moist and well-seasoned. Nothing beats grilling over charcoal. That smoky taste made the chicken so much better. All the jerk chicken we tried in our resort could not compare. His jerk seasoning is better than all other ones that I tried.

The flavor was one of the biggest differences from this street food jerk chicken and what we had at the hotel. The jerk spice blended together very well. Normally if you let a sauce or marinade sit overnight or longer, the flavors come together. The sauce of the jerk chicken that we had at the Poseidon restaurant of the resort tasted like they just whipped everything together and brushed it on the chicken.

curry goat

Curry goat is another must-eat. I only got to try it once though, at the Xaymaica restaurant of the Grand Palladium resort. I thought goat would be tough, but surprisingly it was more tender than I expected. I was happy with what I got.

The national dish of Jamaica is ackee and saltfish. Ackee is a local fruit that kind of looks like scrambled eggs in this dish. I again only tried it once at the same restaurant. I was not impressed. The saltfish, supposedly dried codfish, was very very dried. I

was convinced that the hotel cooking did not do this national dish justice.

From my search prior to the trip, I read about this soursop drink but never saw it in the resort. I asked our super nice waiter at the Xaymaica restaurant. He said he was in fact going back home that weekend and would be picking soursop and making soursop juice with his family. That confirmed my mission searching for soursop was not crazy and made me want to try it even more.

When I saw soursop juice in a bottle at the supermarket we stopped in at Negril, I was so excited! I did not quite know what to

expect. This is what I read online: “It tastes like a combination of strawberry and pineapple, with a hint of creaminess and sour citrus.” That really does not help. And the store bought juice did not taste like what this description said either. The drink I bought was sweet and a bit thick. If you have ever tried the Japanese uncarbonated soft drink, Calpis, then you would have an idea. Calpis was what the store bought soursop drink tasted like. The consistency was in between Calpis and Asian yogurt drink.

Red Stripe is the most common beer in Jamaica. Many people buy Blue Mountain coffee or Appleton Estate rum as souvenirs. I personally did not like the almost whiskey taste of Jamaican rum. A friend of mine who used to work at this coffee shop for coffee connoisseurs said the Blue Mountain coffee that I bought from the resort was very good.

Near and Far

Ackee and fish? Jerk chicken? I was very excited about these Jamaican dishes. I had no idea what ackee was, and did not know what spices are in the jerk seasoning. Aside from all kinds of drinks with Jamaican rum, I set it as my mission to find soursop juice. Another ingredient I did not know.

牙買加必吃的當地菜色充滿我看不懂的食材或調味,像是阿開木煮鹹魚ackee and saltfish(又叫西非荔枝果) 或者牙買加香料雞jerk chicken。

View original post 796 more words

Recipe of the Day: Jamaican Yam Salad

The yam is a popular root foot found all over the Caribbean. This starch comes in different types and varieties and is a popular food all around the world.

However, yams and cassava in Jamaican were raised to fame when track star Usain Bolt’s talent was claimed to be related to yam and cassava consumption.

Today, we offer you a great Jamaican Yam Salad recipe to accompany your Sunday dinner. You may not get as fast as Usain Bolt, but it is a start.

Recipe of the Day: Jamaican Yam Salad

Preparation time: 10m
Cooking time: 15m

Ingredients

For 6 people

  • 2 pounds yellow yam
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 pound string beans
  • 1/4 pound carrots
  • 1 small onion
  • 1 small red sweet pepper
  • 1 small green sweet pepper
  • 1 can Green Peas
  • 4 tablespoons Mayonnaise
  • 4 large lettuce leaves

Directions

  1. Peel, wash and cut yellow yam into cubes.
  2. Bring water to a boil in a sauce pot, add yam and salt and boil until fork tender.
  3. Cut string beans into three or four pieces, peel and dice carrots, blanch vegetables.

  4. Chop onions and peppers, add yam, vegetables, Green Peas, Mayonnaise and toss lightly.
  5. Put the salad to chill in a refrigerator for about 30 minutes.To Serve: Arrange on a bed of lettuce and then serve.

Enjoy.

JamaFo Jamaican Food

The yam is a popular root foot found all over the Caribbean. This starch comes in different types and varieties and is a popular food all around the world. However, yams in Jamaican were raised to fame when track star Usain Bolt’s talent was claimed to be related to yam consumption. Today we offer you a great yam recipe to accompany your Sunday dinner. You may not get as fast as Usain Bot, but it is a start.

Preparation time: 10m
Cooking time: 15m

Ingredients

For 6 people ()

  • 2 pounds yellow yam
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 pound string beans
  • 1/4 pound carrots
  • 1 small onion
  • 1 small red sweet pepper
  • 1 small green sweet pepper
  • 1 can Green Peas
  • 4 tablespoons Mayonnaise
  • 4 large lettuce leaves

Directions

  1. Peel, wash and cut yellow yam into cubes.
  2. Bring water to a boil in a sauce pot, add yam and salt and boil until fork tender.
  3. Cut string beans into three or four pieces, peel and dice carrots, blanch vegetables.
  4. Chop onions…

View original post 59 more words