6 Must Haves for your Perfect Caribbean Cuisine!

Recreating your favorite Caribbean meal is not just preparing the kind of meat you miss. We can't just get some goat, add salt and pepper and expect to have that feeling of being back home in our grandmother's kitchen. Instead, we absolutely NEED the key ingredients that make Caribbean cuisines just that, Caribbean. I'm gonna bring you into a typical Caribbean kitchen so that you will know what seasonings and ingredients MUST be in your cabinet.

Vinegar

Before preparing any meal involving meat, vinegar is the best and most common go-to when cleaning these various kinds of meat. Vinegar is very acidic in nature and is able to remove the bacteria that comes with all this meat we love so much. Also, when preparing fish, it's perfect to get rid of the raw smell that may take over your kitchen.

Scotch Bonnet Pepper

This is the ingredient that truly makes any Caribbean cuisine tasty and spicy! Caribbean cuisines are best known for how spicy they are and all credit is owed to this ingredient. Be careful with this one guys, a little goes a long way! Once it's in, there's no turning back.

Escallion

This ingredient is often referred to as the cousin of onions. As a result, it is often used as a replacement for onions for individuals who do not want an overpowering taste of onion in their dish. It gives the same great taste without the disadvantage of crying while cutting it. It is used in preparing meat, soups and even when making rice and peas.

Thyme

With this ingredient, a little goes a long way. This is a herb that can be used fresh (green) or dried. In most cases, for Caribbean dishes, it is used dried. The small endings are stripped from the stems and sprinkled in the food when seasoning. It is very important in bringing out the intensity of the other ingredients.

Ginger

This is very essential to completing a Caribbean meal. It is used in meals as well as natural drinks that they may make. This, too, has an overbearing taste and should be used in small portions. The most common disadvantage when using ginger, is in curried chicken or curried goat and mistaking it for a piece of meat. This has broken many hearts, so I suggest you blend it.

Spicy Ginger

Browning

Caribbean meat is ALL about the color! Dishes are often criticized on the color of their meat despite the taste. Sometimes the lack of color can even turn a person from tasting it. Browning has very little taste when used in dishes and offers a lot of color. It is usually solely used in meat, however, seeing that we live in a country of canned peas, the usual color of rice and peas is not always achieved. A little drop of browning gives it the perfect color. Again, a little goes a long way!

All these ingredients offer a lot of flavor using only a little bit. It is very budget sufficient and they last forever if stored properly. Don't resort to salt and pepper! Broaden your spice cabinet and get that real Caribbean taste!