Latin Caribbean Carnival!

Things are heating up around here. Wouldn’t it be nice to take a trip to the beach? How about for your July cookout celebrations? Let’s go!

Close your eyes for just a minute. Can you hear the beat of the steel drums, see the lavishly costumed islanders move to the calypso rhythm, and feel the cool island breeze? Delightful, isn’t it?  All we need now is some great food from Winn Meat Company. All this dancing is making me hungry! 

Latin Caribbean cuisine is an amazing blend of tropical tastes and multicultural influences. It is a celebration of aromatic, sweet and tart, piquant and mild citrus flavors. To understand and appreciate it, you must first understand the history behind the food.
Latin Caribbean food is a mixture of cultural influences. Each island has a similar heritage.

• First they were settled by native tribes.
• Then the islands were battled over and owned by several European countries. Spain eventually settled Puerto Rico, Cuba and The Dominican Republic.
• Next came the African slaves and indentured servants.
• Then came immigrants from East India and China.

Each island cuisine uniquely evolved with the borrowing and blending of foods and cooking styles. Consequently, you’ll find common products, produce and cooking styles throughout the islands.
Much of the produce we enjoy today is native to the Caribbean. Crops raised by the natives included:

• corn
• yams
• yucca
• peanuts
• guavas
• pineapple
• black-eyed peas
• lima beans

Christopher Columbus arrived in the Caribbean around 1492 and introduced Spanish influences on Latin Caribbean cooking. Other Europeans followed the Spanish in colonizing the islands and brought their culinary trademarks. Some of the ingredients the Spanish and Europeans introduced include:

• coconut
• sugar cane
• chickpeas
• cilantro
• eggplant
• onions
• garlic
• oranges
• limes
• mangoes
• rice
• coffee

All of these foods, as well as Mexican ingredients, are prominent components in typical Latin Caribbean cuisine.

Island Escape

Black-eyed Pea Salad
Lime Vinaigrette
•
Crab & Grilled Pineapple Salad
•
Sterling® Silver Pork Steamship
Jerk Brined & Rubbed
Mango Sauce
•
“Goat Water”
Tomato based stew with goat, breadfruit, papaya and “droppers” (dumplings)
•
Cuban Corn
•
Scotch Bonnet Rice and Pigeon Peas
•
Coconut Crème Brûulé

Jamie Samford
Corporate Chef
Winn Meat Company

Mango Sauce See Recipe

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