The Caribbean Cuisine- History

The earliest inhabitants of the Caribbean were hunter gatherers who emigrated from South America. During the 1400s, they were replaced by indigenous farmers and fishermen called Taino. They relied on starchy vegetables such as corn, boniatos, malanga, and sweet potatoes, and yucca, as their staple carbohydrates.  As master fishermen, they also gathered grouper, red snapper, tuna, and shrimp as their main protein sources. When times were tough, they relied on ducks, turtles, snakes, and small rodents to supplement their diet.  Some popular fruits native to the region were papaya, coconuts, avocados, pineapple, and guava.

When Christopher Columbus arrived in 1942, the Taino Indians died from measles, smallpox, and from forced slavery. The Spanish came to dominate Cuba, Jamaica, Puerto Rico and Hispaniona (currently the Dominican Republic and Haiti).  The English, French, and Dutch, conquered other Islands in the Caribbean during the next 200 years.   European conquistadores who arrived from 1500 to 1800s heavily influenced culinary traditions as exemplified by Cocina criolla, or Creole cooking.  This type of cooking has strong Spanish and African roots and describes traditional native cuisine in the Caribbean.  Furthermore, the slave trade influenced the region’s agricultural crops by expanding labor, which introduced beans, rice, other citrus fruits, and sugar cane. The slaves from West Africa introduced yams and okra, as well as new spices for hot pepper sauces.

Taino Indians

Popular Cuban Foods & Snacks

Sofrito:  sauce used as a base for many traditional Cuban dishes such as ropa vieja and picadillo. It is made with green pepper, onion, garlic, oregano, and black pepper fried in olive oil.

Empanadas: chicken or meat turnovers eaten as lunch or afternoon snacks

Mariquitas: the Cuban version of potato chips, Mariquitas are thinly sliced plantain chips.

Maduros: sweet fried plantains

Congri: is the combination of white rice and black beans. Another name is Moors and Christians due to their Spanish influence.

Pastelitos: flaky turnovers filled with meat, cheese, and/or guava.

Café con leche: very strong espresso coffee with warm milk.

Flan: a classic dessert in various Latin American countries, it is a caramel flavored custard.

Typical Cuban Entrée

Cuban Pork Steak    

Pork steak seasoned overnight with salt, onion, cumin, pepper, crushed garlic, bay leaves, and sour orange juice.  Often served with congri and maduros.  See complete recipe at Latin Kitchen 

Healthy Cuban Recipe:  

See full Picadillo recipe at Latin Kitchen

Sources

Fleetwood J, Filippelli M. The Caribbean, Central and South American Cookbook: tropical cuisines steeped in history. Anness Publishing Ltd. 2010. Pg 8-51.

The Latin Kitchen website. http://thelatinkitchen.com/ Accessed on March 18, 2014

Caribbean Taino Indians. http://www.floridalosttribes.com/taino.html. Accessed April 6, 2014.