islands magazine jamaica food

8/14/2019 Islands Magazine Jamaica Food

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78 M arch 2 0 0 8 i sl a n d s. c o m

Distinctive tastespermeate the island,

rom dishes at DevonHouse in Kingston(below) to the jerk

spices at stands alongBoston Bay (right).

t lavor f � In a ve-course

a New York chef coher Caribbean heritaspicy meats, secret cosnapper and, of cour

chicken with lotsauce. Too much?

story by Rm Gehrm photography

http://islands.com/freeissue



M arch 2 0 0 8 i sl a n d s. c o m

Felici,a large, tall jamaican woman, ee over wth mzg gty eveope me herrm, my tff whte chef’ cot crkg the embrce.

“Thk you for techg u bout our foo,” he ,mg. she w jut oe of my tuet of Wet iecet — moty Jmc — who took my cookg cehere new York o how to prepre trto me.

i buhe thke her, thkg bout her wor.“Our foo,” he h . But the truth w tht, oute of my cetr home of Tr, i w much of eophyte the ext cook whe t cme to the foo of the other .Mot of wht i kew of Jmc cme from chhoo vt

whe my Tr fther took me to vt h coet fre,lo Cmpbe, who ve Brooky. M lo w Jmc h, ke hm, come to amerc the 1950 for euc-to the hope of better fe. Whe the two got together,there w wy fet of curre, tewe beef, rce pe, weet bre of ome k. Mybe there

wou be ome gger beer or Re strpe formy fther. The y w puctute by rp-reCrbbe pto ou ughter.

Ther cmrere me me tertweTr Jmc o coey tht, cotet

wth my oce-remove kowege, i ever fetthe ee to vt M lo’ home.

i w jote out of my memore everyoe begeprtg the ktche-croom t the e of c. Fec ce out to me, “Oe ove!” ug the Jmc yg.

“Oe ove!” i were, rg my h wve.Wtchg her pper to the eevtor ow the h,

i kew tht orer to ve up to my tuet’ mrto,i h to chge my wy. Ther beef my bty to be thembor of the rger Crbbe me me og to kow more bout other tht me up my Wet i her-tge — my rt top h to be Jmc.

First Course: Patties & Patoisi arrive at the kingston airport eager for my

rt tte of Jmc to exp my kowege of Crb-be cue. My go: tke bck to my cookg tuet thecury eece of the ther forefther ce home. im coet tht my Wet i hertge w gve me etréehere, but whe i meet my gue, Crey de, who wccompy me o th weekog veture, i m hke by

A culinary tour oJamaica includesDevon House (cheNorma Shirley

pictured at let),Strawberry Hill(above) and thecoee-rich BlueMountains (below).





82 M arch 2 0 0 8 i sl a n d s. c o m

The Jamaican menuon any given dayeatures (clockwise)resh snapper, peppershrimp, sweet rumcake rom the bakery,and market ruit.





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h form, o-choo Brth emeor. a we he rou Kgto Hrbor,Crey recte tht t “the eveth rg-et tur hrbor the wor” propertour guee. i o potey ook outthe wow t the treet-foo veortht ook o ke thoe Tr. They’reeg gree or “jey” cocout — boughtfor ther coo wter but o-me for thergetou eh — ce homemefrom gger cocout. Peut veor

re eg ut wrppe rrow ppercoe roe tghty o the ty, peppery ut c be tppe rght to the mouth.The frut t i ee brg to m thefrut i c’t get the stte.

“My fvorte frut pommerac — o you hve tht here?” i k.

“Pommerc,” Crey mue. “Whtoe t ook ke?”

i uch to mte exp-to of the pkh frut wth whte ehtht tte omethg ke trwberry. a iform t hpe wth my h, he uey burt out, “Otaheite ppe?!”

“Ye!” i y, “Tht’ t re me. CptBgh brought t from the south Pcc.”

For the rt tme, Crey geuey me.“Tht’ re ce frut!” he excm, wetrt to tk bout wht ee Bgh broughtover, cug brefrut, trchy treefrut ue g tpe to fee the ve

who were Crey’ cetor , ter, theeture Et i who were me.

The ce h broke by the tme we pu up to devo Houe,the te-19th-cetury ette of Jmc’ rt bck more ow to moumet. after tour of the houe-mueum wth t we pk oor cer-meg tque

wrrobe, o ke thoe my fther’ houe Tr, wetop t the Brck Ove, ptere wht w the ette’ oktche. Here we p by weet rum cke poe, ee,yrupy cke me from grte cv. We orer beef ptte— ttg trter to the comg y of ugece — etthem o tree-he bech the courtyr. They re bg oftb hve ky crut. The pcy met g goo hot, but ot hot eough to top me from gobbg me

ow ve or x bte, che wth ce-co Re strpe. stg bruh-g the ptry crumb from our cothe,

we he bck to the cr for our jourey to strwberry H, mouttop bou-tque hote bout 40 mute orth. a

Throughout theisland, vendorssend a smoky sirencall o Jamaicanjerk roasting onpimiento grills.

we p through the cty up the herece to Bob Mrey everywhere — hme gve to everythg from corer to

Th e to cuo of regge, Tmore foo. Crey te me he v ow, h guge h ee to ghtthrough ecrpto ecote to trme foo re ce our repectve uertoe of our ey coverto pemkg feow fok — oe througow the tory of our coectve cury he

Second Course: Strong Drin the peaks, the next morning d

coo, beyg the tee u bkg gre of feet beow. Crey t cro thte whe i vor cup of Bue MoutTver Coffee Ette, jut orth of here.




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were me up of rom tte,urey Bue Mout coffee woube key prt of Jmc’. Th brew’tct vor ote re compex mot utty, bor from berry owy mture the coo mout mt hvg hgh ugr cotet.

after brekft we w trek further up to the BueMout to O Tver, where aex dorothy Twymgrow coffee be, proceg hrvetg the tr-to wy, meg by h. Th, combe wth mte

re ette for growg be — O Tver grow ther cof-fee t bout 4,000 feet of eevto — me the coffee cret for roughy $50 to $60 per pou the U.s.

if you o’t kow wht you re ookg for, O Tver,hue o oe of the my curve of wg zzy-g mout ro, ey to m. The uumg bu-g h o g, aex te me, “Tht’ how we ke t. if

you rey wt to u, you w.”From e, the rch me of rotg coffee wft

through the wow to the coo mout r. aex te medorothy rotg be m, to-orer btche. Com-g oute to greet me, dorothy vte me bck , i

wtch he tte cup of coffee brewe from the behe h jut rote. she oe th wth ech orer, ug oy the mot ethetcy perfect be for the premumcoffee. The cre be wth crck or other mperfec-to re t ube o to few oc returt.

dorothy gve me cup of jut-rote rk coffee. Therom hey. it’ vevety o the togue, weetee ot

wth ugr but wth hoey from aex’ bee, whch re keptto pote the coffee ower. He’ rther eterprg.lter, i tte coffee queur he mke wth h be Jmc’ fmou appeto Ette premum rum (mog other). i cover more ree, rt vero of them-mrket br ke T Mr.

i p my coffee tke cooke from the pte hyy offere by dorothy. “We got thee epecy for you. They re from Tr.” i bbe them whe ookg t thebook of ette photogrph wth aex. i the ext room,Crey the Twym’ grow o, dv, re chttg bout th tht. it’ ot uke lime t o fre’houe o my fther’ . i wh i cou ger here th ey hoptty, but oo Crey gve ght o tocte tht t’ tme to he bck ow the moutto Kgto the ext eg of our trp.

Third Course: A Fish Between Friends we journey out of kingston and head southwest

towr the hg vge of Hehre By, kow for tbech-e foo t br. it extr top o ouroger jourey. Boto By, coere to be the true home of

So many avors,so little time.Clockwise romright: jerked porkloin at the SugarMill, pumpkin soupat Norma’s, coeeat Old Tavern.




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Ater fve coursescovering the gas-

tronomic gamut, arespite on one o

Jamaica’s beachesis in order.

� DETAILS FLYdirectly to Kingston or Montego

the most nonstop ights rom U.S. cities. airjama

rom Burke’s Transport and Tours rom $175 aroun

925-9448 BATHE in the sulur springs at Firewater

parish o St. Ann. BUYcrats like dolls, wood-carv

baskets and more at Kingston or Montego Bay cra

or U.S. dollars in resorts. LEARN more at visitjam

� ROOMS AROUND THE ISLAND Part o the Is

luxury properties, Strawberry Hill in the Blue M

in the traditional Georgian style. Yoga classes

ully prepared organic, local oods provide a r

rooms and houses rom $660; strawberryhillres

Jamaica Palace Hotel has a swimming pool sh

is located near the island’s jerk-heritage area i

at $138 with a minimum seven-night stay. jama

� STREET FOOD TO STYLISH EATS Scotchies

Bay oer traditional jerk in a clean, well-organiStop in Ocho Rios is a collection o traditional

rom jerk to curry mannish water (a goat-head s

ruit vendors oer their sweet wares islandwide

Devon House eatures seaood chowder, grilled

creations o Norma Shirley, called Jamaica’s Ju

Fish — snapper, blackn tuna, parrotsh, kingsh and m yet another integral ingredient in the recipe that is J

jerk, et o the orthet hore the prh of Port-, oe of 14 uch tct re of the .

Crey te me tht h, too — prepre myr of wy — yet other tegr greet the recpe tht Jmc. spper, bck tu, prroth, kgh more re rote, teme, fre, jerke, curre or pcke the oc escoviche tye, ug vegr-be mre.

For tte, we’ top for uch t Prey’. at four yer o,Prey’ ewcomer to the cuter of etbhe foo hut the Hehre ecve, but t rey hot pot becuepropretor doette Preergt hot ce prty fromFry fteroo to suy eveg. Toy, weeky, t quet, i wk up to the couter to chooe my h from thefreh ctch ete ce rge cooer. i eect re ppertht i c hve fre, rote or teme. “Fre,” i y, i jothe cook the ktche, ope re wth og gr over moerg pmeto-woo re. Tkg up og cut, thecook crpe the k to mke ure o ce rem themke two t o ether e of the h, to whch he rub pch of t before tog t to vt of bog o.

“Tht’ t?” i k, mze. i Tr, h uuy whe wth emo juce mrte eborte ucece “gree eog,” me of choppe herb grc.

“Tht’ t,” he y, coopg out my h few mute ter hg t over o pte wth e of bmmy, cocout-

mk-oke cv cke tht ook ke crumpet; “fet- v,” weetee corme frtter much ke it zeppole .

i p to my pce t pcc tbe ext to Crey ee heh choe h h teme (whch ctuy mmere) wthpottoe, crrot, okr, co, pepper, grc, t bt of pumpk puree. it rrge o we ptter ke by therge wter crcker tht re o popur here Jmc.

My ow h, crpy oute uccuet wth, ooreuce to pe of boe, i eye Crey’ pte hugry.

“Tte?” he k, cg h eyebrow bt.“do you m?” i’m rey pckg up my fork.“nh, m,” he repo i tuck to bt of h.it ecte yet rm, ke the frehp we’re formg.

Fourth Course: Tableside and Roadsidelater in the car, we pass many vendors selling pan

(brbecue) chcke hog up bg of ery peppere

cryh wth brght re he. Crey te me we re vte tothe home of h fre, chef drre lee, Port atoo, erour ew hote toe’ throw from Boto By, o kow “the home of jerk.” i reze i’m ucky to hve gue keCrey, who ove foo cuture keep compy k.

a Jmc of Chee ecet, drre h worke

JAMAICA

Monteobay

Runawaybay St.Ann

Ocho RiosBeach

Hellshire

amerc the et returt ro we rrve t h home, i ee tht — true— he h me more foo th we c pohomge to oc greet, there tuoc bck tu top recottute oewee) gree wth hbcurey terete , though, re the trt

prepre. There curry got, pe rWhe we et, drre exp the h

et tht the tpe ery every typepce, co scotch-boet pepphe tk, mkg compro to both Trhre Frech cury trg o i my bo exp how th trty the trtog mx tht c combe more th 2te by the Mroo, ecpe ve whoof Port the Bue Mout




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cure w hog met tht w the owy mokeover pmeto-woo re.

after emcpto 1838, the Mroo were to come ow fromthe mout to Bo-to By o Fry eve-g, eg ther mokemet. Toy, jerk tot the etre , but

the eece of true jerk euve mx of pce moke tht hr-corecoo, ke drre,cm bet fou Bo-to By. He recout thete ey, ot jut becuet prt of Jmc orebut o becue he hgrow up th prh,

where there wy htof jerk moke the r.

a he pek, i myef g whg thti cou ty tkg og to the ght, wth theTwym. i ke th mfor h ove of foo

h ove of coutry.“W you come wth

u tomorrow? To Bo-to?” i burt out.

acro from me, Crey brek to we me.“Ye, c you come?”

now drre mebck, excte too. “Ye, ithk i c.” We pe theext hf-hour egottg

whe to meet where we w go the ext y.

True to h wor, drre meet ut our hote the ext morg, together we mke our wy to cuterof he ce “jerk ceter.” it ook

more ke hue of fg owe-to th eprte foo t.Emergg from the cr, we ee b

of rough-ookg me, cothe muge wth boo h. We go to the rg-et of the t, Mckey’, whch

Jamaica (from page 89)

coet to the ro. ateep h ope wy from the bug o oee. Two 10-by-10-footgrte re et e-by-eover the moerg heof pmeto woo, tokeby m weg og-he hove. O topof the grte re qurepece of gvze met

upo whch pork, chcke,uge h zze,

wrppe fo.i ege coer to the

grte, the me te. Peerg over theow w ow theh, i ee m mkg uge, tufg twtg off the kby h. i m the oy cutomer the oy

wom here. The mere cery mue by th

amerc y come tohve ook-ee, i mbegg to fee uey.it cer tht i o ot

beog here.drre te them

qucky pto tht i m chef wrter. Wththt, they o wry.

“she Wet i.Tr,” i her hmy, they vby rex.

Oe m come for- wr wth ome jerk chcke rotebrefrut o pte.

aother we botteof pepper uce, whch i gy tke pour out geerouy.

“Tht too much!” he y, trte.“nh, m,” i repy beg to

et. They wtch coey to ee f i wcough or putter. Whe i o’t, they me broy.

The m wth the pepper uce kf i ke the jerk.

“Yeh, m!” i y, grg bck.

Fifth Course:The Sweetest Tasteas we leave the jerk center,

drre k f we hve tme for oe moretop. i gro, ube to et other bte,but he ure me tht h lagniappe — or wht we fok c “ tteomethg extr” — th oe of the met k. He wt me to meet mter h-pot mker st. a ’ By,

wet of Boto By. a trto rt,

the h pot geou, rg etue by oc herme tht ow hto wm but ot out. We pu oto rt ro buttg the wter. sm

wooe hut re cutere together, cerg er the hore youg m wg chcke wre rou poygo me of bmboo tck tht

w evetuy be h pot.drre c out to oe of the hut,

where qut o m werg h-g cp t e o m too. i mtrouce to Mr. Mck, retre h-erm, ow mter pot-mker. Theboy oute h ppretce.

i gce e the m hut t Mr.Mck, ttg mog wre be bmboo tck. i m reme of my

tuet bck home how i mutfthfuy recor for them i hve eehere. i mut hre the me of mokefrom the roe t where h,jerke met brefrut re owy rotg over pmeto woo re. My

wor mut covey the re t of my fre’ voce tg few feetwy. Through my eye my tuet wee youg me ttg o og coe tohore, tkg brek from mkg hpot, ughg chttg pto,

wth the botte of Re strpe t therfeet the e gtterg beyo.

“Come e, r’,” Mr. Mck y, brekg my thought, rech-g out towr where i t o the

threho. Grpg my outtretcheh rwg me er, he greetme the o wy: “i hope, ow, we reot trger?”

“no, r,” i y, queezg h h.“no, we re ot.” ̂

» bRINg bACKWalkerswoodAllspice Forabout $2 or 2

ounces, you canaord to bring

one o Jamaica’sstaple spices back

home. Allspiceis a mixture oground berrieso the pimiento

tree that createsa savory and

sweet lavor greatwith any dish.

Walkerswood JerkSeasoning is a

must-try as well.Easily the most

authentic versionon the island,the seasoningwas created

ater months oresearch among

the Maroonpeople, who

invented jerk.walkerswood.com

102


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