An authentic Bajan Experience includes Barbados’ Cuisine. Authentic, easy to prepare at home and rich in flavour. Barbados’ food is inspired by our multicultural heritage - As a former British colony, our delicacies have English and Irish influences, West African, East Indian and Taino. While many of our favourite dishes including Puddin’ n’ Souse and Cou cou & Flying Fish emerged from the resourcefulness of our people, others have developed over time to rise to the top of a Bajan list of top 10 favourite eats. Make sure you try them all on your next visit.
1. A house-hold and Sunday favourite is Rice and Peas. Originating from the Ghanian rice-based meal called Waakye, it is a dish of cooked rice and beans eaten for breakfast or lunch. The Bajan version is made with white rice and sometimes served with beef stew, chicken or Curried Goat (a dish which originates from the Indian population who arrived in the West Indies after emancipation). Rice and Peas is often made with field peas, blackened eyed peas, split peas or any legume found in your kitchen.
In some kitchens, they begin by boiling the peas with garlic and pimento seeds. The dish is seasoned with thyme, coconut milk, onions, ginger and scallions. This dish shows how different groups merged customs and cultures to create something new.
2. Rice and Peas may be a traditional Sunday meal, but Puddin’ n’ Souse is reserved for Saturdays. Souse is a pork product that originated during the days of slavery. At the time, the Enslaved Africans were only provided with the unwanted pork cuts to eat and utilised their ingenuity to create the meal. As such, it originally included the use of the pigs’ feet, ears and even tongue. However, today a lot of lean pork meat is used instead. The pudding, on the other hand, is made with grated sweet potato, thyme, marjoram, chives, salt, sugar, a pinch of salt and butter. Most Bajans get their Puddin’ n’ Souse from a seller in their neighbourhood. However, you can try it yourself at the Village Bar at Lemon Arbour, a popular restaurant in the St. John countryside.
3. Most people have heard of macaroni pie but Bajan Macaroni Pie is not your boxed mac and cheese! Customarily created with a cheesy crust, herbs and spices and our infamous hot sauce, it is a delightful dish beloved by most that try it. You can try it yourself at home using four cups of grated cheddar cheese, one cup of evaporated milk, one-third cup of ketchup, one teaspoon of yellow mustard, one small grated onion and a beaten egg. After cooking your macaroni you proceed to add all of the ingredients above before pouring it into a greased pan, adding more cheese as a topping and putting it to bake. Bajan Mac Pie can be served as a main dish, side or sometimes a late-night snack, it can be found in almost every restaurant in Barbados!
4. Who doesn’t enjoy warm soup in the evening? For a more sophisticated yet wholesome dish, a Bajan Chicken Soup has sometimes considered a Saturday meal. It takes slightly longer than others to prepare, yet is easy to do on your own. Standard peas used are yellow split peas or lentils, as they cook faster. You then work on your ‘ground provisions’ which range from green bananas, sweet potato and more. Onions, pumpkin and herbs are set aside to be added later. Bajans who prefer a more meaty soup tend to use chicken breast and thighs. Don’t forget to add your dumplings!
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. Bajan Fish Cakes are a household delight. This treat has Asian origins, but they are definitely spiced to suit a Bajan palette. You can eat fishcakes on their own or between a Bajan salt-bread, referred to as a ‘bread and two’. A ‘salt bread is a non-sweet roll of bread, usually white bread. To make fishcakes, you need onions, flour, one boneless salted cod, hot pepper, parsley or other seasonings of your choice. The fish is boiled twice, flaked and added to a mixture of flour and seasonings until a batter is formed, which you simply fry afterwards! A restaurant finger food or everyday snack, fishcakes are also paired with another Bajan sweet treat: bakes.
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. Bakes can be described as a deep-fried cross between a pancake and a muffin. They usually consist of simple ingredients like flour, oats, sugar, cinnamon and spices of your choice. They are better for breakfast, but Bajans enjoy them at any time of the day.
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Black cake or rum cake is a must-have for any Bajans during Christmas. The holiday feeling is simply not the same without it. A combination of dried fruits, nuts and of course, rum, with a slice of Bajan Black Cake there may be no need for wine! Making Bajan Black Cake is still considered a family tradition, but some families are too busy to make their own; fortunately many of our bakeries such as Nicholl’s Bakery, Purity and more make a traditional rum-cake for everyone to enjoy.
8. Eighth on our list is a Bajan cutter. The first thing needed for a cutter is a salt-bread of the white and fluffy variety, although for persons concerned about health whole-wheat bread produces the same great taste. Your cutter is similar to a sandwich but ten times better. Normally served hot, a cutter with ham, chicken liver, fishcakes or fish will melt in your mouth once you add Bajan hot sauce and spices!
9. Ask any Bajan what their favourite food is, and it will definitely be a dish involving pork; if not puddin’ n’ souse, ham-cutters or pork chops they will tell you there is nothing better than Barbecued Pig-Tails. Pig-tails can be found on the Barbados street food scene on roadside grills all around the island, they can be bought at any of our major festivals and can even be found every day in some local supermarkets (Carlton in Black Rock). Bajans are experts at preparing pig-tails-your holiday is not complete without this treat.
10. We saved the best for last: Cou Cou and Flying Fish is the national dish of Barbados. The cou cou is made from stirring cornmeal and okra with a very precise technique. Some say the homemade version is better, but you can still find yummy Cou Cou and Flying Fish in our restaurants.
This list represents the top ten Bajan meals to have, but of course, there are many more. From Macaroni pie, Puddin’ n’ Souse, Fish Cakes to Flying Fish these meals which represent our Bajan tradition, heritage and flavour should not be missed!