by Tom Bastek
Last updated: 6:00 AM ET, Thu October 2, 2014
Photo courtesy of Thinkstock
The Caribbean is a place full of flavors that are only now starting to become explored. If you are traveling to St. Lucia or planning a destination wedding there, you should definitely try to incorporate some of those elements into your cuisine; you won't be sorry. The influence of French, British and Indian cuisine is apparent in the offerings here and the local spices are heavily utilized. Here are a few of the tastes to look forward to on your next trip down.
Plantains
Plantains as well as bananas are extremely abundant on the island, so you will see them served in almost every meal. Celebrity Chef Nina Compton, the Culinary Ambassador to St. Lucia, used the plantains to help thicken her sauce. "For the gluten free, this is a great way to thicken a meal without using flour," she suggests.
Chef Nina fried her plantains to caramelize the outside of the fruit, tossed it right into the pot to absorb the flavors of the broth, and then pureed to make the sauce. It is not uncommon to see plantain sauces, chips, or mashed or baked plantains as a side and sometimes as a main dish.
Local Fish / Shellfish
Red Snapper, Mahi-mahi, Grouper, Dorado and Tuna are all brought in normally right off the boat each morning. The Yellow Fin Tuna is typically used for Sushi but the rest is found served every way known possible. Just in the four days I was there I had fried Grouper, seared Red Snapper, grilled Dorado, and salt fish floats (sandwiches). There are abundances of conch, lobsters (without claws), crabs, clams, mussels and shrimp all caught locally and served a variety of ways. I had a Seafood Casserole one night that contained all of the above and was out of this world.
Coconuts
"Coconuts are sold for about $2 American a piece, both dried and fresh," Jenni Killam of Spices Cooking Studio told me. "It might seem like a lot, but there is nothing in comparison to fresh Coconut." Jenni went on to tell me about how coconut water comes from the fresh coconuts and the milk comes from dried coconuts.
You will find coconut in your curries, baked goods, the milk in your rice and the water in your drinks. And the application doesn't stop there. The coconut oil can be used for cooking, for cosmetics and more. Incidentally, if you are looking for something totally awesome to do for between $55 and $75, check out Spices Cooking Studio. Best time, best view, best rum punch. Wow!
Green Fig and Salt Fish
If I don't mention the national dish of St. Lucia, I am sure to be banned from the island! Green Figs and Salt fish is a traditional meal of Green Figs (which are basically unripe bananas) and salted fish that is sautéed with onions and peppers. The unripe banana is not sweet so it really serves as a starch in the meal. And the salt fish isn't as salty as you think. You actually rinse or boil the fish to remove the majority of the salt prior to incorporating it. Give this one a try!
Chef Nina said it best, "The Asian Cuisine is big, and everyone knows the French Cuisine, the Italian Cuisine. The Caribbean Cuisine is finally getting its time to shine. There are such great flavors that come from the Caribbean, and everything we make is with love."
I had my fair share of cuisine in my four days on the island, and I would definitely say the most consistently used ingredient is, indeed, love.
For the latest travel news, updates and deals, subscribe to the daily TravelPulse newsletter.
Topics From This Article to Explore
