Foods Used in Traditional Hispanic Caribbean Cuisine
Starchy Vegetables
- Beans (habichuelas, frijoles, judías, alubias, judias, porotos, and caraotas) Habichuelas in Puerto Rico and Dominican Republic – Frijoles and Judias in Cuba
- Chayote squash (tayota) – Chayote in Puerto Rico and Tayota in Dominican Republic
- Green bananas – boiled and served as a side dish. It could be accompanied by fish and other starchy foods
- Green peas (petit pois, arvejas, or chícharos) Petit Pois in Dominican Republic
- Pigeon peas (guandules or gandules)
- Pumpkin (calabaza or ahuyama) Calabaza in Puerto Rico – Ahuyama in Dominican Republic
- Sweet potato (batata or boniato) Batata in Puerto Rico and Dominican Republic – Boniato in Cuba
- Yautía (taniers) A starchy root vegetable. It’s white to yellow to pale pink, turns mauve-gray or violet when cooked. The taste has been described as a combination of chestnuts and artichoke hearts.
- Yam (ñame)
- Yuca (cassava or mandioca)
Nonstarchy Vegetables
- Broccoli
- Cabbage
- Cucumbers
- Eggplant
- Lettuce
- Okra
- Onions
- String beans (vainitas, habichuelas tiernas, or habichuelas)
- Watercress (berro)
Dairy
- Cheddar cheese (queso de papa)
- Gouda cheese
- White cheese. Also known as queso blanco or queso para freir, this is a firm cheese that doesn’t melt when fried.
- Whole milk
Fruits
- Avocado (aguacate)
- Banana
- Breadfruit (pana or panapen). A large, round green fruit with a rough rind and pale flesh.
- Chirimoya. A heart shaped or oval fruit with white flesh that has a sweet-sour flavor.
- Chico zapote (nispero). Sweet fruit with a flavor similar to maple sugar
- Grapefruit
- Guava (guayaba)
- Mamey. A large, oval football-shaped fruit.
- Mango (mango)
- Orange (china or naranja) China in Puerto Rico and Dominican Republic – Naranja in Cuba
- Papaya (lechoza and/or fruta bomba for Dominicans and Cubans)
- Parcha (maracuyá). Also known as yellow passion fruit, this is a round, green fruit with orange pulp.
- Passion fruit (parcha [chinola, or ceibey). Round or oval fruits with green-orange pulp and sour-sweet flavor.
- Pineapple
- Plantain (plátano). Resembling large, thick-skinned green bananas, plantains are a popular fruit in Caribbean cuisine. When ripened, the outer skin turns yellow with black pigmentation and it is sweet.
- Queneps [ (kenepas, limoncillos, or mamoncillo) Also known as Spanish limes, this fruit appears like green grapes. The sweet yellow flesh is surrounded by a large inedible pit.
- Soursop (guanabana). Deep green heart-shaped fruit with white juicy flesh and a tangy, acidic flavor..
- Star fruit. Unusually shaped fruit with golden yellow skin and crisp juicy flesh.
- Tamarind (tamarindo). Cinnamon-brown pods that contain sticky and tart brown pulp and inedible large brown seeds.
Spices
- Achiote (annatto seeds). Used to impart a yellowish color to rice dishes.
- Adobo. A seasoning made by mixing crushed peppercorns, oregano, garlic, and salt, with olive oil and lime juice or vinegar
- Alcaparrado. Capers and olives in brine that are added to rice dishes and stews.
- Bay leaves. Used in fricassee and other stews.
- Coriander (cilantro)
- Sofrito. Made of tomatoes, garlic, cilantro, peppers and recao (a green leafy vegetable with a pungent, peppery taste), sofrito is the principal condiment used to season stews, beans, and meats.
Meats
- Beef
- Blood sausage (chorizo or morcilla)
- Chicken
- Codfish (bacalao)
- Eggs
- Fried pork rind (chicharrón). A crunchy piece of fat-back pork that is sold in Puerto Rico. Small pieces of chicharrón are used to season rice dishes, especially rice with pigeon peas.
- Oxtail.
- Salami (salchichón)
- Shredded beef (carne ripiada or ropa vienja)
- Tripe (mondongo, tripas, panza, or menudo)
Mixed Dishes
- Arroz con camarones. Rice with shrimp.
- Arroz con pollo. Rice with chicken.
- Asopaos. A soupy rice, vegetable and protein mixture.
- Casabe. Cassava bread.
- Locrio. A dish of mixed rice, beans and meat.
- Kipe. Fried meat patty made of ground beef, bulgur wheat, and spices.
- Maduros. Sweet fried plantain.
- Mafongo. Mashed green plantains with added meats such as pork.
- Mangú. A Dominican dish of green plantains that are boiled and mashed and used in place of bread or cereal for breakfast.
- Pastelón. A Hispanic variation of lasagna that uses slices of fried sweet plantains instead of pasta.
- Pernil. Pork chops and roasted pork shoulder.
- Platanitos en escabeche. Green bananas in a vinegar/oil dressing.
- Serenata. Puerto Rican dish that mixes cod fish (bacalao) with root vegetables.
- Tostones. Twice fried green plantains.
Beverages
- Coffee
- Rum
- Malta, a non-alcoholic beverage made of barley and hops. Often perceived as highly nutritious and iron rich.
- Herbal teas such as chamomile, passiflora, cinnamon, peppermint, ginger, and aloe. Are considered to have medicinal properties, especially among Dominicans.
Desserts
- Dairy desserts such as dulce de leche, flan, majarete, and tembleque.
- Piraguas. Shaved ice cones with syrup flavors such as tamarind, raspberry, pineapple and coconut.
Drago, Lorena. Beyond Rice and Beans: The Caribbean Latino Guide to Eating Healthy with Diabetes. Alexandria, VA: American Diabetes Association;2006
Starchy Vegetables
