The following highlights some of the popular Traditional Montserratian Foods. If you manage to be in an Montserratian restaurant or you are visiting Montserrat, I recommend the following:
1. Salt Fish
It is a common dish throughout the Caribbean and a staple of Montserrat. Saltfish is usually finely ground cod mixed with various spices and herbs to create unique dishes that vary from place to place. Saltfish can be cooked with cabbage, tomatoes, spices such as ginger and garlic and chilli for a hearty and delicious experience. This fish cooked in tomato sauce is a favourite lunchtime dish and is served with breadfruit, boiled vegetables or rice.
2. Pumpkin Soup
This is a delicious pumpkin soup that is common in the Caribbean islands. In addition to pumpkin, other main ingredients of the soup include corned beef, heavy cream, cinnamon, tabasco and vegetables such as onions, celery, leeks and potatoes. The characteristic deep orange colour of sopi di pampuna is achieved by heating the ruku seeds in hot oil, discarding them and using the coloured oil in the soup.
3. Aubergine Patties
Also known as aubergine fritters, they are popular in the Caribbean and are served as an appetizer at most events. They are made of mashed aubergine mixed with various spices, chives, garlic and pepper. They are then fried in vegetable oil and served with a spicy sauce.
4. Goat Water
Goat water, a light, brown soup made with goat meat, breadfruit, onions, tomatoes, flour and fresh herbs, is the national dish of the small Caribbean island of Montserrat. Sometimes dumplings, potatoes and sweet potatoes are added to the dish for extra flavour. Flavourful and spicy, it probably originated in Ireland and is an adaptation of the classic Irish stew, where the goat meat is replaced by beef. Exotic, unique and unusual, this soup represents all of Caribbean cuisine.
5. Mountain Chicken
This dish has long been recognised as the national dish of Dominica, although it has never been made official. However, it is not a chicken as the name suggests, but a rare frog found only on the Caribbean islands of Dominica and Montserrat. They were recently declared an endangered species and are being saved through captive breeding programmes in the hope of being reintroduced into the wild.
If you found this list useful, here are some more Traditional Caribbean Foods to try out on my Pinterest channel.