Jamaican Food
Mouthwatering, Flavourful

Jamaican food is fantastic, and is one of the things Jamaicans miss most when away from home.

This page will introduce you to types of food from Jamaica, from our renowned jerk chicken to less famous fare like tamarind balls.

Before we dive into the world of Jamaican cuisine, let me reassure you. 

Visitors needn't worry that they'll have to spend their holidays coping with strange dishes. There's plenty of variety, and you're sure to find lots of familiar favourites.

Chicken and chips (french fries) is widely available, along with pizza and burgers. Seafood, pork, and beef can be cooked however you like them. Common side dishes are rice, macaroni and cheese, and potato salad.

North American fast food franchises like KFC, Burger King, Pizza Hut and Dominoes are scattered here and there, particularly in the bigger towns. And we have great Chinese restaurants too. Restaurants in Jamaica are many and varied.

Vegetarians may find their choice of entree a bit limited in rural areas, but certainly there'll be no lack of fresh fruits and vegetables.

Here is an introduction to food from Jamaica. After careful thought, and feedback from both local and foreign friends, the suggestions for not-to-be missed, you-got-to try-this Jamaican food are listed first. Get out there and start eating!

Jamaican Food

Main Dishes

Jerk Chicken or Jerk Pork 
Ackee and Saltfish 
Seafood - Fish, shrimp, lobster, conch 

Other popular main dishes: Fried, Baked, Stewed and Curried Chicken, Stew Peas, Oxtail, Curry Goat, Cow Foot, Tripe and Beans, Pepper Steak, Stewed Beef and Pork.

Side Dishes

Rice and Peas 
Bammy 
Festival 
Johnny Cake/Fry Dumpling 
Fried Plantain 

Other local side dishes: Yam, green bananas, breadfriut, dasheen, coco, potato, sweet potato, boiled dumplings.

Fruits/Vegetables

Sugar Cane 
Mango 
Otaheite Apple 
Boiled Corn 
Jelly Coconut 

Other Jamaica-grown fruit: June (Jew) plum, guava, naseberry, sweetsop, soursop, tamarind, tangerine, ortanique, guinep, pineapple, starapple, watermelon, grapefruit, coolie plum, hogplum.

Desserts

Rum and Raisin Ice Cream

Sweet Potato Pone 

Other Jamaican desserts and baked goodies: Bread pudding, banana bread, Christmas cake, Easter bun, bulla, toto, plantain tart, banana fritters.

Beverages

Appleton Rum , Sorrel, Ting , Ginger Beer , Coffee 

Other popular Jamaican drinks: Fruit Punch, Red Stripe Beer, Cherry Juice, June Plum Juice, Ginger Wine, Tamarind Drink, Soursop Drink.

Soups

Conch , Red Peas/Gungo Peas 

Other Jamaican soups: Mannish Water, Fish Tea, Cow Cod, Pepperpot, Pumpkin, Chicken/Chicken Foot, Beef.

Snacks/Sweets

Banana Chips, Tamarind Balls

Other Jamaican snacks and sweets: Plantain Chips, Plantain Tarts, Cassava Chips, Asham, Busta Backbone, Coconut Drops, Grater Cake, Blue Drawers, Icy Mint.

Hot and Spicy

Middle Quarters Pepper Shrimp , Solomon Gundy 

We found that we couldn't fit our irreplaceable Patty and Coco Bread into one category - these two won the title of Jamaica's Most Popular Food Combo.

Is that enough to get you started? Who knows, if you eat enough of our food, you may find soon find that you catch the Jamaican accent as well!