The Real Jerk: New Caribbean Cuisine

Steve Pitt is a Toronto-based freelance writer and an award-winning journalist. He has written many young adult and children's books, including Day of the Flying Fox: The True Story of World War II Pilot Charley Fox.

In the early 1980s, Lily and Ed Pottinger gave up their unexciting but
stable jobs in the Toronto area to take a risky leap of faith into the
restaurant business. The result was “The Real Jerk,” one of the
first and most successful Caribbean restaurants in Canada. The
restaurant’s odd name is not a commentary on the chef’s personality
but a description of the fare. Jamaica is the home of jerk cooking,
which is a slow-cooking method similar to “pulled” dishes in the
American South. The main difference is the extremely lively Jamaican
jerk seasoning made with allspice, ginger, fiery scotch bonnet peppers,
and several other seasonings. This book offers nearly 20 jerk recipes
ranging from chicken to prawns, and nearly 100 more recipes drawn from
across the Caribbean.

The chapters are divided by food type: “Sauces, Salsa, Dips and
Dressings,” “Soups and Salads,” “Fish and Seafood,” “Meat
and Poultry,” “Side Dishes,” “Desserts,” and “Drinks.”
Over the centuries, the Jamaicans have developed a culinary language all
their own with offerings like Rundown Sauce, Mannish Water, Fish Tea,
Goongo Pea Stew, Bammy and Bullas.

One of the advantages of this book is that most of the recipes fall
into the medium- to low-cost price range. If your wallet overfloweth,
then by all means try the Jerked Swordfish or Jamaican Pot Roast, but if
you’re on a budget, then make a batch of Kingfish Stew, Broccoli and
Codfish, Codfish Fritters, Red Pea Soup, Corned Beef Mash, or Island
Pizza.

All recipes are presented in easy-to-read steps. Sadly, only eight
pages of color photographs are included to illustrate a scant fraction
of these enticing meals. Menu ideas are offered to help a novice put
together an authentic Caribbean meal. Cooking tips, a glossary of
Caribbean cooking terms, and ingredients are included in the back.