Grenadian cuisine: how to cook like a local

Grenadian cuisine

Sitting slightly north-west of Trinidad and Tobago, and south-west of St Vincent and the Grenadines, Grenada is an evergreen, mountainous, plush island, abundant with spice plants, fruit trees, waterfalls and old volcanic lakes. The old Georgian-style buildings overlook the Carenage harbour, as a subtle but distinct reminder of the island’s colonial past. The isle is full of vibes yet peaceful and very welcoming by the Grenadian people. At night you may hear soca or calypso playing in the distance, laughter and conversation from the community limin’ (hanging out), but in the morning you’ll always hear the grounding call of cockerels as the sun comes up to start a new day. Known by many as the spice isle, nutmeg has historically been one of the main agricultural exports and, as such, it sits in the centre of the flag, representing the island’s devotion to the spice in its cooking. As well as spices, cocoa trees covered with multicoloured cacao pods line the roadsides freely. Once harvested, the pods are fermented in wooden boxes under banana leaves, sun-dried then ground to make local chocolate or an islandwide classic, cocoa tea – Caribbean hot chocolate that is spiced, rich and sweet. Red hands, tuna and barracuda are some of the fresh, local fish swimming in Grenada’s surrounding waters that the fishing town of Guave has long been known for. Grenadian food is varied and eclectic, from creole fish and cou cou to fried lambí (conch) or saltfish and bake. The national dish, oildown, is a special one, often cooked for large gatherings, although you can find it at local spots serving it up on Fridays or Saturdays. Oildown combines salted pork, saltfish and chicken with curry spices, layered in between dumplings and ground provisions, then topped with a layer of dasheen leaves and cooked in turmeric coconut milk. The red, gold and green colours of the ingredients mirror that of the flag representing wisdom, agriculture and unity respectively. The experience of the food, people and land has forever changed me, and it will always hold a special place in my heart.

Keshia's recipes from Grenada

Cocoa tea

Almost like hot chocolate, this is the best tea recipe you’ll ever taste. The tradition of cocoa tea drinking is said to have originated in the West Coast town of Soufriere, St Lucia around 1833, following abolition. As tea leaves were harder to source but cocoa was not, it became a new custom that has stuck ever since. I first tried this in St Lucia with bek fwi (fry bakes) for breakfast and have never looked back. Boiling the raw cocoa with the spices (and bergamot peel, as my friend from Grenada does) before adding the milk and sugar gives the tea an extra warmth and hum. Cocoa has been grown and exported from St Lucia, Grenada and Dominica, to name a few, for centuries. Along with sugar and coffee, cocoa was one of the main exports to Europe and beyond.

Grenadian crab back (stuffed crab shells)

Blue crabs spend most of their life on the land, unless it’s mating season, hence their historic uses within Caribbean cooking – where fishing was not possible, land crabs were easy to utilise as a protein source. The outside shell is a blend of purple, grey and blue with the underbelly commonly white. For the best crab backs, the fresh crabs are boiled, before removing the meat and mixing with fresh green seasoning and topping with breadcrumbs. I used Cornish crab for this recipe, with a mixture of both white and brown crab meat which worked well – however, you can use exclusively white crab meat but that may be a little more pricey. This recipe can be made using pre-picked crabmeat and ramekins if you prefer.

Nutmeg ice cream

Nutmeg is precious to Grenada and this ice cream is a local favourite. This recipe is very easy to make even if you don’t have an ice cream maker.