Guyanese pepperpot
Pepperpot is an Amerindian-derived dish popular in Guyana. It is traditionally served at Christmas and other special events. Along with chicken curry, and cook-up rice, pepperpot is one of Guyana's national dishes.[1]
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Type | Stew |
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Place of origin | Guyana |
Main ingredients | Meat (beef, pork, mutton), cinnamon, hot peppers, cassareep |
Pepperpot is a stewed meat dish, strongly flavoured with cinnamon, cassareep (a special sauce made from the cassava root) and other basic ingredients, including Caribbean hot peppers. Beef, pork, and mutton are the most popular meats used, though some have been known to use chicken. Pepperpot is popularly served with a dense Guyanese-style homemade or home-style bread, rice, or roti. It can also be served with boiled vegetables such as cassava, eddoes, sweet potatoes, and green or ripe plantains.
This dish is usually reserved for special occasions because it needs to cook for several hours, and mostly eaten on Christmas Day or during the Christmas holiday season, and sometimes on Boxing Day. Like the original Amerindian version it is usually made in a large pot and can be reheated and eaten over several days because the cassareep starts preserving the meat.[2] Versions of the dish are also served in several other countries in the Caribbean, including Trinidad and Tobago, Grenada, St. Vincent and Jamaica.
References
- Albala, Ken (2011). Food Cultures of the World Encyclopedia. ABC-CLIO. p. "national+dish" 161. ISBN 978-0-313-37626-9.
- Goucher, Candice (2014). Congotay! Congotay! A Global History of Caribbean Food. Taylor & Francis. p. 57. ISBN 978-1-317-51732-0.
- Jabar, Bibi Sazieda (2011). Guyanese Style Cooking. iUniverse. pp. 7–. ISBN 978-1-4620-6337-6.
- Phang, Jonathan (2008). "Guyanese Pepperpot". In Worrall Thompson, Antony; Rankin, Paul (eds.). The People's Cookbook: A celebration of the nation's life through food. Infinite Ideas. pp. 69–. ISBN 978-1-907755-09-5.
- Smock, Kirk (2008). The Bradt Travel Guide: Guyana. Bradt Travel Guides. pp. 22–. ISBN 978-1-84162-223-1.
- Walcott, Michael (2005). A Cathedral Inside: Odyssey of a Guyanese Family. Michael Walcott. pp. 102–. ISBN 978-1-4196-0574-1.
- Duford, Darrin (Winter 2012). "Journey by Bottle: Uncovering the Allure of Guyanese Cassareep". Gastronomica: The Journal of Critical Food Studies. University of California Press. 12 (4): 27–30. doi:10.1525/GFC.2012.12.4.27 – via jstor.