Caribbean Veggies Your Way

 After a summer of tomatoes and squash it's time to think outside the back yard. There are a wealth of Caribbean veggies  that can be made into interesting and comofrting recipes. It's time to expand your culinary horizons.

One of th e most popular and ubiquitous in all grocery stores nowadays is the cassava. It's a tuber that can stand in for a potato.It has the same starchiness but the flavor is sweeter and nuttier than a spud.It does have t be peeled and boiled because raw it contains lethal high levels of cyanide. You could also soak them for several hours in cold water to also dissipate the poison. After boiling or soaking and peeling try  roasting them. They're cut and tossed in a blend of olive oil, cumin, garlic, coriander  and onion powder. Cassava or yuca can also be made into tasty fries. Use an air fryer to cook them for  fiften minutes at four hundred degrees Farenheit.Unlike potaotes, though, cassava can also be turned into cakes too. It's called pone and is highly popular in Guyana.There a mix of spices like black pepper, cinnamon and nutmeg mixed with shredded boiled cassava and coconut along with butter and evaporated milk. Brown sugar gives the cake its' earthy mellow sweetness. You may be tired of zucchini right now so it's time to try chayote squas. It tastes somewhat like the squash. It can be roasted or sauteed. Use a mix of butter and olive oil to saute it and spic it up with shallots and garlic.

Everyone thinks New Orleans and Southern cooking when they hear okra but the veggie is also big in Caribbean cooking.It's usually paired with that other Caribbean staple the fiery scotch bonnet pepper. If you;re cooking with th e last , remember this is the hottest capiscum on earth. Use it sparingly. Try both in a stew also zinged up with ginger and garlic. Add some temperate yellow onions and tomatoes to balance it out. It would be good over a bed of rice. Saltfish or baccala  - dried and salted cod can be added to this to make it more substantial.Caribbean, and especially Cuban and Puerto Rican cuisine would be nothing without plantanos or plantains. It is a cousin of a banana and technically a fruit but you can fry it up like a veggie. Peel them, and thn slice them any way you want , whether in coins or lengthwise , spray with oil and tthen air fry for eight minutes at four hundred degrees Farenheit. Flip them after four minutes. Serve with jerk chicken for a tasty supper. Another great side is pigeon peas, a Trinidadian staple. serve them in a stew or over rice. They cna be spiced up with scotch bonnet , all spice and ginger.

Add some Caibbean flavor to your cooking.Use veggies that the islanders use for a different spin on dinner. It's a fun way to celebrate the bold flavors of the tropics.