Health Food, Health, Recipes: Trinidadian local food

This post was originally published as Trinidadian Food by Laurel on Health Food.

Last week I went on vacation with my boyfriend to Trinidad. We visited family members, ate lots of delicious local food, sipped many drinks, and relaxed with no phones or computers. Ahh, the life! I absolutely loved the food I had while I was in Trinidad and took a bunch of pictures. We spent our time on the northern end of the island, but I look forward to going back someday so I can see the southern side and also visit Tobago. I heard the beaches were stunning there. Oh, and I definitely want to visit during the famous Carnival that happens in February/March. Sounds like soooo much fun. Did you know that Trinidad is home of the original Carnival?

As I expected, there was a ton of curry spices and hot sauce in the foods. You know I loved that! I tried to order vegetable-heavy dishes when I could, but I also tried some fish and meat so I could get a taste of what the locals had to offer. There were tons of street vendors, and I loved how we could always pull over to the side of the road for a quick snack or a fresh coconut water. It was certainly an indulgent trip, but I loved that all the fresh food was grown or caught locally. I can’t wait to try to make some of these dishes at home.

Here’s a summary of my favorite foods I tried on the trip. Hope you enjoy it!

Roti - This yummy flat bread originates from India and it’s typically eaten with meats and vegetables. I had it several times wrapped with curried potatoes and pumpkin inside, but also ate Paratha Roti which is roti crumbed into pieces. Trinidadians call it “Buss-Up-Shut” because it resembles a torn or busted-up shirt. You can dip the Buss-Up-Shut in your curry sauce or make mini wraps with the meat and/or veggies. Learn more about roti here.
Doubles – This well-known street food is made with fried flat bread that’s filled with curried chickpeas (channa), spicy chutney, and hot pepper. Omigoodness these were so good. We had them for breakfast, lunch, and anytime we needed a snack.
Coconut water – There were tons of places to pull over and get fresh coconut water. The guys take a big machete and quick chop off the top and stick a straw in. So refreshing. They even give you a little scoop so you can break the coconut open when you’re done and eat the soft coconut meat inside.
Bake & shark – Bake is a fluffy fried bread. It was served at the beach with fried shark meat and a spread of fresh toppings and sauces. I had mine with cucumber, tomato, lettuce, mustard, slaw, and a little hot sauce. It was a HUGE sandwich!
King fish – My boyfriend’s Dad’s cousin made us some super fresh king fish that he bought when we went to Maracas Beach. He lightly seasoned it with herbs and curry spices, pan fried it, and we ate it with fresh lime juice, mustard, and pieces of soft white bread from the bakery.
Breakfast bake – A family friend made us bake for breakfast one morning topped with sautéed spinach, garlic, onions, and peppers. This was one of my favorite things I had on the trip. Just a little something our friend whipped up with leftovers in her refrigerator.
Mango, avocado, and tamarind coconut trees – I think everyone we visited had at least one of these fresh fruit trees in their backyard. Man, I would kill for an avocado tree!
Carib & Stag (local beers) - Everyone was drinking the cold local beers Carib and Stag. Carib is sort of like Corona and Stag tastes a bit like Heineken.