Editing Caribbean cuisine (section)

==Caribbean dishes==
{{Further|List of street food#Caribbean}}
[[File:Dhalpurie Roti, Pumpkin, Channa and Potato, Curry Goat, Trinidad and Tobago.JPG|right|thumb|Dhalpurie [[roti]], pumpkin tarkari, channa and aloo, and [[curry goat]], Indian-origin dishes from Trinidad and Tobago]]
Ingredients that are common in most islands' dishes are [[rice]], [[Plantain (cooking)|plantain]]s, [[bean]]s, [[cassava]], [[cilantro]], [[bell pepper]]s, [[chickpea]]s, [[tomato]]es, [[sweet potato]]es, [[coconut]], and any of various meats that are locally available like beef, poultry, pork, goat or fish. A characteristic seasoning for the region is a green herb-and-oil-based marinade called sofrito, which imparts a flavor profile which is quintessentially Caribbean in character. Ingredients may include garlic, onions, Scotch bonnet peppers, celery, green onions, and herbs like cilantro, Mexican mint, chives, marjoram, rosemary, tarragon and thyme. This green seasoning is used for a variety of dishes like curries, stews and roasted meats.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://latinfood.about.com/od/seasoningmarinade/r/Green-Seasoning.htm |title=Caribbean Green Seasoning Recipe<!-- Bot generated title --> |access-date=2014-03-28 |archive-date=2016-03-04 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304124426/http://latinfood.about.com/od/seasoningmarinade/r/Green-Seasoning.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref>

Traditional dishes are so important to regional culture that, for example, the local version of Caribbean goat stew has been chosen as the official national dish of [[Montserrat]] and is also one of the signature dishes of [[St. Kitts and Nevis]]. Another popular dish in the Anglophone Caribbean is called "cook-up", or [[pelau]]. [[Ackee and saltfish]] is another popular dish that is unique to Jamaica. [[Callaloo]] is a dish containing leafy vegetables such as [[spinach]] and sometimes [[okra]] amongst others, widely distributed in the Caribbean, with a distinctively mixed African and indigenous character.

The variety of dessert dishes in the area also reflects the mixed origins of the recipes. In some areas, [[black cake]], a derivative of English Christmas pudding, may be served, especially on special occasions.

Over time, food from the Caribbean has evolved into a narrative technique through which their culture has been accentuated and promoted. However, by studying Caribbean culture through a literary lens there then runs the risk of generalizing exoticist ideas about food practices from the tropics. Some food theorists argue that this depiction of Caribbean food in various forms of media contributes to the inaccurate conceptions revolving around their culinary practices, which are much more grounded in unpleasant historical events. Therefore, it can be argued that the connection between the idea of the Caribbean being the ultimate paradise and Caribbean food being exotic is based on inaccurate information.<ref>Graziadei, Daniel. “The Fierce Questioning of Fictional Caribbean Communion in Édouard Glissant's Ormerod and Fortuné Chalumeau's Désirade, ô Serpente!” In Caribbean Food Cultures: Culinary Practices and Consumption in the Caribbean and Its Diasporas, edited by Wiebke Beuhausen, Anne Brüske, Ana-Sofia Commichau, Patrick Helber, and Sinah Kloß, 89-96.</ref>