The very thought of the Caribbean summons up visions of fiery barbecue and festive beach parties, of seductive cocktails and tropical desserts. The region is home to some of the world's most explosively flavorful cooking -- dishes ranging from Jamaica's jerk pork to Trinidad's curries, from Puerto Rico's crusty aranitos (plantain fritters) to Guadeloupe's velvety vegetable soups, from the refreshing conch salads of the Bahamas to Cuba's creamy rice puddings.

The Caribbean is a patchwork of islands, cuisines, and cultures. From the Carib Indians to the European colonists and their unfortunate slaves, each successive wave of immigrants has added its own unique flavors to the Caribbean cook pot.

The region's first settlers were the Arawaks, peace-loving fishermen-farmers who cultivated corn and tropical tubers such as cassava root, boniatos, and malangas. As seasonings, they often used annatto seed (a rust-colored spice with an earthy flavor) and a fiery local chile pepper now known as the Scotch bonnet.

The arrival of the Spanish in 1492 brought European ingredients and cooking technologies to the Caribbean. Livestock, rice, sugarcane, oil for frying, and stills for making rum are all part of the Spanish legacy. The Spanish influence lives on in the empanadas (meat pies) and asopaos (paellalike rice stews) that remain popular in the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, and Cuba.

Spain, of course, wasn't the only player in the Caribbean. The English fondness for meat pies and fruitcakes survives in Jamaica's limbo pies (curried-beef turnovers) and Barbados's black cake, a rum-soaked fruitcake darkened with molasses and brown sugar. French influence can be seen in French West Indian court-bouillon (a piquant fish soup) and christophene farcie (a cheesy gratin made with local chayote squash). You'll even find Indonesian dishes in the Caribbean, such as Javanese sates and peanut sauce found in the Dutch-settled islands of Curacao and Aruba.

Some of the most important contributions to Caribbean cuisine, though, came from its most reluctant citizens. African slaves brought yams, okra, a nutty-flavored bean called the pigeon pea, and many other strong culinary influences. Indentured workers from India introduced items such as curry, chutney, and roti bread to the islands -- especially to Trinidad, where the cuisine still shows a marked Indian influence.

Here, then, is a Caribbean sampler that's bursting with flavor, not fat. It's the next best thing to boarding a plane and flying to the islands for dinner.