Guide to Caribbean Dishes

Accras (French West Indies): Spicy salt-cod fritters.

Adobo (Cuba): A mixture of sour-orange juice, cumin, andgarlic used to marinate meats and fish. Dishes made with it areoften served with mojo, a sauce prepared from the sameingredients.

Arroz con pollo (Spanish islands): A sort of landlubber'spaella made with chicken and annatto.

Asopao (Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic): A soupyseafood-rice stew flavored with annatto.

Blaff de poisson (French islands): Pan-fried fish served ina broth flavored with lime juice, allspice berries, and Scotchbonnet chiles. (The name of the dish is said to echo the sound thefish makes as it hits the frying pan.)

Arroz con leche (Spanish islands): Creamy rice pudding.

Boka dushi (Dutch islands): "Sweet mouth" in the Papamientodialect; refers to Indonesian-style chicken sates.

Bolo pretu (Curacao and other islands): Black fruitcake.

Christophene farcie (French islands):Cheese-and-chile-stuffed chayote squash.

Choka (Trinidad): A grilled-vegetable dip.

Court-bouillon (French islands): A delicate fish stewflavored with lime juice and allspice.

Cutters (Barbados): Sandwiches that are traditionally madewith flying fish.

Jerk (Jamaica): Fiery barbecued pork that's smoked overallspice wood.

Keshi yena (Curacao): Hollowed-out Edam cheese filled witholive- and caper-spiced beef.

Pepperpot (Barbados and other islands): A soulfulbeef-and-vegetable stew enriched with callaloo (spinachlike malangaleaves) and cassareep (cassava vinegar).

Pika (Dutch islands): Pickled onion-and-chile sauce.

Pindasaus (Dutch islands): Spicy peanut sauce.

Poulet boucane (Guadeloupe): "Buccaneer chicken," seasonedwith island spices and smoked over sugarcane.

Rotis (Trinidad and Tobago, and other islands): Flatbreadsfilled with split peas. Rotis are the tortillas of the southernCaribbean and are served filled with everything from stewedvegetables to curried goat.

Run down (Jamaica): A stew made with smoked fish and coconutmilk.

Salmagundi (Jamaica): Spicy potted fish.

Sauce chien (French islands): "Dog sauce" is the literaltranslation, but it's really just a fiery vinaigrette.

Souse (Barbados): Pickled pig ears and tails.

Yuca frita (Cuba): Fried yuca (cassava) with garlicsauce.