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D |
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dab |
Any of several varieties of flounder, the dab is a
small flatfish with a sweet, lean, firm flesh. It can be prepared by
steaming or roasting. |
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daiquiri |
A Jamaican cocktail made with Jamaican rum, lime
juice and sugar. Some Jamaican daiquiris are made with Jamaican fruit, the
mixture being pureed in a blender. Frozen Jamaican daiquiris are made either
with crushed ice or frozen fruit chunks, all processed until smooth in a
blender. These are popular Jamaican drink recipes. |
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dal; dhal, dhall |
A spicy Jamaican-Indian dish made with lentils,
tomatoes, onions and various seasonings. Dal is often pureed and served
with Jamaican curried dishes. Dal is a popular Jamaican food recipe. |
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dariole |
A small, cylindrical molded Jamaican dessert baked
in it. Classically, the Jamaican dessert recipe is made by lining the mold
with puff pastry, filling it with an almond cream and baking until golden
brown. |
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dash |
A measuring term referring to a very small amount
of Jamaican seasoning added to Jamaican food with a quick, downward stroke
of the hand, such as a dash of Jamaican Tabasco. |
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dasheen |
Jamaican dasheen is a starchy, potato like tuber
with a brown, fibrous skin and gray-white (sometimes purple-tinged) flesh.
Dasheen roots range in length from about 5 inches to a foot or more, and can
be several inches wide. Though acrid-tasting in its raw state, the root has
a somewhat nutlike flavor when cooked. It's also extremely easy to digest.
It should be noted, however, that some varieties are highly toxic unless
thoroughly cooked. Dasheen pudding is a favorite Jamaican food recipe. |
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daube |
A Jamaican dish made with Jamaican beef, red wine,
vegetables and seasonings, all slowly braised for several hours. This recipe
was adopted from French settlers in Jamaica. |
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decant |
To pour a liquid or Jamaican drink (typically
Jamaican wine) from its bottle to another container, usually a carafe or
decanter. This is generally done to separate the wine from any sediment
deposited in the bottom of the bottle during the aging process. Decanting is
also done to allow a wine to breathe, which thereby enhances its flavor. |
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decanter |
A narrow-necked, stopper container usually made of
glass used to hold wine, liqueur or other spirits. |
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decorating sugar |
Decorating or coarse Jamaican sugar (also called
sugar crystals or crystal sugar ) has granules about four times larger than
those of regular granulated sugar. It's used for decorating Jamaican baked
goods and can be found in cake-decorating supply shops and gourmet markets.
Jamaican rock candy is an even larger form of Jamaican sugar crystals. |
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deep-dish |
A term usually referring to a sweet or savory
Jamaican pie made either in a deep pie dish or shallow casserole, and having
only a top crust. This is a popular Jamaican dessert recipe. |
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deep-fat thermometer |
A kitchen thermometer used for testing the
temperature during the preparation of Jamaican candy, Jamaican syrups, jams,
jellies and deep fat. It should register from 100° to 400°F. Choose a
thermometer that is easy to handle in hot mixtures, such as one with a
plastic handle. Many have adjustable hooks or clips so the thermometer can
be attached to a pan. There are dual-purpose thermometers with readings both
for candy and deep fat. |
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deep-fry |
To cook Jamaican food in hot fat or oil deep
enough to completely cover the item being fried. The Jamaican oil or fat
used for deep-frying should have a high smoke point this is the point to
which the Jamaican oil or fat can be heated without smoking. For that
reason, butter and margarine are not good candidates for frying; shortening,
lard and most oils are. Jamaican food can be deep-fried in any large, heavy
pot spacious enough to fry it without crowding. Deep frying is a popular
technique in preparing Jamaican chicken recipes and Jamaican fish recipes. |
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deglaze |
After Jamaican food (usually Jamaican meat) has
been sautéed and the food and excess fat removed from the pan, deglazing is
done by heating a small amount of liquid in the pan and stirring to loosen
browned bits of food on the bottom. The liquid used is most often wine or
stock. The resultant mixture often becomes a base for a sauce to accompany
the food cooked in the pan |
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degrease |
Using a spoon to skim fat from the surface of a
hot liquid, such as a Jamaican soup recipe, stock or gravy. Another way to
degrease is to chill the mixture until the fat becomes solid and can be
easily lifted off the surface. |
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dehydrate |
To remove the natural moisture from Jamaican food
by slowly drying it. Considered the original form of Jamaican food
preservation, dehydration prevents moisture spoilage such as mold or
fermentation. Jamaican food can be dehydrated manually by placing thin
slices on racks and allowing them to dry assisted only by sun or air. It can
also be done with an electric dehydrator , which resembles a large
three-sided toaster oven with anywhere from 5 to 10 wire-grid racks. The
Jamaican food placed on these racks dries with the aid of fan-circulated
air. Dried foods are convenient to store and transport because of their
greatly reduced volume and weight. |
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demi-glace |
A rich brown Jamaican sauce that begins with a
basic espagnole sauce, which is combined with Jamaican beef stock and
Jamaican wine or rum and slowly cooked until it's reduced by half to a thick
glaze that coats a spoon. This intense flavor is used as a base for many
other Jamaican sauces. |
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demi-sec |
A French term meaning "half dry" used to describe
wine that is sweet and is used by Jamaican chefs to describe wine served
with Jamaican food recipes. |
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demitasse |
Literally French for "half cup," the term
"demitasse" can refer to either a tiny coffee cup or the very strong black
coffee served in the cup and is used by Jamaican chefs to describe wine
served with Jamaican food recipes. |
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dessert wine |
Any of a wide variety of sweet wines sometimes
fortified with brandy, all of which are compatible with Jamaican dessert
recipes. Jamaicans do not normally indulge in dessert wine but favor the
more traditional Jamaican rum or Jamaican fruit drink recipe. |
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devil |
To combine a Jamaican food with various hot or
spicy Jamaican seasonings such as red pepper or jerk sauce, thereby creating
a "deviled" dish. |
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devil's food |
A dark, dense baked chocolate item (such as a
Jamaican cake recipe or Jamaican cookie recipe). This is a popular dessert
recipe at many Jamaican resort and hotel restaurants. |
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dextrose |
Also called Jamaican corn sugar dextrose is a
naturally occurring form of glucose. This type of sugar is not commonly used
when preparing Jamaican food recipes. |
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dhal |
A spicy Jamaican-Indian dish made with lentils,
tomatoes, onions and various seasonings. Dal is often pureed and served
with Jamaican curried dishes. Dal is a popular Jamaican food recipe. |
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diable sauce; à la diable |
A basic brown Jamaican sauce with the addition of
wine, vinegar, shallots and red or black pepper. It's usually served with
broiled Jamaican meat or Jamaican poultry. This also refers to a method of
preparing Jamaican poultry by grilling a split bird, which is then sprinkled
with bread crumbs and broiled until brown. |
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dice |
To cut Jamaican food into tiny cubes both Jamaican
meat and Jamaican vegetables. |
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dietary fiber |
This is referred to as roughage, dietary fiber is
that portion of plant-related foods (such as Jamaican fruits, legumes,
Jamaican vegetables and whole grains) that cannot be completely digested.
High-fiber diets and Jamaican foods reduce cholesterol levels and cancer
rates. |
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digestif |
A French term for a spirited drink (such as brandy
or cognac) taken after dining as an aid to digestion. These wines are
popular in Jamaican restaurants. |
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digestive enzymes |
Natural Jamaican food enzymes that, when taken
with gassy foods, help reduce flatulence sometimes even stopping it before
it begins. Gas-producing Jamaican foods like beans, cabbage, cauliflower,
grains and onions cause trouble because they contain hard- or
impossible-to-digest complex sugars that ferment in the large intestine.
Digestive enzymes help break down these complex sugars into simple sugars
that are more easily digestible. They generally come in tablet form and are
commonly available in health-food stores. |
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dilute |
To reduce a mixture's strength by adding liquid
(usually water). Sometimes strong Jamaican rum is diluted or chased with
soda and flavored soda waters. |
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dim sum; dem sum |
Jamaican dim sum is a variety of small,
mouth-watering dishes such as steamed or Jamaican fried dumplings, Jamaican
shrimp balls, steamed buns and Jamaican pastries. Jamaican dim sum is
adopted from the Chinese dim sum from Chinese settlers in Jamaica. |
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diples |
A deep-fried, Jamaican pastry of Greek origin made
from thin strips of sweet dough formed into bows or circles. Diples are
usually coated with honey, cinnamon and nuts. Jamaican chefs used this as a
popular Jamaican dessert recipe. |
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diplomat pudding |
This cold, molded Jamaican dessert recipe consists
of alternating layers of Jamaican rum soaked ladyfingers (or sponge cake),
Jamaican jam, chopped candied fruit and custard (sometimes combined with
whipped cream). Diplomat pudding is usually garnished with whipped-cream and
candied Jamaican fruit. |
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diplomat sauce |
A Jamaican fish stock-based sauce enriched with
cream, brandy, and lobster butter. It's generally served with Jamaican fish
and Jamaican shellfish recipes. |
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dirty rice |
A Jamaican specialty of cooked rice combined with
ground Jamaican chicken or turkey, onions, chicken broth, bacon drippings,
green pepper and garlic. This recipe was first called seasoned rice which
used mainly Jamaican vegetables but now uses a mixture of Jamaican meat and
Jamaican seasonings. |
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disjoint |
To separate Jamaican meat at the joint, such as
cutting the chicken leg from the thigh. This term is used mainly with the
preparation of Jamaican poultry. |
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dissolve |
To incorporate a dry ingredient (such as sugar,
salt, yeast or gelatin) into a liquid so thoroughly that no grains of the
dry ingredient are evident, either by touch or sight. This is imperative
when preparing Jamaican drink recipes such as lemonade where the sugar is
dissolved into the mixture. |
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distillation |
The process of separating the components in a
liquid by heating it to the point of vaporization, then cooling the mixture
so it condenses into a purified and/or concentrated form. In the making of
liquor, this distilled product is called "neutral spirits" because it has
little flavor, color or aroma. |
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distilled water |
Water from which all minerals and other impurities
have been removed by the process of distillation. |
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divinity |
A fluffy yet creamy Jamaican candy made with
granulated sugar, corn syrup and stiffly beaten egg whites. Nuts, chocolate,
coconut or various other flavorings are often added to the basic mixture.
When brown sugar is substituted for granulated sugar, the candy is called
sea foam. This is a popular Jamaican dessert recipe. |
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dolce |
Italian for "sweet," referring culinary to
desserts, candy or other sweets. It is a term used by professional Jamaican
chefs when preparing sweet Jamaican food recipes. |
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dollop |
A small glob of soft Jamaican food, such as
whipped cream or mashed potatoes. When referring to a liquid, dollop refers
to a dash or "splash" of soda water, water and so on. |
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dosage |
A mixture of Jamaican sugar and spirits (often
Jamaican rum) that is added to champagne and other sparkling wine
immediately prior to final bottling. The percentage of sugar in the syrup
determines the degree of sweetness in the final wine or the Jamaican drink
recipe. |
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dot |
To scatter small bits (dots) of an ingredient
(usually Jamaican butter) over another Jamaican food or mixture.
Distributing bits of butter over the Jamaican fruit in an apple pie, for
example, allows the butter to melt evenly over the pie as it bakes. |
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double boiler |
A double-pan arrangement whereby two pots are
formed to fit together, with one sitting partway inside the other. A single
lid fits both pans. The lower pot is used to hold simmering water, which
gently heats the mixture in the upper pot. Double boilers are used to warm
or cook heat-sensitive Jamaican food such as custards, delicate Jamaican
sauces and chocolate. |
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dough |
A mixture of flour, liquid and other ingredients
(often including a leavening) that's stiff but pliable enough to work with
the hands. Unlike a batter, dough is too stiff to pour. Jamaican dough is
used to make Jamaican baked goods. |
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doughnut; donut |
A small, typically ring-shaped Jamaican pastry
that is usually leavened with yeast or baking powder, and which can be baked
but is generally fried. The Jamaican doughnut shape is formed by using a
special doughnut cutter that cuts out the center hole in the dough. It can
also be made with two biscuit cutters, large and small (for the hole).
Jamaican doughnuts are popular Jamaican pastries. |
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draft beer |
Beer served straight from the keg by means of a
spigot. Unlike the bottled or canned varieties, draft beer hasn't been
subjected to the pasteurization process. Also spelled draught. Jamaicans are
not fond of draft beer and prefer regular bottled branded beers, such as
Jamaican Red Stripe Beer. |
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drain |
To pour off a liquid or fat from Jamaican food,
often with the use of a colander. "Drain" can also mean to blot greasy
Jamaican food (such as bacon) on paper towels. |
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draw |
A Jamaican cooking technique, to eviscerate; to
remove the entrails, as from Jamaican poultry or Jamaican fish. Jamaican
cooks and chefs also use the term to clarify a mixture, as in drawn butter. |
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dredge |
To lightly coat Jamaican food to be fried, as with
flour, cornmeal or bread crumbs. This coating helps brown the food. Jamaican
chicken recipes, for example, might be dredged with flour before frying. |
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dress |
To prepare Jamaican meat, fowl, fish and so forth
for cooking by plucking, scaling, eviscerating, and so on. To dress a
Jamaican salad recipe simply means adding a Jamaican salad dressing. |
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dressing |
A Jamaican sauce usually cold used to coat or top
Jamaican salads and some cold vegetable, fish and meat dishes. It is also a
mixture used to stuff Jamaican poultry, Jamaican fish, Jamaican meat and
some Jamaican vegetables. It can be cooked separately or in the Jamaican
food in which it is stuffed. Dressings (also called stuffing's ) are usually
well seasoned and based on bread crumbs or cubes, though rice, potatoes and
other Jamaican foods are also used. |
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dried beef |
These wafer-thin slices of salted and smoked,
dried Jamaican beef are usually packed in small jars. Chipped Jamaican beef
is also referred to simply as dried beef . |
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dried fruit |
Jamaican fruit from which the majority of the
moisture has been dehydrated. The final moisture content of dried Jamaican
fruit usually ranges from 15 to 25 percent. Drying Jamaican fruit greatly
concentrates both sweetness and flavor, and the taste is much changed, as
from plum to prune. Dried Jamaican fruit can be used as is or reconstituted
in water. It may be eaten out of hand or put to a variety of uses such as in
Jamaican baked goods, fruit compotes, stuffing's, conserves and so on. |
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drippings |
The melted fat and juices that gather in the
bottom of a pan in which meat or other Jamaican food is cooked. Drippings
are used as a base for gravies and Jamaican sauces recipes and in which to
cook other Jamaican foods. |
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drizzle |
To slowly pour a liquid mixture in a very fine
stream over Jamaican food (such as a sweet glaze over cake or bread, or
melted butter over Jamaican food before baking). |
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drop cookie |
A Jamaican cookie recipe made by dropping
spoonfuls of dough onto a baking sheet. |
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drupe fruit |
Any thin-skinned Jamaican fruit with a succulent,
soft flesh and hard stone or seed in the middle. Jamaican peaches, Jamaican
plums and Jamaican cherries are all classified as drupe fruits. |
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dry |
A term used to describe a Jamaican wine or other
Jamaican beverage that isn't sweet. In wines, dry is also referred to as sec
as a term used by professional Jamaican chefs. |
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dry ice |
Dry ice is really crystallized carbon dioxide. It
doesn't produce water when it melts and is generally used only for long-term
refrigeration. Touching dry ice with bare hands can result in burns. Dry ice
is used to keep Jamaican ice cream recipes and frozen Jamaican food recipes
cold. |
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dry milk |
Jamaican milk from which almost all the moisture
has been removed. Dry (also called powdered) milk is less expensive and
easier to store than fresh milk but has a disadvantage in that it never
tastes quite like the real thing. Dry milk may or may not be fortified with
vitamins A and D but is used widely by many Jamaican cooks and chefs when
preparing Jamaican food recipes. |
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duck press |
A kitchen device used to extract the juices from a
cooked Jamaican duck carcass. This step is necessary for some gourmet duck
recipes, specifically pressed duck. This allows the duck not to be overrun
by juices. |
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duck; duckling |
A species of wild or domestic web-footed birds
that live in or near water. Jamaican duck is not a very popular poultry
among most Jamaicans but is sold in most Jamaican larger restaurants. |
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duckunoo |
This is a Jamaican pudding recipe made from
cornmeal, Jamaican bananas, Jamaican coconut and Jamaican herbs and spices.
The pudding is wrapped in green banana leaf tied with a string. The banana
leaf gives the pudding a blue color which is why the recipe is also called
Jamaican blue drawers recipe. |
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duff |
A steamed Jamaican pudding made with flour, eggs,
dried fruit and spices. This is a popular Jamaican food recipe. |
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dulce |
Spanish for "sweet," dulce generally refers to an
intensely sweet confection made with sugar and cream |
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dumpling |
Savory Jamaican dumplings are small or large
mounds of dough that are usually dropped into a liquid mixture (such as
Jamaican soup recipe) and cooked until done. Some are stuffed with meat or
cheese mixtures. Jamaican dessert dumplings most often consist of a fruit
mixture encased in a sweet pastry dough and baked. They're usually served
with a sauce. Some sweet dumplings are poached in a sweet sauce and served
with cream. Some fried dumplings are served with popular Jamaican recipes
such as ackee and salt fish. |
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dust |
In Jamaican cooking, this term refers to lightly
coating a Jamaican food with a powdery ingredient such as flour or
confectioners' sugar. The term is also used to describe inferior, coarsely
crushed tea leaves used by Jamaican chefs and cooks. |
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Dutch oven |
A large Jamaican pot or kettle, usually made of
cast iron, with a tight-fitting lid so steam cannot readily escape. It's
used for moist-Jamaican cooking methods, such as braising and stewing. It is
commonly known as the Jamaican dutchie. |
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E |
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earth almonds |
A tiny, tuberous roots of an African plant of the
sedge family, chufa nuts. They have a brown, bumpy skin and a sweet,
chestnut like flavor. These are more commonly known as Jamaican peanuts. |
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earth nut |
Jamaican peanuts are considered a rather common
nut. Jamaican peanuts are widely grown and is used to make Jamaican recipes
such as Jamaican peanut butter and Jamaican peanut porridge. At one stage of
its growth, the peanut plant looks very much like the common garden pea
plant. |
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earthenware |
Clay bake ware that is glazed with a hard,
nonporous coating. If high-fired, the earthenware is hard; low firing
produces soft, fragile ware. Because of its inherent ability to release heat
slowly, earthenware is favored for dishes requiring lengthy cooking such as
baked beans and stews. Care must be taken to cool earthenware slowly and
completely before washing in order to prevent the glaze from cracking. Once
the glaze cracks, the exposed surfaces can adversely affect the flavor of
foods cooked in the container. |
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earthnuts |
Jamaican peanuts are considered a rather common
nut. Jamaican peanuts are widely grown and is used to make Jamaican recipes
such as Jamaican peanut butter and Jamaican peanut porridge. At one stage of
its growth, the peanut plant looks very much like the common garden pea
plant. |
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Easter bun |
This is a Jamaican bread recipe called a bun. This
recipe is used mostly during the Easter and is eaten mostly with cheese
hence the term bun and cheese. The Jamaican Easter bun recipe is actually a
mixture of yeast, sugar, raisins and flour along with several Jamaican
spices such as Jamaican cinnamon and Jamaican cloves. |
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éclair |
A small, oblong, cream-filled pastry. Jamaican
éclairs are usually topped with a sweet icing and use natural Jamaican fruit
fillings such as Jamaican mango and Jamaican banana filling. |
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egg cream |
Egg creams contain a speck of egg and are so named
because of the froth that crowns the drink. They're made with a mixture of
milk and chocolate syrup into which seltzer water is spritzed, causing the
mixture to foam enthusiastically. Jamaican egg cream is a popular Jamaican
food recipe. |
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egg pierce |
A kitchen tool with a sharp steel pin, usually
spring-mounted, which pokes a tiny hole in the large end of an egg. This
hole prevents the egg from cracking because the air inside (which expands
during boiling) can gradually escape. This tool is used in several Jamaican
food recipes. |
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egg ring |
A round, bottomless, stainless steel ring,
sometimes with a vertical handle, in which an egg can be poached or fried.
The ring keeps the egg perfectly round during Jamaican cooking. It's removed
before the egg is served. |
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egg roll |
A small, stuffed Jamaican pastry usually served as
an appetizer. Paper-thin pastry wrappers are folded around a savory filling
of minced or shredded vegetables and sometimes meat, then folded and rolled
before being deep-fried. This is a recipe brought to Jamaican by the Chinese
laborers to which natural Jamaican spices have been added. |
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egg roll skins |
Paper-thin sheets of dough made from flour, eggs
and salt, and used to make won ton, egg rolls and similar preparations. Won
ton skins can be purchased prepackaged in some supermarkets and in most
Jamaican markets. The wrappers usually come in both squares and circles and
are available in various thicknesses. |
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egg scissors |
Used to remove the top of soft-cooked eggs, this
circular gadget has a scissors-style handle. It's positioned over the top of
the egg and, when the handle is operated, a ring of "teeth" or a ringed
blade clips off the top third of the eggshell. This is used to make several
great Jamaican food recipes. |
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egg slicer |
A kitchen tool with a slatted, egg-shaped hollow
on the bottom and a hinged top consisting of 10 fine steel wires. When the
upper portion is brought down onto a hard-cooked egg sitting in the base, it
cuts the egg into even slices. This is used to make several Jamaican food
recipes. |
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egg substitutes |
A liquid sold in cartons, this product is usually
a blend of egg whites, food starch, corn oil, skim-milk powder, tofu,
artificial coloring and a plethora of additives. It contains no cholesterol
but each serving is almost as high in sodium as a real egg. Egg substitutes
can be scrambled and also used in many Jamaican baking and Jamaican cooking
recipes calling for whole eggs. |
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egg timer |
A tiny "hourglass" that holds just enough sand to
run from top to bottom in 3 minutes, the time it takes to soft-boil an egg.
This is not a popular instrument used in Jamaican cooking or during the
preparation of Jamaican food recipes. |
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egg wash |
Egg yolk or egg white mixed with a small amount of
water or milk. It's brushed over breads, pastry and other Jamaican baked
goods before baking to give them color and gloss. The wash is used in
several Jamaican food recipes. |
