food - Haiti Observer Blog

A wildly popular Haitian recipe, Diri Ak Djondjon is most popularly served at weddings, first communions and birthday parties as a side dish. This northern Haitian recipe, mostly commonly served with a main course, is a low maintenance dish that cooks up quickly, but gives off such wonderful, delicious aromas when cooking it is a definite favorite. The mushrooms, (Psathyrella coprinoceps) give off incredible color and flavor to the dish. To optimize efficiency when preparing Diri Ak Djondjon, one may prepare all the ingredients you will need in advance.

What you will need:
• 2 cups of rice (long grain)
• 4 cups of water
• 1 cup of dried, black mushrooms
• 1 small, finely chopped onion
• 2 garlic cloves (chopped)
• 2 tbsp. of oil or butter
• Salt (to taste)
• Pepper (to taste)
• A sprig of thyme

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Not only is Soup Joumou, or squash soup a tasty Caribbean dish, it's a symbol of Haitian liberation. During the reign of the French, Haitians were forbidden the dish as it was considered too elevated for slaves. As a commemoration of Haitian freedom, since 1804, Haitians, who enjoy the soup at their leisure year-round, have Squash Soup on the 1st of January as a rule.

What you will need:
• 1 lb of fresh Caribbean pumpkin or a 12 oz pack of frozen squash (butternut squash is a suitable substitute)
• 8 cups of water
• 1 lb of cubed soup meat (beef, chicken, etc.)
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 4 cloves of garlic, crushed
• 1 lb soup bone (optional)
• 1 sprig of fresh thyme or 1 tsp. dried thyme leaves
• 2 whole cloves
• 1 stalk of celery, chopped
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2 potatoes, cubed
• 1 chayote, cubed (optional)
• 1/4 of a small cabbage, chopped coarsely
• 1 diced turnip
• 2 sliced carrots
• 2 leeks cut into 1/2 inch pieces (whites only, optional)
• 1 tablespoon chopped parsley
• 1 Scotch bonnet pepper
• 1/4 lb spaghetti, broken into pieces
• 1 tbsp. of lime juice or vinegar

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Made up of 100% muscle, conch, a Caribbean specialty dish can be a succulent change from the normal cuisine, if prepared correctly. While sometimes eaten raw, it can also be cooked in a Creole sauce or grilled and eaten in a salad. Many Caribbean countries have their own recipes, but, below is a traditional Haitian method to preparing conch.

What you will need:
• 1 lb of Conch (shell, clean and skin it)
• A medium sized onion
• A pinch of Maggie
• A pinch of baking soda (to help expedite the cooking time)
• 1/2 a tsp. of Old Bay
• 1 tsp. butter
• Juice of a lime
• 2 tsp. of sour orange
• 3/4 of a cup of water
• 1 chopped tomato
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1/4 cup of oil
• 1/4 cup of scallions
• 3 tbsp. of tomato paste
• 3 tbsp. of vinegar
• 1 tsp. thyme
• 1 tsp. parsley

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One very popular dish found on many Haitian plates is Tassot de Cabrit (Fried Goat Meat Bits). This dish is usually paired with rice, fried plantains and veggies and gets its start with a good selection of goat meat, usually a goat's leg. The leaner and fresher the leg, though pricier, the better your end result. Though, frozen goat meat may also be used and any excess fat may be trimmed off during preparation.

What you will need:
• 2-3 lbs of cubed goat meat
• 1/2 a cup of Orange Juice (Sour)
• 1/4 of a cup of Lime Juice
• 1 tsp. of hot pepper and salt (each)
• 1 tbsp. of chopped parsley and thyme (each)
• 2 finely chopped shallots
• 4 cups of water
• Oil for frying

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Diri Ak Pois Coles, or Rice and Red Beans is a traditional dish of the region, especially in Haiti. It is cooked with red kidney beans. A staple in chili dishes, the beans are popularly used in many parts of the world, including India, Mexico and in the United States. In Haiti, it is combined with rice and other ingredients to make a popular Sunday dinner dish.

What you will need:

• 1 cup red kidney beans
• 6 cups of water
• 2 cups white rice (long grained)
• 1 finely chopped onion
• 2 to 4 cloves of finely chopped garlic
• 1/4 cup smoked ham or salted pork, cubed
• 2 tbsp. vegetable oil
• Sprig of thyme
• Ground cloves
• 1 green hot pepper
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 tbsp. butter

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A savory, high protein dish, Beans Puree or Sauce Pois (also Sauce Pois Noir) is a wonderful addition to a balanced diet.

What you will need:
• 2 cups of dried red beans
• 2 quarts of water
• 1 cup of ham, cubed
• 3 scallions
• 2 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 tbsp. parsley
• 2 shallots
• Hot pepper, salt and black pepper (to taste)
• 4 whole cloves or 1/4 tsp. ground cloves

What you must do:
1. Search beans for stones and twigs, then rinse the beans in water.
2. Cover with water and soak overnight. Drain.
3. Make paste with parsley, scallions, hot peppers and shallots.
4. Heat oil and add beans, sautéing with paste.
5. Add ham, parsley and water.
6. Boil until beans are tender, about 2 hours.
7. Separate 3/4 of the beans and blend along with some of the juice into a puree. (If you do not have a blender, use spoon to crush beans through a strainer.
8. Return pureed or crushed beans to pan with the remaining 1/4 and cook over low heat.
9. Season to taste and cook until sauce is reduced to thickness.

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There are a few tried and true avenues through which a country can establish its name on the world map. Its people, its culture, its art and music, sports, government, etc. all can be conduits through which a country's popularity rises worldwide. Haiti has had successes in these fields and more before, but, the earthquake of January 2010 usurped the top spot and put the name Haiti into the minds of the world's people in a context of pity and sorrow. Ever since then, the fight to reclaim the country's popularity in a more positive attitude has been waged by the tourism sector.

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The government of Haiti (GOH) wants to open 90 canteens throughout Haiti in response to the burgeoning food crisis. Social agency, Ede Pep, is implementing the canteen program with funding from Petrocaribe. Minister of Social Affairs and Labor, Charles Jean-Jacques, inaugurated the program in April in the village of Derac. Both he and Northeast Departmental Delegate, Charles Hugo, handed out pantry items to 1,000 community inhabitants.

At the distribution site, Jean-Jacques said he was GOH's emissary of goodwill. He said he knew the looming food crisis was creating anxiety, and he was committed to improving the situation. He informed them once the canteen was built, they would enjoy one hot meal a day. Hugo said he felt pleased the program would restore the image of a prosperous Derac during the 1950s.

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We all know the immediate dangers of hurricanes and tropical storms. The high winds and heavy rainfall can cause loss of life and infrastructure on grand scales within a short time. But, there is a latent danger to the weather phenomena which can prove just as costly to life when finally manifested. Most recently, the efforts of Hurricane Sandy, a storm which some say seemed particularly bent on bringing down trees, and Tropical Storm Isaac, caused such virulent flooding in the country, the southerly regions especially, that an estimated 90% of the harvest has been lost.

This has undoubtedly left such a food deficit that, according to the United Nations' relief wing, one and a half million people are faced with 'severe food insecurity'. Ironically, drought, as well as the floods, also plays a significant role in the shortage of food. Information from The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) also point to a rise in the rate of malnutrition affecting 7 out of 10 departments since October. They have on record almost 82,000 malnourished children under 5 years old. It's further said that one in every five households is faced with the threat of acute malnutrition and the U.N. believes that Grande-Anse in the far west is among the worst hit places.

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Ciguatera, which goes by the catch-all label of Copper Fish, make their home in tropical climates such as Haiti. A poisonous form of algae, ciguatera has been found in 400-plus types of fish living in waters near reefs. The ciguatera algae form on coral reefs, as well as seaweed and other kinds of benign algae. Small fish who feed on these plants ingest ciguatera, made up of several strains of toxins: ciguatoxin, maitotoxin, scaritoxin, and palytoxin. Ciguatera was first recognized as a dangerous toxin in 1774.

What happens once the plant-feeding fish ingest the toxins, they then become food for larger flesh-eating fish until it reaches the apex of the food chain in bigger fish: moray eels, groupers, trigger fishes, and barracudas. These are the fish caught, brought to market, and that end up on a family's table. The problem with ciguatoxin is that it has no odor, taste, and cannot by contaminated by the usual cooking methods.

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