12 Caribbean Christmas Recipes (2024)

It’s Christmas! It’s Christmas! It’s the time of the year when everyone is nice to each other, so much love in the air.

MERRY CHRISTMAS and A HAPPY NEW YEAR

Please share using the hashtags #Top12Caribbean #caribbeanholidayrecipes12 Caribbean Christmas Recipes (2)

It’s the end of the year! It’s the holidays, It’s Christmas time and we are celebrating. OH! and it’s cold outside.

This my first holiday roundup post, and let me tell you, these recipes here are the best of the best in the Caribbean Food Bloggers hemisphere.

A big thank youto all the amazing bloggers who are allowing me to use their recipes and images.

So, without further-ado, here are myTop 12 Caribbean Christmas/ Holiday Recipes

Top 12 Caribbean Holiday Recipe, coming at ya!

Merry Christmas

A decadent Caribbean black cake made with rum soaked fruits.

From the Blog HomeMadeZagat

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This is the ultimate Christmas cake in the Caribbean. It’s also popularly known as “Black Cake” as its color is darkened when made.

From the Blog HomeMadeZagat

This vegan Trinidad black cake is moist, dense and filled with fruits and alcohol. It’s the perfect vegan alternative to a traditional Trini Christmas rum cake.

From the Blog Exsloth

12 Caribbean Christmas Recipes (4)

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What is Trinidad black cake? Well, it’s basically a cross between a fruit cake and a rum cake but much more moist and a bit more dense.

It’s filled with dried fruit like raisins, mixed peel, sultans and cherries as well as a boatload of alcohol, of course. From the Blog Exsloth

The perfect topping for your Christmas ham, this chow chow is the ideal pairing. Pickle vegetables in a mustard base is the perfect holiday condiment.

From the Blog Homemadezagat

12 Caribbean Christmas Recipes (5)

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The process for this relish is to brine your vegetables then simmer them down in a base of flavor. Though I keep mentioning ham, because it is the popular meat of choice in the Trinidad and Tobago at the time, this is easily used on sandwiches, with fried meats, on hot dogs (my favorite).

From the Blog HomeMadeZagat

Pineapple Honey Glazed Ham-Tender, juicy ham with a pineapple and Spiced rum Glaze-Flavored with Caribbean Spices ; nutmeg, cloves and thyme. Sweet Spicy and Spiced.

From the blog Immaculate Bites

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The Festive Season is here. And most people are celebrating during this period. If you are…. What is better than a flavorful tender and Juicy Pineapple Ham, on the table to WOW your families and friends?

From the blog Immaculate Bites

This dish is one of my family’s favorite. It really bring the family together, whether it’s cooked the Jamaican way or the Trinidad way , I like calling this dish the family reunion dish. That’s because when word goes out that I’m making Oxtail and Rice, everyone shows up for dinner!

From Simply Caribbean12 Caribbean Christmas Recipes (7)

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Growing up in Trinidad, Oxtail was and probably still an expensive meat, it was rarely cooked in our home, I guessed because it was too expensive,we had it once or twice a month along with goat meat, fish, chicken, and some other things which I will save for another post.

I saw Escovitch Fish prepared for the first time when my aunt’s friend brought over fresh snapper to fry for us. Seasoned with spices, she put the whole fish in a frying pan filled with oil. The oil bubbled around the fish as she added the scotch bonnet peppers.

From the Blog Seasoning Bottle

12 Caribbean Christmas Recipes (8)

As a child, my mom sent my siblings and I to Jamaica for summers. Aunt Judy’s house is where we stayed. As soon as I stepped foot into her driveway, the sweet aroma of mangoes from the trees outside floated around me. Aunt Judy was never an avid cook but, her kitchen was filled with cooks.

From the Blog Seasoning Bottle

How to Make Puerto Rican Arroz con Gandules in a Rice Cooker (Rice with Pigeon Peas) {Recipe}.

From the Blog ModernMami

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Rice can be served in so many different ways. You can have white rice alone, white rice with a variety of beans (served on top of the rice, not on the side), and yellow rice. Yellow rice is when you really get a variety since you can mixjust about anything into yellow rice: beans, vegetables, meat, etc.

From the Blog ModernMami

My family love this calypso rice during the holiday season, but it always takes a long time , almost 45 – 60 minutes to cook, so when I’m in a rush to get dinner on the table, especially during the holiday , using the regular brown rice DO NOT cut it for me. Minute Rice is a go.

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This dish is very simple to make, and I served it up with a spiced Cajun Chicken or Stew Oxtails, will be posting the chicken recipe shortly

From The Blog Simply Caribbean

If you are looking for a much better eggnog for the season, this is .drink to knock you out our socks. A Caribbean Christmas staple.

From the Blog HomeMadeZagat12 Caribbean Christmas Recipes (11)Get The Recipe

There are some things you associate with a Trini Christmas. Pastelle, black cake, and well ponche de creme, or as we say “Punch a creme”.

From the Blog HomeMadeZagat

Christmas is not the same without sorrel, ponche o creme and black fruit cake ,well at least in my household it is .

So here is my version of a True Trini Sorrel Drink. Make it a delicious cocktail by adding some alcohol.

From The Blog Simply Caribbean

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The sorrel flower is in full bloom at Christmas time in Trinidad and most of the Caribbean so that’s one of the reasons it’s traditionally considered a holiday drink.

From The Blog Simply Caribbean

A refreshing drink with a punch of ginger.

From the Blog HomeMadeZagat

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Ginger beer is a staple drink in Trinidad and Tobago, especially around Christmas time. It isn’t really a beer beer, but it has to be left to ferment so I suppose the process is like a beer.

From the Blog HomeMadeZagat

In many Puerto Rican households, you can always tell when the holiday season has begun because coquito begins to make an appearance. Coquito is a Puerto Rican holiday drink and just as eggnog is loved in American households during the holidays, coquito also has a special place.

From the Blog ModernMami

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Just like many foods, the coquito recipe may vary slightly depending on the individual. Some people make coquito with egg and others without, but there’s no denying the basic ingredients of coconut, milk, and rum. It makes for a deliciously rich and creamy holiday cocktail, perfect for your holiday entertaining!

From the Blog ModernMami

Pastelles A Caribbean Christmas Tradition.

From Roger Mookings

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From Roger Mookings

Guyanese Pepperpot

If you are Guyanese, then more than likely, you will be having Pepperpot for breakfast on Christmas morning- unless of course, you’re a vegetarian.Pepperpot is a unique type ofstew that is made withcasareepand some type of red meat or pork (some people use chicken, but that seems to be the exception, not the rule here)

From The Inner Gourmet

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The stew is cooked with a handful of ingredients and tends to taste better over time. It is served alongside slices ofplait breadand is typically enjoyed during the holiday time, but is also made throughout the year.

From The Inner Gourmet

My recipe is a mix of Trini and Bajan put together, this one is without the coconut filling. Lots of grated coconut, sugar and spices for a delicious Christmas Morning Sweetbread

From The Blog Simply Caribbean

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Lemon Orange Cream Cheese Glaze

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A delicious breakfast or brunch for your holiday table. Freshly baked homemade cinnamon rolls and buns are one of my favorite things to make and eat! I used fresh strawberries and made a delicious filling for the rolls as well as some for the top along with a Lemon , Orange and Cream Cheese Glaze

From Simply Caribbean

12 Caribbean Christmas Recipes (2024)

FAQs

What do Caribbean people eat at Christmas? ›

A Caribbean Christmas involves food - and lots of it!

Every family's Caribbean Christmas dinner menu varies, but you can expect it to include dishes like traditional Christmas turkey, honey ham, jerk pork, macaroni cheese, curry goat and Christmas rum cake (also called fruit cake or black cake).

What is a signature Christmas dish throughout the Caribbean islands? ›

While Great Cake (fruit cake, soaked in rum for three months or longer) is also very popular in Barbados, another traditional Christmas dish is Jug Jug. This plate dates back to Barbados' Scottish heritage, influenced by the dish haggis; made from green peas, guinea corn flour, herbs and salt meat.

What is the Trinidad Caribbean Christmas food? ›

Susan Macio's "Trini Christmas Is the Best" lists the staples: ham, pastelles, ginger beer, ponche a crème, sorrel, and local homemade wine are all expected at most Trini households for the holiday season.

What is Jamaica's Christmas dish? ›

A most popular meal at this time of year is dinner, as around Christmastime this meal tends to be made in a special way. Traditional Jamaican Christmas dinner typically includes ham, oven-baked chicken, curried goat, oxtail, and fish. Based on the menu, these items would be cooked in various Jamaican styles.

What are 6 Caribbean foods? ›

Food guide

It is divided into the six Caribbean food groups: staples, vegetables, fruits, legumes, foods from animals and fats and oils; and surrounded by images of people doing physical activity.

What is each item in the 12 days of Christmas? ›

Typically at the end of the 12 days, you would have received 12 partridges in pear trees, 22 turtle doves, 30 French hens, 36 calling birds, 40 gold rings, 42 geese laying eggs, 42 swans, 40 milking maids, 36 dancing ladies, 30 leaping lords, 22 piping pipers and 12 drumming drummers from your true love, but with the ...

What is the main Christmas meal consists of 12 dishes? ›

Why do Poles eat 12 dishes during the Christmas Eve dinner? Tradition calls for 12 traditional courses to be served during the Polish Christmas Eve. This number is a symbol of wealth, the 12 Apostles and a representation of the 12 months of the year. But in the past, dinner consisted of an odd number of dishes.

What is the tradition of 12 days of Christmas? ›

What are the 12 days of Christmas? The 12 days of Christmas is the period in Christian theology that marks the span between the birth of Christ and the coming of the Magi, the three wise men. It begins on December 25 (Christmas) and runs through January 6 (the Epiphany, sometimes also called Three Kings' Day).

What is the most famous Caribbean dish? ›

Top 5 Caribbean national dishes
  1. Jerk Chicken – Jamaica. ...
  2. Coucou & Flying Fish – Barbados. ...
  3. Green banana and salt fish – St Lucia. ...
  4. Sancocho – Dominican Republic. ...
  5. Fungee & Pepperpot – Antigua and Barbuda.

What do they eat in the Bahamas for Christmas? ›

A typical Bahamian Christmas dinner often includes a family style spread of oven roasted turkey, brown sugar and mustard glazed ham, a wide range of fresh caught seafood, peas and rice, baked macaroni and cheese, coleslaw, stuffing, and crab salad, just to name a few popular menu selections.

What Caribbean fruit is eaten in almost all Caribbean dishes? ›

Plantains (or plátanos as they're called in Latin America) are a staple part of Caribbean cuisine. You can find them fried, baked, and mashed; each preparation style will alter the nutrition composition, but plantains are packed with nutrition. (Note that unlike bananas, they can't be eaten raw.)

What is traditional Guyanese Christmas food? ›

Traditional Guyanese Christmas delicacies
  • Pepper pot. Pepper pot. Ingredients: 2 pig trotters or 1 cow heel. ...
  • Sorrel Drink. Sorrell. Ingredients: 8 cups sorrel petals. ...
  • Ginger beer. Ginger Beer. Ingredients: 1 lb. ...
  • Garlic Pork. Garlic Pork. Ingredients: ...
  • Black cake (Jehan Powell recipe) Black cake. For the Fruits.
Dec 25, 2022

What is a traditional Christmas breakfast in Trini? ›

A traditional Christmas breakfast is pineapple-glazed ham and a crusty yet pillowy bread roll, called hops. It's a simple, but delicious start to the day, as the preparations kick into gear for the feasting to come.

What do caribbeans do for Christmas? ›

Jamaicans celebrate Christmas much like Americans: they go to church, exchange gifts with family and friends, then gather for a big meal. Christmas Day in Jamaica is a day of feasting on some unique delicacies you may never have heard of including oxtail, curry goat, and Gungo peas.

What is Christmas like in the Caribbean? ›

Christmas calls for partying and all throughout the Caribbean, islanders come alive during the season, as they turn the music up a little louder and the drinks get a little stronger. With the islands sharing many cool and unique Christmas traditions, there are still a few rituals that are unique to each island.

What is a traditional food on Christmas Island? ›

Traditionally, chickens were kept on the island and locals produced their own pickled eggs and Chinese century eggs. Dishes that made use of the chickens themselves were popular along with dishes that included local coconut crabs. However, coconut crabs are now a protected species.

What are 3 traditional Christmas foods? ›

These are the top-rated main dish and side dish recipes you need for a perfect traditional Christmas dinner. They cover the savory side of Christmas dinner, from prime rib, baked ham, and roast turkey to scalloped potatoes, green bean casserole, and cranberry sauce.

What type of food do caribbeans eat? ›

Ingredients that are common in most islands' dishes are rice, plantains, beans, cassava, cilantro, bell peppers, chickpeas, tomatoes, sweet potatoes, coconut, and any of various meats that are locally available like beef, poultry, pork, goat or fish.

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