National cuisine of Haiti for gourmets

The cuisine of Haiti is a unique combination of the cooking traditions from Spain, France, African countries, and the Caribbean. Blended and adjusted in line with the island peculiarities, these traditions form modern Haitian cuisine. Hot spices are a typical ingredient here. It is hard to find a dish without chili pepper in Haiti. Local people love fish and use many different fruit varieties: pineapple, grapefruit, sapotiy, orange, zanmann, lemon, ginep, guanabana, passion fruit, mango, coconut, and many more. Haitian cuisine has a peculiarity – locals often mix ingredients that seem to be unfitting at a glance, such as herring and pear. The traditional menu includes beans, rice, millet, and other cereals.

Having listened to scary stories about poverty in the republic, some tourists might think that there is hunger in Haiti. This is not true. There is plenty of food, especially for tourists. Even though local tourist infrastructure needs an upgrade, foreign tourists can find venues with good food. Unlike the common opinion, there are quality cafes and restaurants outside hotels. An interesting fact – Haitians love fish and cook many delicious fish dishes but they are not skilled fishermen. Local people use a traditional and not very efficient method of fishing - they put baskets with a narrow neck in the water and wait until fish swims into the basket. The basket stays in the water for several days. Local restaurants cook fish dishes using fish from Brazil and Norway. The same fish is available in supermarkets, while Haitian fish is unavailable.

Haiti is not an agricultural country, so more than 80% of food is imported. Local shops sell mostly canned food, the vast majority of which is produced in America. People who are used to buying milk and different types of bread and patties will find it hard to stay in Haiti. These products are simply not available here. Genuine cow milk is impossible to find as well because local milk is produced from the dry powder. When preparing for a flight to Haiti, do not bring much food. Take only the products that you plan to eat during the flight because the customs will confiscate the rest upon arrival. Even the import of such common products like bananas or patty cakes is prohibited in Haiti. Copyright www.orangesmile.com

Here are some traditional dishes: Griot (roasted meat marinated with onion and pepper in lime juice, which is served with a vegetable garnish and bananas), Sancocho (different types of meat in a broth with vegetables), Tassot de dinde (smoked turkey), Cabris (roasted goat meat), and Légume Haïtien (think vegetable stew with eggplants). When it comes to bananas, Haitians prefer plantain or the cooking banana. It is not as sweet as the usual banana, so plantain in the Caribbean has a similar usage to potato in Europe. Plantain is rich in starch. It can be roasted, boiled, stewed – in short, it is cooked like the potato.

Now let’s talk about drinks in Haiti. First of all, it is important to mention the usual drinking water. There are almost no natural sources of water in the country. Even though the poorest Haitians drink water from wells, it is not clean enough. Drinking water is usually sold in plastic bottles. There are also durable plastic bags with water enough to fill one glass. These are the kinds that tourists should use. Freshly pressed juices are very popular. They are great in quenching thirst and are a natural replacement of drinking water. The banana cocktail is among the most popular non-alcoholic beverages. Sugar and milk are the main ingredients in this cocktail, and banana is the third ingredient. Nevertheless, the drink is called the banana cocktail.

Haitian rum is valued not only in its home country but also beyond its borders. It has many international awards. Rhum Barbancourt in Port-au-Prince is one of the most famous producers of rum in the country. The company uses sugarcane cultivated nearby on the island, so the produced rum has a distinctive taste. Rum is a typical ingredient in various liqueurs and is present in almost all alcoholic cocktails in local bars. The Haitian Prestige beer is exceptionally popular in the country. BRANA, the company that brews it, also has more than 40 varieties of beer in its product line.

What desserts should tourists try in Haiti? Consider trying the a la Haiti hot chocolate. It is often simply called Haiti on the menus. This hot chocolate comes with cinnamon, lime, vanilla, anise, and condensed milk. Together, these ingredients create an unforgettable taste that is very hard to copy if you do not know the exact ratio of all ingredients. While in Pétion-Ville, don’t forget to visit Patisserie Marie Beliard that bakes fresh croissants every morning. Besides them, the patisserie offers pear nectar juice, various patty cakes, cookies, pies, and other desserts.

If you want to have a nice lunch or dinner, tour guides in Pétion-Ville recommend visiting Chicken Fiesta. This restaurant specializes in dishes with chicken and does this exceptionally well. There are chicken soups, grilled chicken, chicken pizza, and many other dishes that are worth trying. If you prefer non-spicy dishes, specify this in advance and the chef will cook your order accordingly. Are there typical fast-food restaurants in Haiti that foreign tourists are used to? Of course, and Epi d'Or in Port-au-Prince is one of them. This restaurant specializes in American-type fast food. The serving time is short, and the prices are affordable. There are also buffet type options available. Tourists might find negative feedback about Haiti on social media. Some of these reviews are true, some are faked, and some are exaggerated. The truth is, there is developed tourist infrastructure in certain Haitian cities, and it is possible to find quality and delicious food in this country.