What Kind of Food Do They Eat in Guyana?

Guyanese enjoy a variety of dishes on a regular basic and as with many countries, the food tells about the country’s past, present and future. Guyana is the only English Speaking Country in South America and it is the home of Kaieteur Falls, one of the highest water falls in the world. There is not a shortage of friendly people in this country and it is also rich in natural beauty. Some of the foods that are eaten here are as follows.

Pepper Pot

Pepper Pot is the country’s national dish and it is a dish that came from the Amerindians or Indigenous people of the land. This meal is usually prepared on Christmas eve, or, in the early morning hours on Christmas day. It is then served for breakfast on Christmas morning. It is served with bread, preferable homemade bread and steaming hot or warm chocolate “tea.” You would dip a piece of bread into the Pepper Pot and eat and when you are holding the last piece of bread in your hand, you would use it to soak up every drop of this delicious and special dish.

Some of the ingredients of this dish are ox tail, beef, pork, seasoning and casareep. Cassareep is made from cassava root and it is a tick black liquid which is also used in many other dishes here.

Metegee

Metegee is an all in one dish, which is made with ground provision and “meat.” Cassava, plantain, eddoes and potatoes are some of the ground provision used and egg, beef, pork, chicken or fish is chosen for the meat. After the meat is cooked, the ground provision is gradually added to the pot, then some coconut milk, which helps to thicken the “sauce” in this meal. Of course, if egg is the only “meat” used, it is usually added last.

Fruits

In this land of many waters, parents do not usually have to battle with their children to eat their fruits. In fact, it is the other way around. They have to tell them to stop eating so much of it. There are many homes that have at least one fruit tree growing in their yards. It may be a mango, or a cherry tree, a pear, or a tamarind tree, Guyanese also eat guineps, pineapple, banana and the list goes on.

To gain some more insight into this topic and to find a lot of recipes, the book What’s Cooking in Guyana by the Carnegie School of Home Economics, is a good place to look.