Taymer Mason - Caribbean Vegan

Caribbean
VEGAN

EXPANDED SECOND EDITION

Meat-Free, Egg-Free, Dairy-Free
Authentic Island Cuisine for Every Occasion

Taymer Mason

CARIBBEAN VEGAN: Meat-Free, Egg-Free, Dairy-Free, Authentic Island Cuisine for Every OccasionExpanded Second Edition
Copyright 2010, 2016 by Taymer Mason
Food photography copyright 2016 by Matthew Benson

All rights reserved. Except for brief passages quoted in newspaper, magazine, radio, television, or online reviews, no portion of this book may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or information storage or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

The Experiment, LLC
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This book contains the opinions and ideas of its author. It is intended to provide helpful and informative material on the subjects addressed in the book. It is sold with the understanding that the author and publisher are not engaged in rendering medical, health, or any other kind of personal professional services in the book. The author and publisher specifically disclaim all responsibility for any liability, loss, or riskpersonal or otherwisethat is incurred as a consequence, directly or indirectly, of the use and application of any of the contents of this book.

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Mason, Taymer.

Title: Caribbean vegan : meat-free, egg-free, dairy-free authentic island cuisine for every occasion.

Description: Second edition. | New York, NY : The Experiment, LLC, [2016] | Includes bibliographical references and index.

Identifiers: LCCN 2016020831 (print) | LCCN 2016020919 (ebook)

Subjects: LCSH: Cooking, Caribbean. | Vegan cooking. | LCGFT: Cookbooks.

Classification: LCC TX716.C27 M37 2016 (print) | LCC TX716.C27 (ebook) | DDC 641.59729--dc23

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2016020831

eISBN 9781615193615

Design by Sarah Smith
Food styling by Nora Singley
Prop styling by Sarah Smith
Author photograph by Anton Nixon

Manufactured in China
Distributed by Workman Publishing Company, Inc.
Distributed simultaneously in Canada by Thomas Allen & Son Ltd.

A lot has changed in the past five years internationally and regionally. Veganism has gone mainstream, and it has evolved into subniches, such as plant-based eating and alkaline diets. More people are aware of the term vegan because of media attention and celebrity diets. There has also been an increase in consciousness, and consumers have started to carefully consider what they are eating. There is a pitter-patter for change, but people are still holding on to mixed diets that have ravaged their health over time. Newness is scary, but just as you test the bathwater with your toe before you take the plunge, small changes will start you on the way to bigger ones.

Over the past four decades, the Caribbean diet has also taken a shift for the better. We have gone back to our traditional foods and are depending more on what we produce for collective sustenance. Taxes levied on imported food have increased reliance on local choices. There is also a movement toward mildly processing our superfoods so we can use them in more contemporary dishes; for example, cassava flour is used in pancake mixes. More people have adapted plant-heavy diets, and new fusion dishes are showing up in homes and restaurants across the region. More restaurants are using the term vegan on their menus, providing at least one hearty option.

In response to this changing culinary climate, I have included some of my favorite recent recipes, inspired by my many travels and my career as a vegan chef. In this expanded version of Caribbean Vegan you can delve into the world of regional superfoods and modern-day West Indian cuisine.

Taymer Mason
November 2016

What is Caribbean food? We think of pineapples and coconuts when talking about West Indian food, and while these ingredients are staples in the areas culinary history, Caribbean food is more complex than that. It is a multilayered cuisine influenced by the many cultures that have inhabited and played a role in this region: African, French, Spanish, British, and more. Among other groups who made their mark on the local cuisine are the Indians, brought to the islands by the British to work as indentured servants.

The modern-day Caribbean culinary landscape paints a slightly different picture. Foods that were not of a particular islands tradition can appear due to rising immigration and an influx of skilled workers from other islands. For instance, because Trinidad is in close proximity to Barbados and there was freedom of movement between countries of the region, chutneys and curries are now more prevalent in Barbadian restaurants. Twenty years ago, it was difficult to find these types of foods in Barbados. With the explosion of social media came access to information, leading to fusion cuisine, which has also shaped todays evolving West Indian food. As health and wellness took a front seat, starting especially in 2012, local people looked at their traditional diets and went back to consuming root vegetables. More recently, they have started to experiment with new and exciting ways to consume traditional foods, which has caused another shift in the culinary scene.

Vegans do not eat meat, fish, poultry, eggs, dairy products, or honey. They also do not wear animal products, such as fur and leather. In 2013 the term plant-based became synonymous with the dietary aspect of veganism and not so much with the ethical aspect. It was a time when more people began to listen, stopped in their tracks, and decided to make a change.

Veganism is not new to the region. Ital food, for example, is vegan and is consumed by people who follow the Rastafarian faith. Many of the recipes in this book can be adapted to fit an Ital diet. There are several different groups of Rastafarians, and orthodox practitioners may follow strict rules regarding the type of utensils they use and may cook without salt. A number of their recipes use natural salt replacements, like celery and various herbs that grow close to the sea. One technique that defines Ital cuisine is cooking food in coconut milk, also known as rundown or oil down.

This new edition of Caribbean Vegan veganizes Caribbean food using traditional techniques and modern twists. It also simplifies cooking methods that were once deemed too technical, like pasta making. It gives you a front-seat view of easy flour making at home and provides answers to the emerging thirst for new superfoods. This book also offers valuable information about cooking methods and the history of various Caribbean foods. Along the way, I will take you island-hopping as I share information about different culinary destinations.

I went vegan in 2006 when I was working as a food scientist developing products. This job required that I taste my creations countless times during the process. After sampling many pork pies, something came over me, and I no longer wanted to eat meat. I went home and told my mother, who was worried breakfast would become boring. Since then, however, she too has learned how to cook vegan and sees the nutritional benefits. My father decided to join me on the journey from the beginning and has remained a strict vegan to this very day.