Taíno-Carib
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Copyright 2017
Copyright 2017
Introduction
Have you ever had delicious Jamaican jerk chicken, fish or pork? "Jerk", is related to jerky, from a Maya word for drying meat. Jamaican jerk is the local name for the indigenous Yamaye Taíno form of cooking on a grill, called barbecoa, the origin of the word barbecue. Two of the main spices in jerk are habañero peppers and pimento, or allspice.Before jerk chicken, there was jerk pork, mainly from wild pigs hunted by Jamaican Maroons. Maroon, is from the word Cimarron (meaning "untamed"), who were originally Taínos who had moved themselves away into the wilds from subjugation on Spanish ranches. In English, "Maroon" later described those enslaved Africans and mestizos who had escaped into the wilds to join and learn from the Cimarrones.
For millennia, in the Western Hemisphere the Taíno and Kalinago (or Island Carib) people of the Caribbean had been using spices, foodstuffs and technologies that eventually entered the Eastern Hemisphere, beginning in 1492. For both the Western and Eastern Hemispheres the most important event of the second millennium AD was the Columbian Encounter. The Encounter began when the voyages of Christopher Columbus brought the Eastern and Western Hemispheres together upon his entry into the tropical region of a territory which came to be known as the Caribbean. Although there is evidence of Chinese and other Precolumbian contact, the 1492 event was sustained when competitive European rivalries saught to exploit the Americas for trade goods, exotic woods and precious minerals. The ancient islands and continents of this western hemisphere came to be called the New World and ultimately the Americas. Obviously, “New” only applied to the Europeans whose recorded knowledge of the Americas began in the 15th century AD. There is no doubt that these Amerindian encounters resulted in the greatest impact on the forming of our modern civilizations.
This article is the first that begins alphabetically
with an ancient Tropical American spice that, in one "All-spice" berry, contained multiple
flavors of those spices originally obtained mainly by overland caravans from Mollucca Island
group in Indonesia.
During the Middle Ages, Chinese,
Arab and Malay traders purchased nutmeg in what is now Indonesia and Southeast
Asia and carried it in boats to the Persian Gulf or by camel and pack animal on
the Silk Road. From the Gulf the spices made their way to Constantinople and Damascus
and eventually Europe.---http://factsanddetails.com/world/cat54/sub345/item1610.html
(Constantinople fell last to the Turks by 1453). ...
a Turkish Blockade to stop trade with Europe and
fostered pirate sea raids. With the
Turkish blockade, Spain was about to be introduced to the Caribbean’s Allspice.
Allspice
Allspice (all-spice) 1. The English word for the Taíno berry which is grown
commercially in Jamaica.
2. Locally called pimento
(from the Spanish "pimenta", who thought that it was a pepper) and
exported internationally as allspice.
3. A most unusual spice
which is reputed to have the combined flavors of cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg and a
mild pepper. 4. Once called “Jamaica
pepper” by the 17th century British. In 1662 (three years before
seizing the island from the Spanish) a British comment in London described Jamaica Pepper as “that most delicate of
Spices”. Imported in Europe in 1601. https://www.britannica.com/plant/allspice
To
the European taste buds the allspice berry was like a combination of cinnamon,
nutmeg, cloves and a mild pepper. Biting into a dry allspice berry produces a
peppery sensation that first assails the tip of the tongue. This taste
experience is followed by a pleasant warmth which bathes the lips and mouth. The
allspice is native to Jamaica
(which is the major exporter of the spice) and other parts of Tropical America.
The tree is a member of the myrtle family. The glossy dark and light green
aromatic leaves are openly spaced on branches which terminate in small bunches
of white flowers. After blooming and pollination the flowers are formed into
small green clusters of berries which later ripen to a purple color.
The
30 foot tall trees once grew wild in the cool Jamaican mountains. Commercially
grown allspice trees were later evenly laid out in orderly pimento “walks”
(groves). For sun drying, mature green berries were harvested then spread out
on large, flat concrete platforms called “barbecues”. The dry coca-brown
colored berries were bagged in burlap sacks
and exported to processing plants where the allspice was then packaged
whole or ground into a powder. [1]
Essential oil is also extracted from the allspice berry.
The oil is commercially used in catsup, meat sauces, baked goods, in the
reproduction of certain fruit flavors and as spice blends for pickles and
sausages. In Jamaica a liqueur called pimento dram is made by steeping the ripe
berries in overproof Jamaican rum with added cinnamon.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKWs7J1Eu_bo4xb08N9sVjAL7EiTc_pIpn-N_IvbSDqlGtuGsFACKp-F1ej0gHl5Bu5il0QldXizDRJNZzX0gnof4Zty_kRQ5tnVFRE-4q6P9mn5t1pCrCWzaeAhc4t3gS3PhLKHUMlMrR/s320/Pimento+Dram.jpg)
The
[2]
validity of allspice as a healing herb has been confirmed by modern science.
Allspice powder is used to make a tea which soothes indigestion. In Jamaica hot
allspice tea is taken for colds, menstrual cramps and upset stomachs. For
muscle aches and pains an allspice polstice made from the powder mixed with
water into a paste and spread out on a clean cloth can be applied to the sore
area. Persons with sensitive skin should avoid topical use of allspice since it
may cause inflammation or a rash. In Guatemala crushed berries are
applied to bruises, sore joints and achy muscles. Allspice, if used as a
healing herb, has two sides to its effectiveness since it has both carcinogenic
and cancer-fighting properties. On one hand, allspice contains a mild
antioxidant which prevents cell
damage that may eventually cause cancer. On the other hand, another active
ingredient, eugenol, promotes cancer
growth. The scientific jury has still not passed a verdict on which way the
balance tips. [3]
It is recommended that persons with a high risk for cancer should avoid the
herb. A high concentration of the essential oil should never be swallowed since
one teaspoon can cause nausea, vomiting and convulsions. As long as it is not
swallowed a drop of the essential oil is used for its healing properties and
when carefully applied lessens the pain of toothaches.
*Recipe for Pimento Dram;
1 cup light rum; 1/4 cup whole allspice berries;1 cinnamon stick; 1 1/2 cup
water; 2/3 cup brown sugar. Steeping ground berries in rum takes a few months.Go
to http://drinks.seriouseats.com/2012/02/diy-vs-buy-should-i-make-my-own-allspice-dram.html
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