Jamaica: Everything You Need to Know About the Jamaican Patty

What has a flaky and crispy golden yellow crust and is filled with spicy meat? That's right. It's one of the most iconic foods ever to come out of Jamaica, the Jamaican patty.

Along with jerk chicken, no other dish exemplifies or represents Jamaican cuisine than the beloved patty. The dish is a savory pie, filled usually with meat and baked. It's usually very spicy, and its popularity has become known worldwide.

It is usually identifiable because of its yellow crust that takes its color from egg yolk and turmeric. It is a turnover that typically has a filling of spicy meat.

According to Yaso Grill, sometimes cheese, often cheddar, is added. However, due to the Rastafari population, there are also vegetarian options for the dish.

The Quintessential Street Food in Jamaica

While there are variations of the dish across the Caribbean, the Jamaican version has become famous worldwide.

In Jamaica, the dish is a common sight among street vendors, who often offer a variety of fillings, including ground beef, chicken, goat, pork, lobster, shrimp, vegetable, and even fruits, according to Culture Trip. There is also a Rasta version called "yatti."

Jamaicans like it hot, and many use the infamous Jamaican bonnet pepper to give these pies a kick. However, there are some patties that are a bit milder for those who cannot take the heat.

There are also a lot of combinations for the dish, as it is often served as a sandwich, usually between two pieces of coco bread. There are also fast food outlets around Jamaica that serve combo meals centered around patties.

Other vendors often serve it with a side of tam or plantain, and there are even drive-thru patty restaurants. Jamaica cooks around 300,000 patties a day. That is one patty per 10 people every day for a country with a population of just three million people.

Jamaican Patties Becoming Known Globally

Jamaica was originally a British colony, and the Jamaican people took the inspiration for the dish from the Cornish pasty. It was enhanced by the migrant Indian population and the African population. Hundreds of years later, it is now a staple in Jamaican cuisine.

The patty has gained some global traction thanks to immigration, as Jamaicans settled in other countries such as the U.K., Canada, and the United States. It even made its way to other countries in the world, such as Europe and even parts of Asia.

It is a classic bodega food in New York, which even holds a National Jamaican Patty Day every August. New York has a sizeable Jamaican and Caribbean population, and they have certainly made their presence felt by popularizing the patty.

However, the patty name did stir up a bit of a controversy in Canada, as the government tried to prevent confusion between the popular Jamaican pies and hamburger patties.

Fortunately, Jamaican patty vendors won the right to identify their dish as "Jamaican patty." The dish has become so popular worldwide that they are also often sold as frozen ready-to-bake foods.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Rick Martin

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