Jamaican Lunches
Tasty Jamaican Foods

Jamaican Lunches - On an average Jamaican restaurant’s lunch menu, you will always find chicken and at least one or more of from the list below: The majority of people in Jamaica eat chicken and it is done in various ways.

Lunch - Pumpkin and steamed veg in coconut sauce

Jamaican Lunches

Typical Jamaican meal dishes

• Chicken - stewed, baked, curried, jerk or barbecue 
• Oxtail – stewed 
• Beef  - stewed 
• Pork – stewed, jerk
• Goat - curried
• Fish – fried, steamed, brown-stew
• Red Peas/Gungo Soup 
• Stewed Peas and Rice

Steamed Vegetable with pumpkin and green bananas

In an average home kitchen one meat or fish dish is usually the norm...if it’s a special occasion lunch with guests then at least two or more meats will be prepared.

To compliment and liven up the stewed meat dishes at least two of the following vegetables may be added together with the regular Jamaican seasonings. 

• Carrots 
• Broad Beans 
• cho cho 
• spinners (tiny dumplings)
• Zucchini
• Ochroes

Jamaican Lunches

Side servings with the main dish can be one or two of the following depending on your apetite:  

• Rice and peas
• White rice
• Yams 
• Sweet potatoes
• Potatoes
• Boiled dumplings
• Boiled green bananas
• Fried or steamed bammy
• Fried dumplings
• Fries
• Steamed vegetables
• Vegetable salad 

From Lunch to Jamaican Dinners

Steamed callaloo with bammy and avacado

Jamaican Dinners can be a combination of the items listed for lunch and breakfast.  For example Ackee and Salt fish and Rice and Peas make a great dinner.  So does steamed Callaloo and boiled green bananas or steamed bammy (casava bread).

You may also find a fried dumpling in your fried chicken and rice dinner.  Sweet potato and yam is served with say stewed beef for lunch or dinner. 

Steamed callaloo recipe

Soups

Dried Gungo Peas Soup Dinner

You can also make a one pot meal of peas soup (red peas or gungo peas) with yams, sweet potato and dumplings and meat.   

In Jamaica Rice and Peas is served with all meat dishes. See Rice and Peas recipe here

Green Gungo Peas Soup Dinner

In other words, you can have fun with the Jamaican style cooking – mix and match until you find a great combination.  Choose a vegetable, a starch and a protein dish and create a balanced Jamaican meal you will enjoy. 

Dried Jamaican Red Peas

Just to add…the Jamaican Chefs of all levels use the simple Jamaican foods to create some delightful artistic dishes, so if everyday cooking gets a little bland, then go out to a nice Jamaican restaurant and sample the a la carte style of the Jamaican Chef.

Have fun.

Return from jamaican lunches to Jamaica Food

Return from jamaican lunches to Jamaica Vacations

Got to top