Callaloo
Trinidad and Tobago (West African calalu tradition adapted to Caribbean ingredients)
Callaloo is the Caribbean's most versatile green stew — a silky, deeply flavoured preparation of callaloo leaves (dasheen/taro leaves in Trinidad; amaranth in Jamaica) cooked with coconut milk, crab or salt beef, okra, pumpkin, thyme, and scotch bonnet, blended or beaten to a smooth, dark green purée in the Trinidadian style. In Jamaica, callaloo refers to the cooked leafy greens without blending, served as a side. The Trinidadian callaloo is a complex, multi-ingredient stew that is the first course of every Sunday lunch and the required accompaniment to the national feast. Crab is the essential protein — its sweetness contrasts the bitter depth of the taro leaves, and the shells impart flavour to the broth.