Guyanese Online

GUYANESE CUISINE: A MOUTHWATERING MELTING POT

Nowhere is the cultural diversity of Guyana more clearly reflected than in its food. The Indigenous Peoples plus immigrants from Africa, India, China, Portugal and other European countries have all contributed to contemporary Guyanese cuisine. The result is a delicious cornucopia of flavours. 

Many consider Guyana’s national dish to be pepperpot. This thick stew normally takes hours to make, and can include a variety of meats–beef, pork, lamb, chicken–some hot peppers, and cassareep, a special sauce made from cassava root. Originally an indigenous dish, pepperpot is now a Guyanese Christmas tradition in many homes.

As you move into the interior of the country (rainforest and savannah regions), you’ll increasingly come in contact with cassava, one of the key ingredients in so many indigenous dishes. The root of a woody shrub that grows throughout Guyana, cassava can be prepared a number of ways, including cassava bread and farine, a course flour that can be sprinkled on almost any meat or vegetable.

Wash down your meal with a local Banks beer, or prize-winning El Dorado rum, and you’ve got a true Guyanese culinary experience.

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National Geographic: Chef Gordon Ramsay meets Guyanese chef Delvin Adams

In this short video from National Geographic, chef Gordon Ramsay meets Guyanese chef Delvin Adams at Georgetown’s Bourda Market. After touring the market, Chef Delvin clues Ramsay in on pepperpot, cassareep and other Guyanese goodies, before sending him off on his rainforest adventure.