Fruit and Veggies at the Parlour

When I was growing up, we ran to the parlour at the end of the road for everything from salt prunes, pepper mango and pennycools (sp?) to milk, sugar and eggs. The concept of the "parlour" is a distinctly Caribbean one. We have them all throughout the islands . Basically roadside shops, they sell an assortment of culinary haberdashery. Each country will have their own version of snacks but the true beauty of these little shops is in their fruit and vegetables. Most, if not all, of the produce has never been refrigerated. It is being sold usually within a mile or two from its source. Many of the things that show up in country parlours never make into the big supermarkets. You may be lucky and chance upon a batch of cherry tomatoes or a grappe of extra big pommeracs (malay apples). I have three or four parlours around my neighbourhood. Boysie's is run by Angela, Terrence and sisters. Terrence is the golden boy and is a wise sage for his age. He is always ready with cryptic advice. Located less than a quarter mile from the country's mental asylum or the "Mad House", a visit to Boysie's to pick up newspapers, maggi cubes, or my constant addiction, Diet Coke!, is often excitement filled. The melee of mentally challenged drifters sound more ominous than they really are. They are harmless (mostly) and can be quite amusing delivering their sotto voice social commentaries from the sidelines with a comical , cruel clarity. I made the mistake of arriving the other day without lipstick (BIG CRIME for the mentally challenged) and got told off for appearing without it. Oh the joys of life in the tropics. You have to laugh!These were some of the offerings at the parlour yesterday. Above is Caraili, or bitter gourd. It is supposed to be quite a delicacy and is stuffed by many of the Chinese restaurants. I can't eat it at all, it is too bitter for me. If you say you can eat cariilii, I look at you with new respect. It is BITTER. Trinifood over at Can Cook, Must Cook has some great things to say about caraili.
Lovely scotch bonnet peppers.
Home grown ochroes. I like to see the little twists and turns of an imperfect vegetable as it says to me that maybe a whole lot of chemicals were not used to produce it. Perfection makes me suspicious.Pawpaw or papaya ready to be eaten. I sometimes have a slice for breakfast with just a dash of lime and a sprinkle of brown sugar. Pawpaw seeds very easily but there is a story about male and female trees and if you get the male, no fruit.
Terrence giving somebody chat.

Maracas Drive Food

Have we taken street food to another level? It seems that the world is just beginning to discover Trinidadian food. I say this because for a long, long time, most Caribbean food was lumped under one banner. Trinidad's cuisine is different to any other island. In fact, each island is entirely unique. Certainly there may be general culinary adages such as rice and peas but for the most part, each island has very different cuisine.On the way to Maracas beach, the street vendors have taken street snacks to a new level. Pineapple and mango chow with heavy doses of chadon beni, fudge and salt prunes are just some of a few of the things that you can snack on while driving along the winding coastal road.
For all of us who grew up in the seventies, our school yard diet was a steady stream of red mango ( bright red pickled mango that had a chinese origin) and salt prunes which we would store in the pockets of our convent skirts and suck surreptitiously through the sticky, humid after lunch periods. We also lived for sno cones, aloo pies and tamarind balls.
Dixie biscuits and crix have always been in our lives. I don't know who the first baker was who miraculously stumbled upon the first crix recipe. I hope it was a Eureka moment. Little did he know the role that this little biscuit would play on the national stage.


My daughter has only just learned the joy of chow. Mango chow, cucumber chow, pineapple chow. If it grows on a tree, chances are that it can only be improved with a little lime, salt, garlic, chadon beni and pepper. I still love the bite and peel delicacies that appear throughout the year. Topi Tambo (or Tippi Tambo if you are from South) with its crunchy water chestnut/potato texture, Chataigne, the delicious bread nut, Peewah with its bright orange skin and nutty kernel are just some of my favorite things. I am never happier than when I am reading on the couch on a Saturday afternoon with a big bowl of anything that I can peel and eat.
A true farine and avacodo kind of girl.