West Indian Rice and Green Peas

My mother-in-law is Trinidadian and I love the crossroads cuisine of the West Indies. Each dish tells a story that goes far back in time and place.

Caribbean dishes meld cultures and traditions.

A taste of Black Cake carries you over the Atlantic to England, Scotland and Ireland.

A mouthful of pilau loops you around the Cape of Good Hope with stops in India, China and other Asian ports-of-call.

A bite of Jerk Chicken hurls you across the terrifying middle passage that brought enslaved Africans to the Caribbean.

West Indian cuisine: Afro-Caribbean cooks’ creative legacy

Each dish whispers the unwritten histories of Afro-Caribbean cooks who created it. Because wherever food was eaten in the colonial West Indies—in the big house, slave quarters or around the fire—it was prepared by Afro-Caribbean cooks.

Infinitely creative, resourceful and flexible, Afro-Caribbean cooks pulled fabulous meals out of a hat with whatever ingredients were at hand. Their delicious, complex and nuanced dishes recall ancestors, traditions, holidays and homes around the world. The foods celebrate faith and family. Recipes are imbued with the joy and generous spirit that hallmarks Afro-Caribbean hospitality.

No “peas” in traditional Caribbean Rice and Peas

West Indian Rice and Peas is a typical Caribbean fusion food—before the word “fusion” was applied to food genres. Traditionally the “peas” in this dish are red kidney beans. In the spirit of improvisation I’m using green peas. Slow cooked in broth, this creamy rice also included the surprising heat of hot pepper.

Feel free to select the number of fire alarms your dinner sets off: You can make this rice with Scotch Bonnet, the fieriest—and most authentically Caribbean—version of the three pepper options.

For less searing rice, use jalapeño or crushed red pepper.

West Indian Rice and Green Peas

1 tablespoon coconut oil or other oil
1 onion, chopped fine
1 clove garlic
2 cups rice—I use brown basmati
1 whole Scotch Bonnet pepper, jalapeño or 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1 teaspoon thyme
3 cups hot chicken or vegetable broth
1 cup coconut milk
½ cup frozen peas

1. In Dutch Oven or heavy pan, heat oil over medium flame.
2. Add onion and garlic. Stir and sauté for 4-5 minutes to let onions and garlic soften, but not burn.
3. Add rice, stirring to incorporate. Lower flame and cook mixture for 1-2 minutes.
4. In the meantime seed and de-vein Scotch Bonnet or jalapeño and mince fine. Note: Handle peppers gingerly as too much exposure can burn skin. One skin-sensitive cook I know wears thin rubber gloves when working with Scotch Bonnet and other hot peppers.
5. Add Scotch Bonnet, jalapeño or crushed red pepper to rice along with thyme, broth and coconut milk.
6. Bring rice and broth to boil, lower flame to lowest point, cover dish and let rice slow cook until almost tender. Note: If using brown basmati or other brown rice, you may need to add water or broth—1/2 cup at a time—until rice is almost cooked.
7. Just before rice is done, stir in frozen peas and cook until water is absorbed and rice is tender.

Serves 6.