Bermudian Cuisine

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Overview of Bermudian Cuisine History
Bermuda is a small island situated in the Atlantic Ocean, located only 650 miles off the coast of North Carolina. Bermuda used to be and still is actually a British colony. Due to its location not far from the American continent many of Bermuda’s dishes are typically American. Most of the ingredients are imported from Canada, United States of America mostly from North and South Carolina. Many lamb and beef products are imported from Australia and England. The main ingredient for most Bermudian dishes is fish eaten at any time of the day. Bermuda fish include: Tuna, Porgi, Jacks, Mussels, Spiny Lobster and Rockfish, a fragile, sugary, white fish; and wahoo, a thick game fish which is habitually cut into steaks and grilled. Bermudian food is defined by a unique blend of ingredients and style of preparation that incorporates influences as diverse and rich as the island's history and heritage. Bermudian food is distinct by an exclusive combination of ingredients and mode of preparation that reunites influences as varied and rich as the island's history.

Cuisines of Bermuda


Bermuda cuisine was very much influenced by English, American, Portuguese and West Indian cuisine. Bermuda cuisine is based on fish, vegetables and exotic fruits. There are numerous recipes which require alcohol like brandy, wine and rum to give the food a distinguish flavor. Many English recipes remained in Bermuda cuisine such as sweet potato pudding, syllabub, Hoppin’ John and paw paw casserole, a seventeenth century British recipe. The main fruits, vegetables and greens used in Bermuda cuisine are cassava, bananas, cherries, beans, onions, nutmeg, and mace. Although fish is the main source of protein people from Bermuda also consume pork, beef, poultry and lamb. A Bermuda staple is fish chowder, which is traditionally served with a spray of ripe and very hot bird peppers marinated in sherry with herbs and spices named sherry pepper, rum darkened by molasses and a special barrel aging process named black rum. People from Bermuda also consume spiny lobsters which are available from September until March and shark meat.

Preparation Methods for Bermudian Cooking
Bermuda cuisine uses elements from various cooking traditions borrowed from their neighbors and developed from their own traditional dishes. While there are no specific or unique preparation methods for Bermuda cooking, we should point out that attention to detail is important in the Bermuda cuisine. Using the right amount of spices for example is essential – either for spicing up the taste or for coloring the dish. The diversity of vegetables and cereals found in Bermuda is also noticed in the delicious dishes belonging to their cuisine. The visual attractiveness of the dish is also important, and a balance between colors and proportion differentiates. Each traditional dish has a special cooking method, which is more or less general in all of Bermuda’s regions. Meat is one of the main elements of most Bermuda dishes and cured and smoked hams are often parts of delicious dishes.

Special Equipment for Bermudian Cooking
In Bermuda cuisine there are various cooking utensils ranging from cake pans, can openers, colanders, egg rings, poachers and holders, food dishers and portioners, food pans and food containers to other kitchen utensils, such as food scales, food scoops and fryer baskets and accessories, the Bermuda cuisine needs a diverse cooking equipment set in order to produce the most sophisticated Bermuda dishes. You should consider insulated food carriers if you are transporting the food and a full set of kitchen linens and uniforms if you wish to look like a pro. Here are a few other items that will come handy while cooking Bermuda food: juicers, kitchen knives, kitchen slicers, kitchen thermometers, measuring cups and measuring spoons, miscellaneous utensils, mixing bowls and skimmers and strainers. Essential utensils like serving spoons, spatulas, forks, turners, scrapers and tongs should also be part of your cooking "arsenal".

Bermudian Food Traditions and Festivals
In Bermuda there are held a large variety of festivals and holidays. The main national holidays are: Christmas Day (December 25th), Bermuda Day (May 24th), Queen’s birthday (June 11th), Emancipation Day (August 2nd), Somer’s (August 4th), Labor day (September 4th), Remembrance Day (November 11th) and New Year’s Day (January 1st). For the Christmas dinner people from Bermuda prepare cassava pie made of cassava, eggs, Sugar and either Pork or Chicken. Another traditional dish served for special occasions is a big plate of boiled or steamed salt Cod with boiled potatoes, onions, and sliced bananas, all topped with a hard-boiled egg or tomato sauce, a light butter and onion sauce and, sometimes, avocado slices.

People in Bermudian Food

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Numerous chefs from Bermuda creatively use the basic ingredients and cooking method for traditional Bermuda dishes and create original and delicious food variations. Bermuda chefs are passionate about their traditional dishes and they enjoy presenting them to foreigners who have never tasted them before. Whether they are cooking dishes that go back in time for centuries or brand new, modern dishes, Bermuda chefs take pride in what they do, and this is readily noticeable in the unforgettable taste of their cooking.