Grace Lovina Cameron

JamaicanEats Grace Lovina Cameron

If you're obsessed with oxtail gravy and sometimes drink left over 'pot' water, there's a reason for that. Jamaican cook Donna Gardner explains the tantalizing and mouthwatering appeal of oxtail gravy - and it's not your fault. The struggle is real. Then, did your mother or grandmother used to feed you pot water? (The liquid left after boiling yam, banana, pumpkin, etc.) You may want to start drinking your pot water (again), says nutritionist Adrienne Nunes. In this issue, we also have nuff dumplings. Sure, the flour dumpling is a Jamaican staple, but wait until you sink your teeth into plantain and green banana dumpling. Or the carrot, grated corn, or reader Jamie Mulgrave's pumpkin dumpling might tickle your taste buds. In this issue, find out how a search for breadfruit drove our special correspondent Donna Cashman to drink...breadfruit vodka. It's a staggering tale, you just have to read. And Donna Noble, who lives in the Jamaican Blue Mountains, recalls her journey from kitchen garden to organic farmer and cookbook author. She serves up a roasted pumpkin and a guava salad with greens and goat brie recipe from her new cookbook, My Goodness! Greens. Read her story, get her recipes. And Toronto chef Kiran Bissoon has a boil an' fry green fig dish reflective of her Trinidadian heritage. In the Where are They Now? section, Axel Wichterich swears by his 'wicked' goat dish marinated for seven days in red wine and vinegar. Owner of Marblue in Treasure Beach, St. Elizabeth, we first featured him 12 years ago. Also, meet JamaicanEats readers Melanie Chung, Beverley Peterkin and Mary Dixon and get their recipes. Plus, Janice Lucenay's tale of cooking with her father in St. Vincent and the story of women in rural Jamaica who've turned to backyard gardening to dig themselves out of poverty will warm your heart. And, in these uncertain times, we caught up with some of our favourite chefs to find out how they are coping during the time of COVID. Finally, enjoy chef Noel Cunningham's jerk chicken callaloo fried rice; crispy breadfruit croquettes and ackee and saltfish plantain cups. And end on a delicious bite of doughnut bread pudding with guava jam.