Pigeon Pea

Pelau, rice cooked with meat and vegetables, really exemplifies Trinidadian cuisine because it is an admixture of various cooking styles.

This dish is triply aggressive, with sweet, sour, and spicy tastes strung together in an intense interplay. To make it your own, experiment with the balance of those three elements—you might make it more sour, or very, very spicy, depending on your palate and preferences.

I like the browned bits that cling to the skillet, like the socarrat of a paella, when I cook this side dish for my family. I like it so much, in fact, that I serve everyone the fluffy top part and when I’m back in the kitchen I scrape that part off and serve it to myself.

Barely a day goes by at the Puerto Rican table without rice and beans making an appearance, but this version is pull-out-the-stops-special rather than everyday—you won't believe how much flavor can be packed into such an understated dish. The secret is an abundantly seasoned sofrito—the flavor base—and the slight crust, called pegao, that forms on the bottom of the pot.

This one-pot wonder is Trinidad and Tobago’s unofficial national dish and a vibrant reflection of some of the Caribbean’s finest flavors: bright herbs, spicy-sweet aromatics, and rich coconut milk.

This dish of coconut rice and pigeon peas is fit for a holiday feast. But you’ll want to make extra—the leftovers are great as a one-plate vegan lunch or supper.

Chef Preeti Mistry’s dahi puri, filled with black chickpeas and potato hunks and drizzled with spiced yogurt and chutneys, are perfect party snacks.

This deeply flavorful Puerto Rican rice dish is to pernil as stuffing is to turkey—a holiday meal wouldn’t be the same without it.