Healthy living is a huge part of the Jamaican culture. Sure, one of our most popular dishes on the island happens to be jerk chicken smothered in a smoky spicy sauce, but everything in moderation, right? Balancing a healthy lifestyle, using natural remedies, and indulging in the freshest of seasonal fruits and vegetables is our forte. The Rastafari movement, which began in Jamaica during the 1930s, advocates vegetarianism, with some following an “i-tal diet” (eating foods in their purest form). Being healthy is ingrained in our culture. But you don’t need to be a Rasta or a Jamaican to live clean.
Recently, fresh-pressed juicing has become insanely popular in the U.S., but it has always been a big part of the Jamaican daily diet—and you’ll find that fresh juices are readily available across the island. Just look for the juice (wo)man peddling around town on bikes with a basket full of the natural drinks!
So today, we’re sharing our favorite fresh juice recipes—Jamaican-style, of course.
Afro-Caribbean blogger Charlene, of That Girl Cooks Healthy, shares one of her favorite juice recipes with Outpostings!
Charlene is vegan, but she manages to makes the classic Jamaican carrot juice (which usually calls for dairy) using homemade condensed coconut milk. This girl always has a small batch of this super healthy juice somewhere in her fridge.
Jamaican Carrot Juice, Vegan-Style
Prep time: 7 minutes
Total Time: 7 minutes
Ingredients:
- 2 lbs carrots (preferably organic), halved or sliced
- 1 tsp nutmeg
- ¼ tsp cinnamon
- 5 cups water (if using a blending technique)
- 1 tsp vanilla (powder or extract)
- ½ cup Coconut condensed milk (sweetener to taste), blend
Instructions:
- Proceed to put the carrot in the blender with water and blend, you may need to do this in two batches depending on the capacity of your machine. Or, if you want to use a juicer, add carrots to juicer, extract the juice and move onto step three.
- Once completed, use a strainer or cheesecloth to extract the juice from the pulp. Keep the pulp for another time to add to your baking. Freeze and re-use.
- Stir in the coconut milk, nutmeg, cinnamon and vanilla.
- Serve accordingly.
Green Juice—Jamaican Style
When Island Outpost’s Spa director, yoga instructor Sienna Creasy isn’t striking a Warrior Two pose on her paddle board, she’s whipping up a batch of Jamaican Green Juice. She tells us the island super green vegetable, Callaloo, makes for a great juice option. “Callaloo is extremely healthy. It provides 6.5 mgs of fiber, 300 mgs of calcium, over 500 mgs of potassium, and three mgs of protein and iron. This is four times the calcium found in broccoli and two times the iron!”, she says. The vegetable boosts your immune system (vitamin C), mood (vitamin B), and provides antioxidant support (vitamin A).
Jamaican Soursop Drink
If you’ve never had a glass of fresh soursop (also known as Guanabana in South America) juice, this needs to be on the top of your foodie priority list. The prickly green, avocado shaped fruit is sweet like pineapple, and creamy like coconut (and makes for a thirst-quenching juice). Don’t take our word for it, try it yourself!
Here is Yummly’s Jamaican Soursop drink recipe:
- 1 ripe soursop
- 1 can sweetened condensed milk
- 1 tsp grated nutmeg
- 2 tbsp fresh lime juice
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 5 cups of water
Instructions:
- Peel the soursop by hand; put flesh in a large mixing bowl and remove all seeds.
- Put fruit into the blender; add 3 cups of water and puree.
- Pour puree into the mixing bowl and add 2 or 3 more cups of water.
- Add sweetened condensed milk, nutmeg, lime juice and vanilla and stir to blend.
- Serve chilled with or without ice cubes. Add a dash of nutmeg to each glass before serving.
Juice To Go
If DIY isn’t your style, these Jamaican-style juice companies will whip up some of the classic Jamaican-inspired juices.
- Melvin’s Juice Bar, New York City; website – pick up and delivery for NYC area
- Taste of the Island, Chicago; website – pick up
- Earl’s Juice Garden, Kingston, Jamaica; foursquare – pick up
