Ingredients List:
3lbs Oxtail 1 1/2tsp Salt 1tsp Black pepper 3 Tbsp curry powder 2 Cloves of garlic 2 Tbsp Cooking oil 2 Medium onions, sliced 1 tsp Dried thyme (or 1 Tbsp fresh thyme leaves) 1 Tbsp hot pepper sauce 2 Tbsp Tomato ketchup 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce 3 cups Water 1 Can (190z) Lima beans (also called butter beans), drain and set aside liquid
*via cooklikeajamaican.com
Three hours. That’s how long it takes to cook the meat of my favorite Jamaican dish. The point where the sauce thickens into a deep brown and the meat tenderizes always represents a moment of truth for me. Has the seasoning at the bottom of the pot burned? Was three hours really enough to tenderize the meat? Do all the flavors complement each other—pulling me back through time and space to a simpler phase in my life where to consume, not produce, was the greater assignment.
Food has a special place in each of our hearts. Dishes represent moments. They are like cultural fragments that piece us together in understanding, and somehow, I would dare to say, they even represent courage. Making the move from another country to the United States was a huge culture shock (even for someone like me from an English-speaking country). The different facets towards becoming acclimated (and dare I say assimilated) to life in the United States are so meticulous yet necessary. When I first came, my ‘accent’ was so thick that I realized many of my peers couldn’t understand me, where it became dysfunctional for me to speak as myself. Now, many search me in hopes to find some fragment of Sean Paul’s “What-a-gwan, yow yow,” in my everyday speak. The fetishized and exocticized nature of international cultures and peoples is important to note, because even the smallest comments become demeaning.
Enter my descent into creating the foods of my culture. The food reminds me of my culture, yes, but it also reminds me of the way I was raised, of people and events, of memorable moments. The food reminds me of the warmth of my mother. There are so many ways that our five senses connect us to the joys of our pasts, but I am strongly advocating for taste. Food brings along a similar nostalgia as to when we listen to old time music. It’s just like when you find people from your country and share a meal together with them, you create new memories that you get to connect with old ones.
There is a special and strong level of autonomy that is received when you cook a meal on your own. The uniqueness of the experience only increases when it is a meal from your own culture. I mention all this because college presents demanding challenges that take from time and energy in a practical sense but are also draining in a cultural sense. It is hard to become revitalized when you are not surrounded by the things that bring you the joys and comforts of your culture. I, therefore, present to you a challenge: learn how to cook your simplest favorite authentic dish from your country. You don’t have to commit to an excessive three hours as I did, but cook a dish that when you close your eyes and immerse yourself in the flavors, it transports you to a time of peace, nostalgia, delight.
Connect with yourself, family, culture, and the way you were raised. Even if some aspects of living in America mean assimilating traits of your external character, hold on to your internal self. Remember who you are and constantly remind yourself of that character. Get a hold of spices and ingredients that remind you of wholesome family cooking. Strengthen yourself in the midst of the wave so that even when you find yourself out in the deep, you are not lost. Ground yourself in the value of a practical skill. For me, I have to admit, if it’s not delicious I haven’t returned home.
