Jamaicans love to make porridge as it comes together quickly, feeds many mouths, and is super filling and yummy. There are so many varieties of porridge that are typically eaten in Jamaica, you could have a different flavor every day of the week and then some!
Locally grown Jamaican ingredients such as banana, plantain, peanut, and breadfruit, make unexpected but totally delicious porridge. Other firm Jamaican favorites include cornmeal, hominy corn, bulgar, rice, or oats porridge.
Porridge isn’t exclusively served as a breakfast dish in Jamaica, as it is also popular as a lunch or dinner option when a big meal isn’t on the menu.
Did you know, that no matter which variety of Jamaican porridge is made, it is typically served with a slice or two of bread or some water crackers?
How Is Jamaican Porridge Made?
Jamaican Porridge is typically made by grating/blending the star ingredient, such as banana or plantain, or mixing dry ingredients, like hominy corn, cornmeal, and bulgar with water, milk, or coconut milk to make a runny batter.
This mixture is carefully added to boiling water or milk and simmered down with salt/sugar, vanilla, and warming spices, such as cinnamon and nutmeg until it has come together to the perfect consistency.
With all these Jamaican porridges to choose from you’ll have a different flavor for every day of the week and then some! So let’s get into it and reveal the top 7 Jamaican porridges eaten in Jamaica…
1. Jamaican Cornmeal Porridge
Cornmeal porridge is probably the number one porridge eaten in Jamaica as it not only tastes creamy and delicious, it is full of nutrients, vitamins, and minerals. Easily made with simple ingredients, the addition of coconut milk, cinnamon, nutmeg, and vanilla ramp up the volume and give that authentic lip-smacking Jamaican flavor to this must-try dish.
The love for Jamaican cornmeal porridge is instilled from birth as it’s traditionally given to breastfeeding mothers to build them up and as a first solid food for growing babies. This love affair with cornmeal porridge goes on right through life from the cradle to the grave.
As it is believed that eating Cornmeal porridge gives you strength and puts hunger pangs at bay, it is also a favorite for hardworking individuals and is given to the elderly as a delicious and familiar easily digestible nutritious meal.
Jamaican cornmeal porridge recipes can be made in several ways to suit all eating lifestyles and diets, including Vegan, low fat/sugar and it’s naturally gluten-free too.
2. Jamaican Peanut Porridge
Jamaican Peanut porridge is one of the top three types of porridge eaten in Jamaica and once you try it you’ll see why it’s such a well-loved breakfast dish. Usually made with locally grown Jamaican ingredients, peanuts, coconut (milk), cinnamon, nutmeg, and cane sugar, are all grown in the rich and fertile soil of Jamaica.
Not only does peanut porridge taste delicious it is packed with protein, vitamins, and minerals which make it a healthy and filling breakfast option for the whole family. Easily made with simple ingredients, the addition of coconut milk, cinnamon, nutmeg, and vanilla takes this dish to the next level and gives Peanut Porridge its authentic Jamaican flavor.
Jamaican peanut porridge recipes can be made in several ways to suit all eating lifestyles and diets, including Vegan, or chunky, and it’s naturally gluten-free too.
3. Jamaican Hominy Corn Porridge
My love for Hominy Corn porridge is real! Who can resist this most delicious of Jamaican porridges, from the creamy texture studded with little chewy pieces of corn to the depth of flavor from the cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla, and coconut milk, it is a simple but highly delectable example of a Jamaican breakfast cuisine.
Not only is hominy corn porridge my favorite Jamaican porridge, but it is also one of the top three porridges eaten in Jamaica alongside Cornmeal Porridge and Peanut Porridge. This is no surprise as it is highly nutritious and tastes so good it keeps everyone coming back to this Jamaican porridge recipe.
Jamaican hominy corn porridge recipes can be made in several ways to suit all eating lifestyles and diets, including Vegan, and Gluten-Free.
4. Jamaican Green Plantain Porridge
Jamaican Green Plantain Porridge is a well-loved staple breakfast dish in Jamaican households, which is super nutritious, easy to make, and tastes so delicious. Once you try Jamaican green plantain porridge you’ll see for yourself why it’s such a well-loved breakfast dish that you have to try for yourself.
Like its cousin Jamaican Green Banana Porridge, green plantain porridge is regularly served for breakfast in Jamaica, especially in rural areas where plantains are plentiful are easy to obtain. Both types of porridge are interchangeably cooked dependent on what is to hand on the day.
Green plantain porridge is usually made with locally grown Jamaican ingredients, such as plantains, coconut (milk), cinnamon, nutmeg, and cane sugar, which are all grown in the rich and fertile soil of Jamaica. These home-grown ingredients give this dish its authentic Jamaican flavor and make it incredibly flavorsome and satisfying to eat as they are usually organic and bursting with that ‘just picked’ flavor.
Jamaican green plantain porridge recipes can be made in several ways to suit all eating lifestyles and diets, including Vegan, and Gluten-Free.
5. Jamaican Green Banana Porridge
Jamaican Green Banana Porridge is regularly served for breakfast in Jamaica, especially in rural areas where bananas are plentiful are easy to obtain. Once you try green Jamaican banana porridge you’ll see for yourself why it’s such a well-loved breakfast dish as it not only tastes totally delicious it is super nutritious and filling too.
Green banana porridge is usually made with locally grown Jamaican ingredients, such as bananas, coconut (milk), cinnamon, nutmeg, and cane sugar, which are all grown in the rich and fertile soil of Jamaica. These home-grown ingredients give this dish its authentic Jamaican flavor and make it incredibly flavorsome and satisfying to eat as they are usually organic and bursting with that ‘just picked’ flavor.
Easily made with simple ingredients, the addition of coconut milk, cinnamon, nutmeg, and vanilla takes this dish to the next level and gives Green Banana Porridge its authentic Jamaican flavor.
Jamaican green banana porridge recipes can be made in several ways to suit all eating lifestyles and diets, including Vegan, and Gluten-Free.
6. Jamaican Bulgar Porridge
Jamaican Bulgur Porridge is one of my favorite Jamaican porridges as it’s creamy, with a delicious slightly nutty earthy taste. If you haven’t tried Jamaican-style Bulgur porridge you’ll see for yourself why it’s a breakfast dish that you will be wanting over and over again!
Bulgur porridge is a well-loved porridge however, it’s not one of the most regularly served breakfast porridges in Jamaica, as it’s not as easy to get hold of as other porridge ingredients like cornmeal, peanuts, green bananas, green and green plantains.
Bulgur porridge is made from imported bulgur wheat which is mixed with locally grown Jamaican ingredients, such as coconut (milk), cinnamon, nutmeg, and cane sugar, which are all grown in the rich and fertile soil of Jamaica.
These Jamaican bulgur porridge recipes can be made in several ways to suit all eating lifestyles and diets, including Vegan, and Gluten-Free.
7. Jamaican Oats Porridge
Jamaican oats porridge is usually made as a type of cold drink that is so popular in Jamaica it has been immortalized in song lyrics from some of the island’s most famous artists! Oats porridge is also enjoyed as a hot breakfast dish too, with Jamaican Foska’s oats being the top brand for its delicious smooth and creamy taste and texture.
Easily made with simple ingredients, the addition of coconut milk, condensed milk, peanuts, cinnamon, nutmeg, and vanilla ramp up the volume and give that authentic lip-smacking Jamaican flavor to this must-try dish.
Like cornmeal porridge, oats porridge has a reputation for giving you strength and stamina, especially if peanuts are added to the recipe! It also is effective in filling hungry bellies and is a favorite for the young and elderly as a delicious and familiar easily digestible nutritious meal.
These Jamaican oats porridge recipes can be made in several ways to suit all eating lifestyles and diets, including Vegan, and Gluten-Free.
