Guyana

 Welcome to Guyana!  After looking at the menu for this country, I would have thought it was an African country.  Nope!  It's in South America!  In fact, it's the only South American country whose official language is English!  According to Google, Guyana has a population of 786,391 people, and the capital is Georgetown.  Their national dish is...

 

Pepperpot!

In looking at the pictures of what Pepperpot is, I had my reservations.  It looked like meat in molasses!  But, we were willing to try it.  For dessert we had Guyana Baked Vanilla Custard.  On a night that was stormy and raining, meat soup sounded good.  Here's what we did!

PEPPERPOT

4 lbs stew meat

1 C cassareep

2 small cinnamon sticks

2 stalks basil, whole

1 orange peel (the whole orange peel)

6 cloves garlic, diced

1 chili pepper, sliced down the middle

1/2 C brown sugar

1 1/2 tsp salt

10 C water

4 sprigs thyme

2 onions, chopped

Avocado oil, for cooking

1. In a large pot, heat the oil and add meat to brown.
2. Add garlic, pepper, and onions, and let them cook for 3 minutes.
3. Add the cassareep, cinnamon sticks, orange peel, brown sugar, salt and thyme.  Let cook for 2 minutes.
4. Add enough water to cover all the ingredients and stir well.
5. Bring the stew to a boil, cover, and reduce to low.
6. Cook for 3 hours.
7. Serve and enjoy!

(Source: Pepperpot)

GUYANA BAKED VANILLA CUSTARD

3 C evaporated milk

7 oz condensed milk

4 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

1 tbsp sugar

Nutmeg, for garnish

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Heat the evaporated and condensed milk, but do not allow to boil.
3. Beat the eggs in a medium bowl.
4. Slowly add the warm milk to the eggs, stirring constantly.
5. Add the vanilla and sugar to the egg mixture.
6. Pour the mixture into ramekins, and sprinkle with nutmeg.
7. Place the ramekins in a water bath, so the water was half way up the sides of the ramekins.
8. Cook for 40 minutes, or until set.
9. Remove and let them cool.
10. Enjoy!

(Source: Guyana Baked Vanilla Custard)

 

 

 

 

The verdict?  This was the first South American country I didn't enjoy the food of.  The pepperpot had a bitter taste - I am pretty sure it was the cassareep.  We had to add way more salt to it than the recipe called for.  The meat was cooked perfectly, but the taste of the pepperpot wasn't great.  Handsome Husband said he liked it, and he ate the leftovers, so it wasn't a total waste.  The custard wasn't good either.  It was very similar to creme brule, but tasted nothing alike.  It was VERY eggy - we didn't finish it and threw out the rest.  There wasn't much taste to it.  We opted for popcorn instead!

ME

Taste of Pepperpot (1 is terrible, 10 is amazing): 3

Spicy (hot) (1 is not at all spicy, 10 is uneatable): 0

Flavor (1 is no flavor, 10 is packed with flavor): 3

 

HANDSOME HUSBAND

Taste of Pepperpot (1 is terrible, 10 is amazing): 7

Spicy (hot) (1 is not at all spicy, 10 is uneatable):1

Flavor (1 is no flavor, 10 is packed with flavor): 8

ME

Taste of Guyana Baked Vanilla Custard (1 is terrible, 10 is amazing): 3

Spicy (hot) (1 is not at all spicy, 10 is uneatable): 0

Flavor (1 is no flavor, 10 is packed with flavor): 2

 

HANDSOME HUSBAND

Taste of Guyana Baked Vanilla Custard (1 is terrible, 10 is amazing): 4

Spicy (hot) (1 is not at all spicy, 10 is uneatable): 0

Flavor (1 is no flavor, 10 is packed with flavor): 3

 

Another country down!  Join us next time in Kazakhstan!