The Jamaican Patty

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Photo courtesy of Juici Patties (THE BEST PATTIES)  

The Jamaican Beef Patty is one of the countries' most popular street foods, convenient to find, fairly cheap, and easy to eat on the go. It is a meat pie that consists of a spicy ground beef mixture that is contained in a flaky pastry crust.

It is one of the most recognizable Jamaican foods worldwide. It is a favorite food of Jamaicans of all ages and a multi-million dollar industry. The main companies in Jamaica are Juici Patties, Tastees, and Mothers.

These companies have created their own unique product that is distinguished by taste. Every Jamaican has their own favorite among these three companies. There are also smaller companies who have also created their own version of the patty and also have their own loyal customers who swear by them. 

It is a spicy snack that everyone in the family can enjoy as it is relatively cheap and easy to find. When I was younger I would squeeze the filling into the bag and only eat the crust because freshly baked patties are usually tongue-scorching hot and the flavors were too intense for my young palate. However, it was not spicy enough for me to miss out on the experience of having patties with my older relatives. 

A Mega Patty. Photo courtesy of Juici Patties

For many years only beef and chicken patties available on the market, however, we have since seen a boom in innovation, and the market now includes cheese patties (beef patties with cheese slices added), soy patties, fish patties, lobster patties, full or mega house patties (lettuce, tomato, and cheese added to a beef patty) among many others, much to the delight of consumers.

A patty is usually accompanied by a coco-bread, which is a hot bread loaf with butter that is then used to make a sandwich. Coco bread is usually used to make sandwiches or loaves, for example, the meatloaf, (beef mixture in the bread), cheese loaf, callaloo loaf, etc.

Meat Loaves. Photo courtesy of Juici Patties

We also now have vegetarian options in addition to soy patties, like pumpkin patties and ackee patties. 

Patties are cheap street food that although not very nutritious, is very filling. As an occasional snack, I don't think it will jeopardize the nutritional status of the consumer. However, as with all things, moderation is key. The full house and vegetarian options may be healthier because of the content of the filling. Flaky pastries are made by cutting fat into the flour and making them into layers, so they are classified as high-fat pastries. I am not privy to the recipes used by these companies, but it is something to note that these snacks count as high-calorie food. 

Nevertheless, these are affordable and convenient and a Jamaican staple. Patties are Real Jamaican food.

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