Ackee and Saltfish, more than fork to mouth

Ackee and Saltfish isn't just Jamaica's national dish. It's so much more and I only realized it today (better late than never :). I shared a little about myself and my country today to a class of undergraduates. They seemed to be interested in the fact that this little black woman with plaits was going to be in their class every week but when I showed them ackee and saltfish, the whole class let out a resounding 'wow'. Wow indeed. The questions then ensued, 'is the red thing ackee or is it that thing on the side? Oh no,that looks like banana. Is it the green

or yellow thing?Is it like eggs? What does it taste like?' I was once again reminded that ackee is not a universal fruit. I've never met someone from this side of the world who knew about ackee except those who have traveled to Jamaica before or tried it at a Jamaican restaurant before. During the exclamations of praise and questions, I realized how colourful the ackee and saltfish dish really is, if prepared well with tomatoes, bell peppers, onions, black pepper, etc.,. With those ingredients, the dish becomes a bright representation of the rastafarian colours. How awesome is that! Everyone knows that Rastafarianism is originally Jamaican, but to see it represented in our national dish is simply awesome.

Ackee is said to be originally from West Africa; however, during the years of slavery the ackee was transported to the Caribbean. The word 'ackee' is derived from the West African word 'Akye fufo'. Ackee bears fruit seasonally first from January to March then from June to August. So, there you have it, Ackee bears right in time for Emancipation and Independence celebrations :).

Ackee should only be eaten when ripe. That means when the pod opens and the top of the black seeds can be seen otherwise one may become sick with the 'Jamaican Vomiting sickness Syndrome' (JVS). Jamaicans learn that we shouldn't eat ackee before the pods are naturally opened while growing up, so I'm guessing that nowadays this sickness mostly affects foreigners who lack this piece of valuable information. According to Professor Lancaster from the University of the West Indies' Chemistry department,  in recent years JVS has been very rare given the spread of information about the proper time to eat the fruit. Therefore, there is no need to fear ackee, once you eat it when it's ripe. That's pretty much like most things in life. Doing something in the right time may reduce or eliminate potential problems.

                                                                                     

Ackee and Saltfish with fried plantain, dumplings and yam.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 

Sources: 

http://wwwchem.uwimona.edu.jm/lectures/ackee.html

http://www.foodandlens.com/2010/08/ackee-and-saltfish-jamaican-dish.html

http://www.jamaicanrastafarianlove.com/rastafari/rastafarian-flag-meaning-red-yellow-green-lion/