Denise Reid, Gleaner Writer

Executive sous chef Andre Campbell and pastry chef Brenton Samuels show off their unique dish, curried breadfruit rum pudding with curry rum coconut anglaise sauce.

WESTERN BUREAU:

While there were not many new dishes, patrons found enough to make them happy at this year's Westmoreland Curry Festival, which boasted dishes ranging from curried jackfruit to curried rabbit.

With some 35 food stalls, it was the indigenous dishes such as curried shrimp, curried goat head and belly, curried crab and curried chicken that prevailed.

Some of the more unique dishes included curried jackfruit, curried rabbit and curried conch in sorrel. The most unique dish, however, was curried breadfruit rum pudding with coconut rum anglaise sauce.

The curried breadfruit rum pudding, which was prepared by executive sous chef Andre Campbell and pastry chef Brenton Samuels of Couples Swept Away Negril, was a hit with all the patrons who were quite surprised at the unusual dish.

Common ingredients

Curried goat head and belly with beans. - photos by Denise Reid

"Breadfruit is a common thing that is available to everyone and rum is also popular - so anyone can easily put these things together. We wanted to make something simple that would be easily available for patrons," Samuels told The Gleaner.

"It was all about ideas and creativity," continued Samuels who revealed that the patrons thought the dish was amazing as they were not aware that breadfruit could be used to make puddings."

While patrons were mostly reluctant to try the unusual dishes, feedback was generally positive. Gloria Lindo, who was at the festival with her grandchildren, noted that while the crab and conch smelled good, she only tried the more familiar dishes of curried goat and lobster, and described them as being delicious.

Organiser Stuart Barnes, said the show was fantastic.

"It went well. It was the best so far and the feedback was very positive," he noted.

Curried crab