Spices of Port of Spain
The capital of Trinidad, where Indo-Trinidadian curry, roti and doubles have made spice a national taste.
Traded and grown here
Best time: January to May, with Carnival in February or March.
Port of Spain is a busy Caribbean capital. Indentured workers from India arrived in Trinidad from 1845, and their food, with curry powder, geera, amchar and pepper sauce, became part of national cooking.
Spices and trade
Trinidadian curry powder uses turmeric, cumin, coriander and fenugreek. Geera, roasted ground cumin, is used in doubles. Green seasoning, a paste of herbs such as chadon beni and culantro, flavours many dishes. Scotch bonnet pepper sauce is on every table.
The place and its people
Doubles, a street snack of curried chickpeas in fried bara, are eaten at breakfast. Carnival and Divali are major celebrations.
Visiting
Central Market and Queen's Park Savannah are central. Doubles stalls open early.
A trail idea for Port of Spain
- Central Market Buy curry powder and pepper sauce.
- A doubles stand Eat breakfast doubles.
- Queen's Park Savannah Walk the park.
- A roti shop Try a curry roti.
Written by the EveryMasala desk with AI assistance. Background: "Port of Spain" on Wikipedia. Opening hours, markets and tours change; check locally before travelling. If something is wrong, tell us.
Nothing matches those filters yet. Take one off, or check back: new spices are written every day.