Joanna James
With its tropical fruit juices, exotic cocktails, local beers and long puffs of shisha, Seychelles is also host to various cuisines brought over by diverse international travellers across the years.
Seychellois cuisine is essentially a fusion of flavours. Throughout centuries, spices and ingredients such as ginger, lemongrass, coriander and tamarind have been brought to the island by scores of globe trotters. Gradually they have been fused with rich local produce like coconut, breadfruit and mangoes to create a singularly unique culinary identity for this island paradise. If you head over to AVANI Seychelles Barbarons Resort & Spa you can feast on an array of Seychellois staples such as fish, seafood and shellfish dishes, often accompanied with rice and garnished with fresh flowers. At the end of your Seychellois meal, don't forget to order a scrumptious native dessert such as coconut chocolate, cooked bananas in coconut milk, caramelized pineapples, fruit salad or sorbet to complete your meal.
Renowned for its blend of French, African, Spanish and Caribbean culinary elements, Creole cuisine in Seychelles is also uniquely influenced by the neighbouring exoticism of Indian and Asian dishes, infusing Seychellois Creole cuisine with the tangy and appetizing flavours of the orient. At Seychelles restaurants you will be guaranteed that with the island's abundant choice of fresh seafood such as red snapper, barracuda, tuna, bonito, sea bass, king mackerel, lobster, squid; and exotic spices like cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, citronella, patchouli and chilli; you will have an authentic Creole culinary experience. So don't forget to make dates with delicacies such as grilled fish with a Creole tomato or chilli sauce, delicious coconut milk curry, tectec soup and of course the coveted shark chutney.
As an island in the Indian Ocean fish is a staple in Seychelles and is found in abundance. Fish here is cooked in a variety of ways, especially the red snapper and kordonnyen fish (rabbitfish). Red snapper is often served grilled with ginger and garlic with salad, vegetables and rice. Tuna and king fish are used in delicious steaks grilled in garlic butter and served with sauce made of tomatoes, onions, and green bell pepper. Yet in case all this native fish dishes prove to be a little too exotic for your palate and you feel homesick, Seychelles restaurants will sooth your homeward cravings with British culinary classics like fish 'n chips, fish fingers, fish pie and chowder. But do keep in mind that the chance to savour seafood like shark, barracuda, parrot fish, kingfish, octopus, grouper and red snapper is considered a rare dream-come-true by the true globe trotter.
Seychelles is a cluster-island country of 115 islands located approximately 1,500 kilometres east of the African continent. As you can imagine this close proximity of Seychelles to Africa makes it once again the perfect place to taste some of the famous African delicacies like the Ethiopian beef stew, banana akaras from Sierra Leone, Madagascar Chicken and Cachupa -the national dish of Cape Verde. In many of the African cuisine choices in Seychelles the hero of the dish will be meat, so this type of cuisine will be great for the meat lovers with an exotic streak and those looking forward to embarking on many culinary adventures and surprises during their stay in Seychelles.
Due to its geographic location in the Indian Ocean, Seychelles also has a significant presence of Indian cuisine. Indian cuisine will be especially preferred by the vegetarian and vegan traveller as many Indian dishes are prepared with purely vegetarian ingredients in keeping with Hindu and other Indian religious traditions. Indian dishes such as samosa, dhal poori, pti mimi (potato sev) and gato piman (chilli cake) can be enjoyed as meals themselves or as snacks. The Indian cuisine in Seychelles will also be ideal for the curry and non-vegetarian aficionados as well; with dining options such as a choice of rich south Indian style fish curries cooked in coconut milk and served with white rice.
A true believer that the pen is a mighty weapon, ventures into reaching the minds of every reader with the earnest hope of leaving an indelible stream of thought.
A travel writer who has a passion for fashion and a deep interest in admiring new and exotic attractions around the world.
