Rasta Pasta is not only a fun meal with a catchy rhyme, but it also serves as a connection between traditional Jamaican food and Western influence!
Rasta Pasta is a Caribbean-inspired dish consisting of creamy pasta mixed with Caribbean-style jerk shrimp and colourful bell peppers that have been sautéed.
This meal is full of flavours and makes a perfect Saturday night supper since it can be cooked in less than an hour. It is creamy, cheesy, and loaded with excellent shrimp that has a spicy kick!
So, What Exactly Is Rasta Pasta?
The Rasta spaghetti is a dish that takes inspiration from Jamaican cuisine. It includes shrimp that has been seasoned with jerk flavour and three different coloured bell peppers that correspond to the national flag of Jamaica (yellow, red, and green).
The meal as a whole is quite reassuring, and the cheese and creamy sauce simply complete the dish in the most ideal way possible. Chicken is often substituted for shrimp in this dish.
Because jerk spice was used, the pasta has a robust taste and a bit of a kick to it as well. Because it is so different from the pasta meals that we are used to eating, we have decided to embark on this culinary adventure.
What kind of pasta should I have on hand?
We strongly suggest making use of any short pasta, such as penne, fusilli, or rigatoni.
Lengthy noodles are not recommended since it is difficult to consume long strips of bell peppers and entire shrimp when they are mixed in with the noodles at the same time.
There is no one who is going to tell you that you can’t use long pasta, but it is going to be much simpler if you go with short pasta.
The Step-by-Step Guide to Homemade Jerk Seasoning
Jamaica is the country that gave its name to both the jerk seasoning and the jerk cooking style. This spice combination will bring all the great tastes of the Caribbean to your table.
Although jerk spice is most often used with chicken, it is also fantastic when applied to shrimp and other types of seafood.
To be more precise, there are 15 different spices that go into making jerk seasoning. Jerk seasoning is readily available for purchase, but if you want to make your own, the instructions for doing so are provided below.
Ingredients
- 1 level tablespoon of garlic powder
- 1 level tablespoon of onion powder
- 2 tsp salt 2 tsp black pepper
- 2 tsp cayenne pepper
- 2 tsp dried thyme
- 2 milligrammes of dark sugar
- 1 tsp allspice
- 1 tsp paprika powder
- 1 tsp dried parsley
- ½ tsp chilli flakes
- 1/2 milligramme of ground cinnamon
- 1/2 milligramme of ground nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon of ground cloves and 1/4 teaspoon of ground cumin
Instructions
Put all of the ingredients into a bowl and mix them together well until they are combined evenly.
Place the jerk spice mixture in a container with a tight-fitting lid, and keep it in a cool, dry, and dark location for future use.
Notes
The beauty of this mixture is that it allows you to tailor the jerk seasoning to your particular tastes and preferences. You are free to adjust the number of ground cloves to your liking, be it more or less. The same is true for each individual spice that makes up this combination of spices.