Caribbean green seasoning
Also known as green seasoning, épis, epis, recaíto, recaito
Paste
Quick answer
The raw herb pastes that start almost every savoury dish in much of the Caribbean: culantro or parsley, spring onion, thyme, garlic and seasoning peppers blended together and used as a marinade and cooking base. Trinidadian green seasoning, Haitian épis and Puerto Rican recaíto are three members of the family, not one recipe.
In essentially every version: Garlic, Spring onion (scallion, called chive in Trinidad), Fresh thyme.
3 distinct versions are set out below. None of them is presented as the correct one, because there isn’t one.
What goes into it
What essentially every version is made from, with what each ingredient is there to do.
| Ingredient | Role | How essential |
|---|---|---|
| Garlic (fresh) | savoury depth | defining |
| Spring onion | base | defining |
| Thyme (fresh) | supporting aromatic | usual |
| Culantro (fresh)Shado beni in Trinidad, recao in Puerto Rico; central to both, absent from most Haitian épis. | primary aromatic | regional |
| Parsley (fresh)The leading herb in Haitian épis. | primary aromatic | regional |
| Coriander leaf (fresh) | supporting aromatic | regional |
| Scotch bonnetUsed sparingly or omitted; the heat usually arrives separately as pepper sauce. | heat | optional |
High, by island and by household. Trinidadian green seasoning leads on culantro and spring onion with thyme and the mild, aromatic seasoning pepper; Haitian épis leads on parsley and spring onion with garlic, bell pepper, thyme and cloves, and is sharpened with lime or sour orange; Puerto Rican recaíto leads on culantro with onion, garlic and the mild ají dulce pepper. The mild seasoning peppers — pimento pepper, ají dulce — are central to all three and are aromatic rather than hot.
The versions
Each attributed to whoever describes it. The sources say what goes in and how it is made and give no amounts, so none are shown.
Trinidadian green seasoning
Regional traditionTrinidad and Tobago household practice · no amounts given · medium confidence
Culantro (shado beni), spring onion, thyme, garlic and the mild pimento pepper blended with a little water or vinegar. Used to marinate meat for stews and curries and to season rice and peas.
Made with: Culantro (shado beni), Spring onion (scallion, called chive in Trinidad), Fresh thyme, Garlic, Coriander leaf. The source gives no amounts, so none are shown.
The pimento seasoning pepper is essential and is not in this catalogue yet, so it is described rather than listed.
Haitian épis
Regional traditionHaitian household practice · no amounts given · medium confidence
Parsley, spring onion, garlic, bell pepper and thyme, often with cloves and a little Scotch bonnet, blended with oil and lime or sour orange. The base of Haitian marinades, rice and bean dishes, and griot.
Made with: Fresh parsley, Spring onion, Garlic, Fresh thyme, Cloves, Scotch bonnet. The source gives no amounts, so none are shown.
Puerto Rican recaíto
Regional traditionPuerto Rican household practice · no amounts given · medium confidence
Culantro (recao), coriander leaf, onion, garlic and the mild ají dulce pepper blended raw. It starts rice, beans and stews and is the green counterpart to the cooked sofrito in the same kitchen.
Made with: Culantro (recao), Coriander leaf, Onion, Garlic, Ají dulce. The source gives no amounts, so none are shown.
Using it
Rubbed into meat and fish and left for hours or overnight, then cooked with it; or fried briefly at the start of a stew or rice. It is a base, used by the spoonful, and most households are never without a jar of it in the fridge.
Fresh, green and garlicky, with the pungent, almost soapy intensity of culantro where it is used, the grassy sweetness of spring onion and a thyme undertone. Mild seasoning peppers give aroma without heat. Cooked into a dish it becomes a savoury herbal base rather than a distinct taste.
Mild. The peppers used are aromatic rather than hot, and Scotch bonnet, where present, is used sparingly.
- Marinating chicken, pork and fish before cooking
- Stewed chicken and curries
- Rice and peas, and bean dishes
- Griot (Haitian fried pork)
- Soups
Scaling: Scale by the herbs. Culantro is much stronger than coriander leaf, and a cook substituting one for the other should adjust the quantity before scaling.
What to use it on
Chicken
ClassicChicken marinated in green seasoning before stewing or currying is the everyday base of Trinidadian and Haitian cooking; the raw herbs and garlic penetrate the meat overnight.
How: Trinidadian stew chicken; Haitian poul nan sòs
Storage
Good for: not established
In the fridge, in a closed jar.
Faded colour is a quality matter. Raw garlic and herbs held warm, or kept too long, is a safety matter.
Allergens and safety
Not among the substances that must be declared as allergens under EU Regulation 1169/2011 Annex II or under the United States major food allergen rules. That is a statement about labelling law and not about whether allergy occurs: allergic reactions to spices are documented in the clinical literature and are simply not a labelling category. Where a ground spice presents an allergen risk it is usually through adulteration or shared processing equipment rather than through the plant itself.
Culture and origin
Trinidad and Tobago, Haiti and Puerto Rico, with related preparations across the Caribbean. Each is a household staple made in a large batch and kept in the fridge, and each is used to marinate meat and fish before cooking and to begin stews, rice and beans.
Trinidad and Tobago
The first step of most savoury Trinidadian cooking, and a jar in nearly every fridge.
Haiti
In Haiti, épis is the foundation of the kitchen, used in marinades, rice and beans and griot, and each household’s épis is its own.
Puerto Rico
Recaíto sits beside the cooked sofrito as one of the two green-and-red foundations of the Puerto Rican kitchen.