Run down, also referred to as rundown, run dun,Jamaica: A Visitor's Guide - Harry S. Pariser - Google Books
p. 64. rondón, fling-me-far, and fling mi for, is a

stew A stew is a combination of solid food ingredients that have been Cooking, cooked in Soup, liquid and served in the resultant gravy. Ingredients can include any combination of vegetables and may include meat, especially tougher meats suitable for ...

dish in

Jamaican cuisine Jamaican cuisine includes a mixture of cooking techniques, flavours and spices influenced by Amerindian cuisine, Amerindian, Cuisine of West Africa, West African, Irish cuisine, Irish, English cuisine, English, French cuisine, French, Portuguese ...

and Tobago cuisine. The traditional

Jamaica Jamaica is an island country in the Caribbean Sea and the West Indies. At , it is the third-largest island—after Cuba and Hispaniola—of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean. Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, west of Hispaniola (the is ...

n dish is eaten in several Latin American countries that share a coast with the

Caribbean Sea The Caribbean Sea is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean in the tropics of the Western Hemisphere, located south of the Gulf of Mexico and southwest of the Sargasso Sea. It is bounded by the Greater Antilles to the north from Cuba ...

. It consists of a soup made up of reduced

coconut milk Coconut milk is a plant milk extracted from the grated pulp of mature coconuts. The opacity and rich taste of the milky-white liquid are due to its high oil content, most of which is saturated fat. Coconut milk is a traditional food ingred ...

, with different types of seafood (fish, crabs, small lobsters or shellfish), plantain,The Food of Jamaica: Authentic Recipes from the Jewel of the Caribbean - John Demers, Eduardo Fuss - Google Books
p. 62. yam,

tomato The tomato (, ), ''Solanum lycopersicum'', is a plant whose fruit is an edible Berry (botany), berry that is eaten as a vegetable. The tomato is a member of the nightshade family that includes tobacco, potato, and chili peppers. It originate ...

onion An onion (''Allium cepa'' , from Latin ), also known as the bulb onion or common onion, is a vegetable that is the most widely cultivated species of the genus '' Allium''. The shallot is a botanical variety of the onion which was classifie ...

, and

seasoning Seasoning is the process of supplementing food via herbs, spices, and/or salts, intended to enhance a particular flavour. General meaning Seasonings include herbs and spices, which are themselves frequently referred to as "seasonings". Salt may ...

s.Jamaica in Slavery and Freedom: History, Heritage, and Culture - Google Books
p. 99.

Mackerel Mackerel is a common name applied to a number of different species of pelagic fish, mostly from the family Scombridae. They are found in both temperate and tropical seas, mostly living along the coast or offshore in the oceanic environment. ...

and salted mackerel are often used in the dish. Other fish are also used, including locally caught fish,

cod Cod (: cod) is the common name for the demersal fish genus ''Gadus'', belonging to the family (biology), family Gadidae. Cod is also used as part of the common name for a number of other fish species, and one species that belongs to genus ''Gad ...

, salt cod,

shad The Alosidae, or the shads, are a family (biology), family of clupeiform fishes. The family currently comprises four genera worldwide, and about 32 species. The shads are Pelagic fish, pelagic (open water) schooling fish, of which many are anadr ...

, other oily fish,Cod: A Biography of the Fish that Changed the World - Mark Kurlansky - Google Books
p. (unlisted). red snapper,

swordfish The swordfish (''Xiphias gladius''), also known as the broadbill in some countries, are large, highly migratory predatory fish characterized by a long, flat, pointed bill. They are the sole member of the Family (biology), family Xiphiidae. They ...

,Caribbean – Bruce Geddes – Google Books
p. 133

pickled Pickling is the process of preserving or extending the shelf life of food by either anaerobic fermentation in brine or immersion in vinegar. The pickling procedure typically affects the food's texture and flavor. The resulting food is called ...

fish, bull pizzle, and

cassava ''Manihot esculenta'', common name, commonly called cassava, manioc, or yuca (among numerous regional names), is a woody shrub of the spurge family, Euphorbiaceae, native to South America, from Brazil, Paraguay and parts of the Andes. Although ...

. Traditionally, the dish is served with

side dish A side dish, sometimes referred to as a side order, side item, or simply a side, is a food item that accompanies the entrée or main course at a meal.dumpling Dumplings are a broad class of dishes that consist of pieces of cooked dough (made from a variety of starchy sources), often wrapped around a filling. The dough can be based on bread, wheat or other flours, or potatoes, and it may be filled wi ...

s or baked

breadfruit Breadfruit (''Artocarpus altilis'') is a species of flowering tree in the mulberry and jackfruit family ( Moraceae) believed to have been selectively bred in Polynesia from the breadnut ('' Artocarpus camansi''). Breadfruit was spread into ...

. Run down is typically available in Jamaican restaurants,Ebony – Google Books
p. 142. and is also a traditional Jamaican

breakfast Breakfast is the first meal of the day usually eaten in the morning. The word in English refers to breaking the fasting period of the previous night. Various "typical" or "traditional" breakfast menus exist, with food choices varying by regi ...

dish. It is a common dish in the

Antilles The Antilles is an archipelago bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the south and west, the Gulf of Mexico to the northwest, and the Atlantic Ocean to the north and east. The Antillean islands are divided into two smaller groupings: the Greater An ...

, insular

Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuel ...

Honduras Honduras, officially the Republic of Honduras, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the west by Guatemala, to the southwest by El Salvador, to the southeast by Nicaragua, to the south by the Pacific Ocean at the Gulf of Fonseca, ...

Panama Panama, officially the Republic of Panama, is a country in Latin America at the southern end of Central America, bordering South America. It is bordered by Costa Rica to the west, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north, and ...

Costa Rica Costa Rica, officially the Republic of Costa Rica, is a country in Central America. It borders Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the northeast, Panama to the southeast, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, as well as Maritime bo ...

Nicaragua Nicaragua, officially the Republic of Nicaragua, is the geographically largest Sovereign state, country in Central America, comprising . With a population of 7,142,529 as of 2024, it is the third-most populous country in Central America aft ...

and

Venezuela Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many Federal Dependencies of Venezuela, islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea. It com ...

, also.

History

Rondón originated in

and was exported to

Latin America Latin America is the cultural region of the Americas where Romance languages are predominantly spoken, primarily Spanish language, Spanish and Portuguese language, Portuguese. Latin America is defined according to cultural identity, not geogr ...

by the

Afro-Jamaican ''See also'' Mulattos in Jamaica Afro-Jamaicans are Jamaicans of predominantly African descent. They represent the largest ethnic group in the country. The ethnogenesis of the Black Jamaican people stemmed from the Atlantic slave trade of ...

immigrant workers who migrated in the early 19th century to build projects such as the Panama Canal and the Costa Rican railroads. The dish is unique to the island, which its population, having left their homes in Africa, Europe, and Asia, were forced to use the limited amount of goods (for example, fish and coconut milk) that were widely available. Although most Jamaicans are of mixed African descent, the dish is not consumed on the African mainland nor on any other continent. It is now, however, consumed by small minorities on the island of Tobago as well as areas of South and Central America that have Jamaican expatriates. ''Rondón'' is a

Jamaican Patois Jamaican Patois (; locally rendered Patwah and called Jamaican Creole by linguists) is an English-based creole language with influences from West African, Arawak, Spanish and other languages, spoken primarily in Jamaica and among the Jamaican ...

anglicism of the words "run down", which describes the "runny" or "liquefied" nature of the sauce. The name could also originate from the manner in which the fish is thoroughly cooked until it falls apart, or "runs down".Jamaica - Montego Bay, Port Antonio and Ocho Rios - John Bigley - Google Books
p. (unlisted).

Preparation

The ingredients for the dish described as rondón vary from region to region, but

is always an essential ingredient. In Nicaragua, the meat used might be fish, beef, pork or even turtle meat—a common ingredient in

Caribbean cuisine Caribbean cuisine is a fusion of West African cuisine, West African,"Cuisine."
(Caribbean.
cassava ''Manihot esculenta'', common name, commonly called cassava, manioc, or yuca (among numerous regional names), is a woody shrub of the spurge family, Euphorbiaceae, native to South America, from Brazil, Paraguay and parts of the Andes. Although ...

, elephant's ear and

argan ''Sideroxylon spinosum'', known as argan (), synonym ''Argania spinosa'', is a species of flowering plant. It is a tree endemic to the calcareous semi-desert Sous valley of southwestern Morocco and to the region of Tindouf in southwestern Algeri ...

. On the Caribbean coast of Costa Rica, the ingredients include cassava,

taro Taro (; ''Colocasia esculenta'') is a root vegetable. It is the most widely cultivated species of several plants in the family Araceae that are used as vegetables for their corms, leaves, stems and Petiole (botany), petioles. Taro corms are a ...

, yam, plantain and green bananas. The meat might be fish, lobsters or crabs and spices such as thyme, garlic, onions and yellow lantern chilli or "chile panameño", an important ingredient in

Costa Rican cuisine Costa Rican cuisine is known for being mostly mild, with high reliance on fruits and vegetables. Rice and black beans are a staple of most traditional Costa Rican meals, often served three times a day. Costa Rican fare is nutritionally well roun ...

. It can be served with flour dumplings. On the Colombian isle of San Andrés, the ingredients used are fish, snails, other seafood or pork. The vegetables include cassava, taro, plantain, potatoes and the spices used include basil, oregano, peppers, onion, garlic and poultry seasoning. In Panama, the seafood prepared with coconut milk can be served with rice,

tostones Tostones (, from the Spanish verb ''tostar'' which means "to toast") are twice-fried plantain slices commonly found in Latin American cuisine and Caribbean cuisine. Most commonly known as ''tostones'' in Puerto Rico, Mexico, Nicaragua, Cuba, ...

or "patacones", and salad. In coastal areas of

, "rundown" refers to

conch Conch ( , , ) is a common name of a number of different medium-to-large-sized sea snails. Conch shells typically have a high Spire (mollusc), spire and a noticeable siphonal canal (in other words, the shell comes to a noticeable point on both ...

stew. This dish may be prepared with conch meat, salt pork, root vegetables, breadfruit and plantains cooked in coconut milk. In

Trinidad Trinidad is the larger, more populous island of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, the country. The island lies off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. It is the southernmost island in ...

Grenada Grenada is an island country of the West Indies in the eastern Caribbean Sea. The southernmost of the Windward Islands, Grenada is directly south of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and about north of Trinidad and Tobago, Trinidad and the So ...

, and

Barbados Barbados, officially the Republic of Barbados, is an island country in the Atlantic Ocean. It is part of the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies and the easternmost island of the Caribbean region. It lies on the boundary of the South American ...

,Beyond Gumbo: Creole Fusion Food from the Atlantic Rim - Jessica B. Harris - Google Books
pp. 235-236. a similar dish that utilizes

palm oil Palm oil is an edible vegetable oil derived from the mesocarp (reddish pulp) of the fruit of oil palms. The oil is used in food manufacturing, in beauty products, and as biofuel. Palm oil accounted for about 36% of global oils produced from o ...

is referred to as "oil-down", usually prepared with salted beef or pork, breadfruit, palm oil and seasonings boiled in coconut milk until it thickens. This dish is similar to ''yumma'', a Koongo dish.

References

External links

*Jiménez Acuña, Ana Carolina (2007)
Sazonando la olla
Universidad Estatal a Distancia. p. 234. (Spanish) *Barthley, Ricardo (2003)
Rondón de Mariscos
{Dead link, date=November 2023 , bot=InternetArchiveBot , fix-attempted=yes . Retrieved on February 5, 2016. (Spanish) *Smith, Sara (2013)
Caribbean Rondon Soup
Retrieved on February 5, 2016.
Sky Juice and Flying Fish: Tastes Of A Continent - Jessica B. Harris - Google Books
p. (unlisted).
Passionate Vegetarian – Crescent Dragonwagon – Google Books
p. 206.
Frommer's Jamaica - Darwin Porter, Danforth Prince - Google Books
p. 9. Caribbean cuisine Colombian cuisine Costa Rican cuisine Fish stews Foods containing coconut Jamaican stews Latin American cuisine Nicaraguan cuisine Panamanian cuisine Trinidad and Tobago cuisine Venezuelan cuisine