Duckunoo or duckanoo, also referred to as tie-a-leaf, blue drawers (draws), dokonon (in French Guiana), and dukunou (in Haiti) is a dessert in

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of Hispan ...

Antigua and Barbuda Antigua and Barbuda (, ) is a sovereign island country in the West Indies. It lies at the juncture of the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean in the Leeward Islands part of the Lesser Antilles, at 17°N latitude. The country consists of ...

Barbados Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the Caribbean region of the Americas, and the most easterly of the Caribbean Islands. It occupies an area of and has a population of about 287,000 (2019 estimate ...

French Guiana French Guiana ( or ; french: link=no, Guyane ; gcr, label=French Guianese Creole, Lagwiyann ) is an overseas departments and regions of France, overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France on the northern Atlantic ...

and some other

Lesser Antilles The Lesser Antilles ( es, link=no, Antillas Menores; french: link=no, Petites Antilles; pap, Antias Menor; nl, Kleine Antillen) are a group of islands in the Caribbean Sea. Most of them are part of a long, partially volcanic island arc bet ...

. It is a variation on the dish

ducana Ducana is a sweet potato dumpling or pudding from Antigua, Saint Kitts and Nevis, St. Vincent and the Grenadines and many other Caribbean islands. They are made from grated sweet potatoes, grated coconut, sugar, flour, coconut milk, and/or wate ...

which originated in Africa. The

Caribbean cuisine Caribbean cuisine is a fusion of West African,"Cuisine."
(Caribbean.
coconut The coconut tree (''Cocos nucifera'') is a member of the palm tree family (Arecaceae) and the only living species of the genus ''Cocos''. The term "coconut" (or the archaic "cocoanut") can refer to the whole coconut palm, the seed, or ...

spice A spice is a seed, fruit, root, bark, or other plant substance primarily used for flavoring or coloring food. Spices are distinguished from herbs, which are the leaves, flowers, or stems of plants used for flavoring or as a garnish. Spices a ...

s and

brown sugar Brown sugar is unrefined or partially refined soft sugar. Brown Sugar may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Brown Sugar'' (1922 film), a 1922 British silent film directed by Fred Paul * ''Brown Sugar'' (1931 film), a 1931 ...

, all tied up in a

banana leaf The banana leaf is the leaf of the banana plant, which may produce up to 40 leaves in a growing cycle. The leaves have a wide range of applications because they are large, flexible, waterproof and decorative. They are used for cooking, wrappin ...

. It is then cooked in boiling water. Duckanoo is a relatively new name for some that was added to the name "tie a leaf". However, the names vary depending on location in various islands. "Ducana" is the Antiguan/Barbudan as well as some of the smaller Caribbean islands name of this dumpling or dessert.

History

Similar to the Meso American 'dulce de tamale', this was a highly popular indigenous dessert in the Americas. Adapted by the Afro-Caribbean people (who were brought to Antigua and Barbuda as well as other Caribbean Islands in the slave trade), ingredients such as eddoes, okra, dasheen, eggplant, and the bonavista bean are used.Harris: 115. In Ghana, ducana is dokono, and in the Twi language, Odokono.

Variations

Dukuna is a small pudding made of varying mixtures of grated sweet potatoes, coconut, cornmeal and plantain-flour. (From Akan: doko na sweeten mouth Twi: boiled maize Ga: Adangme dokona).

References

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External links

Ducana

– Antigua history Antigua and Barbuda cuisine Barbadian cuisine Belizean cuisine Caribbean cuisine French Guianan cuisine Haitian cuisine Jamaican desserts Desserts

History

Variations

See also

References

External links