Caribbean Food Delivered In Teesside With Reggae Delights* #AD

28 Jul 2020

Lockdown was a struggle for a lot of people, me included, but one positive thing that came out of it was that a lot of people with business ideas found themselves with time on their hands. Whether they were furloughed, working from home or unfortunately let go from their job, it was very clear to see that there were people across our region with cogs turning in their heads and discovering the opportunity to make their business dreams a reality. One of the newest businesses to emerge out of the lockdown fog is Reggae Delights, based in Ingleby Barwick.

As the name might suggest, Reggae Delights are all about bringing Jamiacan food and flavours to Teesside. They're a husband and wife duo who cook up authentic and vibrant dishes from the sunshine islands, and it's something that we're definitely missing in our region. We've got indies cooking and delivering a whole host of food, especially after lockdown, but I was yet to see a Caribbean creator! Our prayers have finally been answered and our need for something with a bit more heat has been satisfied!

Now, before I dive into talking about the food, it's worth noting that when I say Reggae Delights is one of the newest businesses, I mean it. At the time of writing, this local biz is only a few weeks old, but they've already developed a loyal follower base and regular customers. And I'm not surprised when you consider how incredible their food looks! Make sure you go and give them a like on Facebook or a follow on Instagram.

I know that you're all reading this to find out about how this food tastes and don't worry, we'll get there in a minute, but first of all, can we just take a minute to appreciate the colour in this food? Reggae Delights brought me a whole entire feast* and I was absolutely in awe of the vivid colour of it all. It was like someone had turned the saturation all the way up! And this is something that I want from Caribbean food - when you think of the islands, you think of sun, white sandy beaches, great music and lots of colour, so each of these dishes completely fit perfectly into that image.

It's difficult to know where to start with the food because there's just so bloomin' much of it, but let's begin with what I'd class as 'the main meals'. Reggae Delights offer up different specials and they're always switching up their menu, but we were kindly given the curry chicken with rice and peas*, and a quarter of jerk chicken with white rice and sweet 'n' sour gravy*.

I think it's fair to say that the curry chicken was my favourite part of the whole meal. As soon as I opened the lid on its box and gave it a little sniff, I knew that I was going to love it. It was very easy to warm up in the microwave, following Reggae Delights' instructions, and it paired perfectly with the rice and peas. Now, you guys know me, I'm a big wimp when it comes to spice, but I'm really pleased to say that the curry chicken isn't uber spicy. Instead, it's warming and comforting - you can get the hints of spice, but it's mixed in with the chicken, potatoes and carrot, so it absolutely won't burn your mouth off. It just leaves your tummy feeling all cosy and full!

As for the jerk chicken, this was Matthew's favourite, but he particularly loved the sweet 'n' sour gravy element. This definitely wasn't gravy as we know it in England, but instead, it was more like a separate curry in itself, but it's used as a topper like gravy. This went absolutely beautifully with both of the rices, but particularly the white rice, and smothered over the jerk chicken. This quarter of chicken was coated in gorgeous jerk spices and barbecued to get that gorgeously crisp skin. And again, this wasn't so spicy that I couldn't handle it, but as it was Matthew's favourite, I let him eat most of it. We definitely recommend trying this out with the sweet 'n' sour!

If that wasn't enough, you should also try pairing either of these main dishes up with the dumplings* that Reggae Delights offer. I'm used to having dumplings with a piping hot bowl of mince, so this was a little different to what I'm used to, but oh my word... this was a winning combination. This dumplings were super crisp on the outside, then gorgeously fluffy inside, and they went with the curry chicken and sweet 'n' sour gravy like a dream. Honestly, don't knock it 'til you try it!

Next up, we've got the two variations of patties* - beef and jerk - which you can see on the board in the photo above. I'd had Jamaican patties before, so I kind of knew what to expect with these, but these homemade pastries totally blew me away. I can't be the only one who thinks that when food is homemade and you know where it's come from, it just makes the taste so much better. But these patties were a gorgeous yellow from the saffron in the pastry and absolutely stuffed full of incredibly flavoursome filling.

My favourite of the two was the beef - it was so juicy and had a very lightly spiced flavour. The pastry was crisp, but so soft and crumbly. Again, these were very easy to warm up in the oven and only required about 10 minutes to be warm all the way through, but I think that they'd still be pretty delicious as a cold dish. As for the jerk patty, that little bad boy was spicy. I managed to eat my whole half, but oh man, my nose was running and I was getting a bit of a sweat on. That being said, the chicken filling had a really fantastic flavour beneath the spice and the same amazing pastry. If you're looking for a side for your meal, a starter or a little treat, these may be right up your street.

And finally, for dessert, the lovely duo behind Reggae Delights gave us a rum cake* and a banana and chocolate bread*. I don't know about you guys, but as soon as I saw the word 'rum cake' on my delivery, I was like 'errrrr YES PLEASE,' and I wasn't disappointed in the slightest. This little mini bundt cake was sweet, so soft and the rum flavour shone through, especially in the aftertaste. Don't worry, it's not so strong that you'll be tipsy, but you'll definitely get that warm fuzzy feeling in your tummy!

But my favourite out of the two was the banana and chocolate bread. There is no person on the face of this planet who doesn't like banana bread or banana cake, but when you throw chocolate into the mixture, you're on to a real winner. This little bundt cake was sumptuously moist and the banana absolutely shone through with each bite, then you get the chocolate aftertaste - I can't even explain to you how delicious it was. We had ours cold, but you should try it warmed up - I can only imagine how mouthwateringly good that would be!

This blog post has got two possible outcomes. The first is that you're now absolutely gasping for a trip to Jamaica (which I think I am - I need some sand in between my toes that isn't from Redcar), or you're craving a whole load of Caribbean food. And the good news is that if you're in Teesside, you can get your hands on all of the food that you've seen above at incredibly reasonable prices. All you need to do is send them a message on Facebook or Instagram!

Reggae Delights is a business that I can see myself ordering from in the future - if I don't have that curry chicken again, my heart will break. They're also incredibly lovely and willing to answer any questions that might pop up, so make sure you go and check them out.

Which dish took your fancy? What do you think of a Jamaican food delivery service?

All items that are marked with a * have been sent to me or gifted for review purposes.

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