Authentic Jamaican Dumpling Recipes: Cassava, Banana, Oatmeal and Plantain Dumplings.

Jamaican Boil Dumplings

Jamaican cuisine is known for its bold and vibrant flavors that will tempt your taste buds. These Authentic Jamaican dumpling recipes are no different. They are a popular staple in Jamaican cooking. 

In Jamaica, dumplings are more than just a side dish or a bread substitute; they are a beloved comfort food that can be enjoyed at any time of day.

Jamaican Fried Dumpling vs. Boil Dumplings

While fried dumplings such as Festival, and Johnny Cake Fried Dumplings, are popular, boiled dumplings are a healthier and equally tasty alternative.

Boiled dumplings are easy to make and can be flavored with a variety of ingredients to create a one-of-a-kind and delicious dish.

This recipe blog will look at various flavored Jamaican boil dumplings that will surely elevate your next meal.

There’s a dumpling recipe for every taste, from traditional plain dumplings to flavorful options like cassava, banana, plantain, and oatmeal. So gather your ingredients and get ready to cook!

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JamaicanISHfoodie is a food and travel explora that will take you on a cultural journey. He exhibits everything related to food, culture, and travel.

 

 
 
 
 
 
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Your kitchen will need these power blenders. Here are the links for your shopping convenience.

Here are all the ingredients you will need for Jamaican dumpling recipes.

Below are some amazon ingredient links for your shopping convenience.

Vegan Shepherd's Pie cassava

Cassava

green plantains

Green Plantain

Quaker Oats

canola cooking oil

Canola Oil

Jamaican Boil Dumplings

How To Make Easy Jamaican Boiled Dumplings: Different Flavors.

Kevin Foodie
Each of these three-ingredient Jamaican-style dumplings cooks in less than 20 minutes and can be served with any meat or protein source. Moreover, you can never mess these up.
Jamaican dumplings are the ideal side dish for everyone including Vegans and Vegetarians alike. They are dirt cheap and easy to make. I hope you have as much fun making and eating them as I did.
5 from 6 votes
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Course Side Dish
Cuisine Caribbean, Jamaican

Equipment

  • Sauce Pan
  • Blender
  • Spoon
  • Mixing Bowls
  • Cutting Board
  • Knife

Ingredients
  

Oatmeal Dumplings Jamaican Style

  • cups All Purpose Flour
  • ½ cup Old Fashion Rolled Oats
  • ½ cup Coconut Flour
  • 1 cup Water, room temperature
  • 1 tsp. Salt

Jamaican Banana Dumplings

  • 3 small Green Bananas
  • 1 cup Flour
  • 2 tbsp. Water
  • 1 cup Water, room temperature
  • 1 tsp. Salt

Plantain Dumplings

  • 1 medium Green Plantains
  • cups Flour
  • 1 cup Water
  • 1 tsp. Salt

Cassava Dumpling Jamaican Style

  • 1 medium Cassava Root (about 2½ cups, cubed)
  • cups Flour
  • 1-2 tsp. Salt
  • cups water

Instructions
 

Let's Make Jamaican Oatmeal Dumplings

  • Oatmeal dumplings are not your typical Jamaican dumpling. I add oatmeal to boost its nutritional value while also adding texture.
    You will be using your hands a lot in these recipes. Before making any Jamaican dumplings, make sure you wash your hands with soap and water and that your nails are clean.
  • In a saucepan bring to boil 8 cups of water; season with a dash of salt.
  • In a mixing bowl, combine the all-purpose flour, coconut flour, oatmeal, and salt.
    Add the room-temperature water to the flour mixture and use your fingers to form a dough. Knead the dough mixture until it is completely combined. The dough should be firm and tightly packed.
    oat dumpling
  • The dumplings' size and shape do not have to be perfect. Roll a piece of the dough between the palm of your hands to form roughly 2-inch balls.
    oatmeal dumplings
  • Use your thumb to flatten the ball of dough into a disc-like shape. However, you can form the dumplings into any shape you like.
    oatmeal dumplings
  • What is your favorite way to shape your dumplings: round, disk-shaped, or tube-like?
    oat dumpling
  • Add dumplings to the salted boiling water and cook for 10 to 15 minutes or until they begin to float to the surface.
    DO NOT cover the saucepan with a lid. This will keep the liquid from overflowing onto the stove.
    oatmeal dumplings
  • Remove from the heat after 10 to 15 minutes and serve as a side dish with your favorite protein source. It serves 4 to 6 people.
    oatmeal dumplings

Jamaican Banana Dumpling

  • I ate banana dumplings for the majority of my childhood. Granny (RIP), my next-door neighbor, often made banana dumplings for me when I was a kid.
    I remember them for their distinct flavor, and they turn purplish-brown when left in the water after cooking. I'm guessing this is due to the oxidation of the green bananas.
    To lighten the dumplings, she adds a small amount of baking powder to the flour mixture. However, I left it out of my recipe, because I prefer my dumplings to be tight and dense.
  • Bring 10 cups of water to a boil in a saucepan; season with a teaspoon of salt.
  • Cut off each end of the green bananas to peel them. Make an insertion slit from one end to the other with the blade of a knife. Peel back the green skin from the starchy white flesh inside with your fingers.
    Jamaican Boil Dumplings Green Banana
  • Cut the bananas into about 1 to 2-inch pieces.
    Jamaican Boil Dumplings Green Banana
  • Add to the blender with 1 cup of water and blend until pureed. Traditionally the bananas are grated using a grater. But for more convenience, a blender will suffice.
    Jamaican Boil Dumplings Green Banana
  • Combine the banana puree, flour, 2 tablespoons of water, and salt in a mixing bowl. Bring the mixture together with your fingers and knead with your palm. The dough should be smooth. If it becomes a bit sticky, sprinkle it with flour and knead until smooth.
    Jamaican Boil Dumplings Green Banana
  • Take about a palmful of dough and roll it between your palms to form a ball, just like I did with the oatmeal dumpling.
    Flatten the dough ball with your thumb to form a disk-like shape about half an inch thick.
    The good thing about Jamaican dumplings is that they don't have to be perfect; just try to keep them close to the same size.
    Jamaican Boil Dumplings Green Banana
  • Cook in the boiling salted water for about 15 minutes or until they begin to float around. Just remember they may have a purplish hue after they are cooked; this is a normal part of the process.
  • Remove from flame and serve with your favorite meat. This recipe serves 4 to 6 people.
    Jamaican Boil Dumplings Green Banana

Plantain Dumpling Jamaican Style

  • Follow the same step-by-step instructions for making banana dumplings above.
    Jamaican Boil Dumplings Green Plantain
  • In contrast to the banana dumplings, plantain dumplings are formed into 1 to 2-inch balls rather than disk shapes and boil in salted water for 10 to 15 minutes.
    This is another "easy breezy" side order and pairs well with any fish, poultry, or meat.
    My plantain dumpling recipe serves about 3 people.
    Jamaican Boil Dumplings Green Plantain

Let's Make Jamaican Cassava Dumplings

  • I enjoy them all, but cassava dumpling is probably my favorite because it is one of my top three starchy root vegetables. Let's make it!
    Vegan Shepherd's Pie cassava
  • In a saucepan, bring 2 quarts of water to a boil; season with a few dashes of salt.
  • Peel the cassava root leaving the white starch flesh. Cut it into quarters and remove the center fibrous vein that runs through the center.
    Jamaican Boiled Dumplings Cassava
  • Cut cassava into small pieces and puree in a blender with 1¼ cups water until smooth.
    Jamaican Boiled Dumplings Cassava
  • In a mixing bowl, combine the pureed cassava, flour, and salt. Using your fingers, mix together until a smooth dough forms.
    Jamaican Boil Dumplings Cassava
  • Pinch off a palmful of dough and rub it between your palms to form a cylinder shape. To make a submarine-shaped dumpling, run your thumb down the center of the dumpling dough and flatten it to about ½ inch thickness.
    Jamaican Boil Dumplings Cassava
  • Cook in the salted boiling water for about 15 to 20 minutes. The recipe makes 10 dumplings which are about 3 to 5 servings.
    Jamaican Boil Dumplings Cassava
  • These submarine Jamaican Cassava Dumplings serve about 5 to 7 people.
    Jamaican Boil Dumplings Cassava

OTHER JAMAICAN DUMPLINGS

    Jamaican "Flour Dumplings"

    • The Jamaican flour dumpling, also known as "flowa dumplin," is the mother of all dumplings in Jamaica. She has the basic ingredients for all Jamaican dumplings.
      Flour dumplings are a staple side dish if you were born and raised in Jamaica. You can make a cheap side dish that complements almost any dish using only flour, water, and salt.
      They are also used as a thickening agent in soups and stews in the form of "spinners" (small worm-looking dumplings) to add body and fullness to these dishes.

    Cornmeal Dumpling

    • Consider combining 1½ cups flour, ½ cup cornmeal, 1 teaspoon salt, and ½ cup water to make a dough that is formed to make delicious yellow disk-shaped dumplings.
      Cornmeal Dumplings are very popular in Jamaica. They are also served as a side order and are also added to many soups and stews.
      Add some sugar to the mixture, and create a sweet dumpling called "Festival" that is fried until golden brown. This sweet dumpling is often served with fried fish or eaten as a snack.

    Fried Leftover Jamaican Dumplings

    • Most Jamaicans are aware that leftover dumplings can be reheated in boiling water or microwaved. However, they are best when thinly sliced and fried in oil until golden crispy brown.
      If you have any of these dumplings left over, consider frying them for a delicious snack or bread replacement.
      Jamaican overnight fried Dumplings

    Video

    Notes

    Food Explora's Dumpling Tips

    To increase the nutritional value, replace all-purpose white flour with whole wheat flour. You may need to adjust the recipe's liquid content. But, as I previously stated, you can't go wrong with a Jamaican dumpling. Adjust the ingredients until a smooth dough is formed.
    Here is a link to a wheat flour I have used in the past for your shopping convenience.
    For added flavor, you may replace half of the water in each recipe with coconut milk for true coconut-flavored dumplings. In my oatmeal dumpling recipe, I called for coconut flour and it made a huge difference in the flavor as well as the texture.
    Here is a link for coconut milk you may purchase on Amazon Fresh.
     
    The Jamaican ole school grater was an absolute necessity in all Jamaican kitchens. This was used to grate the sweet potato and coconut used in many of our dishes. This would have been the tool used to grate the banana and plantain used in my Jamaican dumpling recipes.
    jamaican grater
    Keyword Banana Dumpling, Cassava Dumplings, Cornmeal Dumplings, Festival, Flour Dumplings, Fried Dumplings, Oatmeal Dumplings, Plantain Dumplings
    Jamaican Boil Dumplings Green Banana
    Banana Dumplings
    Jamaican Boil Dumplings Cassava
    Cassava Dumplings
    Jamaican Boil Dumplings Green Plantain
    Plantain Dumplings
    oatmeal dumplings
    Oatmeal Dumplings
    Jamaican overnight fried Dumplings
    Leftover Fried Dumplings

    One of these kitchen cookware and equipment may be needed in your kitchen. Click on any of the images for more information and your shopping convenience.

    For all your grocery needs, you can shop on Amazon Fresh . Allow them to conveniently deliver to your door within a few hours. More information can be found by clicking HERE.

    Condensed Milk

    Quaker Oats

    Coconut Milk

    Jamaican Boil Dumplings Green Banana

    I would love to know what you think. Please leave a comment and star rating.
    What is your favorite Jamaican dumpling?

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    [Total: 2 Average: 5]

    24 thoughts on “Authentic Jamaican Dumpling Recipes: Cassava, Banana, Oatmeal and Plantain Dumplings.”

    1. 5 stars
      These all look so delicious. I would definitely try these. Thank you for sharing.

      Lauren – bournemouthgirl

      1. Air fryer dumplings sound like a great idea. I have air-fried cassava in the air fryer, so I am sure the dumplings will work as well; just make sure you spray or rub the dumplings with some oil. Thanks for visiting, Deanna.

    2. 5 stars
      I love that you shared several different authentic Jamaican dumpling recipe options. I bet they’re just as good boiled as they are fried! Thank you for introducing me to these delicious dumpling recipes!

    3. So cool. My kids and I just made cassava dumplings. One of our favorite picture books is “Granny’s Kitchen” and it has 4 recipes in the back. This happened to be one. Cannot wait to try your other dumpling recipes.

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