Rum and Food

[Edward Hamilton]

Is there some food to be avoided when drinking rum?
Are there some foods that are enhanced by having a rum drink in your hand?
Do any foods come to mind when you think about enjoying a glass of rum?

[Tiare]

Do any foods come to mind when you think about enjoying a glass of rum?

When i think about rhum agricole, the food that comes to my mind is grilled food with a tropical touch, chicken, seafood and fish with fresh lime juice.

[Hank Koestner]

Food with a Caribbean or tropical flair is excellent with rum. I would have to say most Italian dishes would seem not to go with rum.

[Tiare]

....except my special pasta sauce with demerara 151!:D

[lperry]

Does fruitcake count? Not that brick-like thing they sell in stores at Christmas, but a real fruitcake with dried fruit. My jar of dried fruit and rum has been mellowing since November for this year's cake.

[Tiare]

My jar of dried fruit and rum has been mellowing since November for this year's cake.

It sounds deliscious!:) what fruits do you have in it and what rum?

[JMac]

When i think about rhum agricole, the food that comes to my mind is grilled food with a tropical touch, chicken, seafood and fish with fresh lime juice.

Bingo! I usually don't drink rum with food but if I do its with the above food and condiments.

[lperry]

It sounds deliscious!:) what fruits do you have in it and what rum?

I have a mix of things including papaya, pineapple, cherries, strawberries,dates, pears, peaches etc. I buy a mix of whatever looks good each year when I make the cakes with last year's fruit. Then this year's fruit goes into the jar with the rum and the process continues.

The rum is usually a mix of bits and pieces of bottles of dark rum that I have left over. This year I used the last of a bottle of Diplomatico and some three star Barbancourt. There was probably something else, but I don't remember. It's best not to taste it for a while, but over the course of the year, everything comes together in this amazing fruity, molasses-rich, alcoholic wonderfulness that is perfect in a fruitcake. For the soak of the finished cake, I like Appleton, and I'll use whatever one I happen to have on hand. After the rum gets poured over the cake, it gets aged for about a month to even out the flavors and take any harshness out. So I try to make them around Thanksgiving for Christmas presents.

I used to make the cake with bourbon, but my Dad requested rum because the molasses flavor goes so nicely with the fruit.

[Tiare]

I used to make the cake with bourbon, but my Dad requested rum because the molasses flavor goes so nicely with the fruit.

I also like Bourbon but...you have a very wise dad..;)

Linda, your fruitcake sounds as deliscious as "our rum-cake-king" Robert Burr`s fabulous rum cakes..

I wouldn`t mind if you post the recipe and a drooling pic..if possible? your fruit/rum jar reminds me of a rumtopf.

[Rum Runner]

Is there some food to be avoided when drinking rum?
Are there some foods that are enhanced by having a rum drink in your hand?
Do any foods come to mind when you think about enjoying a glass of rum?

An experience that opened my eyes and taste buds was on a beach fishing trip with a few friends here.

We were FlyFishing and caught a few yellowtail snapper and a nice snook.

One of the group had brought a portable grill..We gathered local mequite. Cleaned the fish. Cooked it plain....Right there on the beach. We washed it down with Ron Curao from PR.

In those surroundings it was a perfect match.

[Tiare]

One of the group had brought a portable grill..We gathered local mequite. Cleaned the fish. Cooked it plain....Right there on the beach. We washed it down with Ron Curao from PR.

In those surroundings it was a perfect match.

Ahh...now you brought some very sweet and tasty! memories up to my mind..

When in Thailand we had fresh catched tuna and the hotels rest kitchen to our disposal + a beach grill...and Mekong rum (which they call whiskey) and Singha beer..and a fire on the beach all night..and some other goodies..

And we lived in some small bungalows 20 m from the water..with my own pile of coconuts outside of the door...:p

[RobertBurr]

Rum and slow-roasted BBQ is one of my favorite combinations. With some corn bread, coleslaw and spicy-tangy-sweet roasted pork or chicken, I can keep drinking rum for hours.

Slow aged rum and slow roasted meats are made for each other.

[Freeki_Tiki]

Robert,
I will post my sauce for BBW ribs in another thread. You should try it, its very delicious.

[Hank Koestner]

I want to revive this thread. I had a friend ask for some info. Are there any other specific main or side dishes or desserts that pair well with rum? For instance, would it be possilble to have a rum dinner, 3 or 4 courses paired with specific rums? Tell me, my rum imbibing friends, your thoughts.g()fy

[Edward Hamilton]

Dessert is one of my favorite dishes. I enjoy an aged rum, that drier than sweeter with rich chocolate. The aged rum also goes will with coffee after a meal.

Before the meal there's nothing like a 'ti punch and some hot fried appetizers like shrimp satay. If I'm going to have another drink I'll have some gold rum with fruit juice or maybe a daiquiri, if someone else is making them.

[RumBarPhilly]

I find that a nice pot still rum goes well with spicy foods. The robust flavors counter the heat. Try Appleton Extra, El Dorado 5 or El Dorado 15 yr.

To pair with a light salad, you might go with a Cuban style rum. Anything heavier, and you wont enjoy your salad, perhaps Matusalem Clasico. If there is seafood included in the salad, go with Brugal Anejo.

For heavier dinner courses like beef or lamb, a good sweet rum would work. This would be a good place to have your Zaya or Zacapa.

With your dessert, I would agree with Ed in having a dry aged rum like Mt Gay XO or Flor de Cana 7 or 18 yr.

If its just a Digestif, have fun with it, maybe Castries, One Barrel, or Cruzan Black Strap.

I hope this helps, its sure making me hungry!

[RobertBurr]

another method of pairing rum and food is to consider the flavor profiles of your rum. Perhaps a rum with hints of orange peel, almond, caramel and vanilla could be paired with a selection of savory ravioli, each containing a hint of these or similar tropical flavors and simpatico cheeses.

Or, just choose slow roasted pork, smothered in slow roasted garlic and tangy BBQ sauce with your rum.

[LCchemist]

I enjoy a Dark 'n Stormy with any spicy Thai dish with lots of lime an ginger. The ginger ties the two together and the sweetness of the drink cools the spiciness of the food.

[VicZinc]

Putting on a thinking cap, sitting and contemplating, focusing on a bottle of Mount Gay XO and asking : what foods go good with rum?

Sip. Sip. sip.

Calling on our ancestral spirits as guides, “simple,” I think, “it needs to be simple.” Closing my eyes, taking a deep breath, I can almost feel the waves beating below, I smell the fires on the distant shore, I hear the voices singing in unharmonious tones the tireless tributes to men and sea, “of the flapping fish, and the girls I’ve loved on nights like this with the moon above.*”

It hits me; in the groove I go to the cupboard in search of the perfect foods to accompany a tidy glass of MGXO. Inspiration! Here it is: (now don’t judge until you try this.)

[Forget the pan seared grouper with mango salsa. To heck with Jamaican plantains and habanera goat stew.] The ultimate accompaniment to this rum?

Sardines and s’mores. Both hit the spot. For the main course the MG cuts through the oil while enhancing the rich, distinctive, hearty ocean flavors of the little tinned fishys. A few 'wheat thins' to soak up the juices. On the backyard patio with the fire pit ablaze, I selected dark chocolate to go with the graham crackers and hand toasted marshmallows. Only two – I need to watch my waist.

“It’s a whale of a tale and its all true – I swear by my tattoo.*”

*Lyrics written by Norman Gimbel and song by Kirk Douglas in 1954 “20000 Leagues Under the Sea.”

[SuperCorona]

another method of pairing rum and food is to consider the flavor profiles of your rum. Perhaps a rum with hints of orange peel, almond, caramel and vanilla could be paired with a selection of savory ravioli, each containing a hint of these or similar tropical flavors and simpatico cheeses.

Or, just choose slow roasted pork, smothered in slow roasted garlic and tangy BBQ sauce with your rum.

Robert, let me know if you are ever in the Kansas City area. I'll bring the BBQ.

[RobertBurr]

OK Sup, I'll get with you in KC and we'll do the rum BBQ thing right.