Grace Jamaican Jerk Festival welcomes its first vegan food vendor, Things Vegetarian

When most people think of jerk, what comes to mind is meat marinated in pepper and spices, then cooked on the grill until charred to perfection. Candacee Rakem plans on challenging this notion.

Rakem and her all-natural company, Things Vegetarian, will not only be making her debut at the upcoming Grace Jamaican Jerk Festival on November 13th at the Miramar Regional Park, but will also be the festival’s first vegan vendor.

However, Rakem will quickly make the correction, “It’s ital, not vegan.” Ital cuisine is a Rastafarian cultural staple, referring to a plant-based lifestyle. Rakem sees her jerk offerings as a combination of different aspects of Jamaican heritage – it’s Rastafarian cuisine with Maroon preparation. It echoes the origins of jerk itself, where Maroons learned how to spice and preserve their food from indigenous Jamaicans, Tainos, giving birth to the legendary practice.

But what of the food itself? Rakem and Things Vegetarian are pulling out all the stops. Her ital dishes are sure to be show stoppers. The dish features mushrooms and chickpeas wrapped in seaweed and rice paper, and then baked. Afterward, it’s topped with a coconut curry jerk sauce. In addition, there will be pumpkin rounds garnished with an orange-pineapple jerk sauce, pumpkin soup, and even vegan bun and cheese. And, that’s just scratching the surface on the special menu, Rakem notes.

Rakem knows her food is good enough to turn heads. Her mission is to clue people into the healing power of food, and how making the transition to an ital, gluten-free, soy-free, and preservative-free life, is simpler than they may think. The food gets you in the door, Rakem says, but she hopes to also help people transform and, ultimately, change their lives for the better, through a holistic lifestyle.