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pepperpots by European explorers noted ingredients like bamboo shoots, buds of trees, and other wild greens.
    In the eighth or ninth century, another South American tribe called the Caribs began to invade the Arawak villages in their huge war canoes. By the time the Spanish arrived in the fifteenth century, the Arawaks and Caribs had merged into a single culture with a shared language. From the Caribbean natives, Europeans learned the cooking technique we call “barbecue,” a word that comes from the Taino dialect of the Arawak-Carib language.
    Other Arawak-Carib words that entered the English language include canoe, hammock, hurricane, and tomalley. In English, tomalley is a cooking term used to describe the greenish innards of a crab or lobster. Crab tomalley was especially important to the Caribs because it was the main ingredient in their favorite hot sauce, taumalin. If you want to sample some, just mix the warm tomalley from a boiled crab with some minced habanero.
    Most Caribbean peppers are descendants of South American aji peppers that were brought to the islands by ancient peoples. Americans use the Mexican name habanero, (which means “from Havana” in Spanish) to describe these peppers. The Scotch bonnets of Jamaica, the bullnose peppers of Guyana, the Caribe peppers of Barbados, the piment of French-speaking Guadeloupe, and the bonda man jack of the jungle island of Dominica are all strikingly similar. All of these chiles are cultivars of the extremely hot Capsicum chinenese species. They give hot sauces, callalos, curries, jerks, rundowns, and all the other hot and spicy dishes of the islands their distinctive, flavorful heat. And they are the heart and soul of Caribbean cuisine.

PEPPER CRABS
    ——— Serves 4 ———
    This simple method of preparing crabs is very close to the original Amerindian recipe. The Caribs cooked the crabs very briefly; they preferred them underdone. Crabs are the only food the Arawaks and Caribs ever boiled; everything else they roasted.
    3 gallons water
    1 teaspoon salt
    1 tablespoon allspice berries
    6 to 8 thyme sprigs
    2 to 3 whole habanero-type chiles
    8 live blue crabs
    3 limes, cut in half
    Taumalin Sauce (below), optional
    Put the water in a large pot and add the salt, then bring to a boil. Add the allspice, thyme, and chiles, and simmer 2 to 3 minutes. Carefully add the live crabs. Boil them for about 15 minutes until red and cooked through. Remove the crabs from the water and let them cool. Discard the cooking liquid.
    Break off the apron (for female crabs) or key (for male crabs), then pull off the top shell. Rub off the feather gills and break the body in two. Reserve the soft yellow-green innards to make taumalin (below). Squeeze lime juice over the exposed meat. Break the shell as you eat, and suck the crab meat out of every joint. Dip the crab meat in taumalin sauce, if desired. Twist off the claws, break them open, and pick or suck out the meat.
    You can also pick out the crabmeat from the Pepper Crabs to use in other recipes.
    Taumalin Sauce: Combine ¼ cup of reserved tomalley with ¼ teaspoon of minced habanero, Caribbean Pepper Mash , or a habanero-based pepper sauce. Use as a dip for seafood.

CARIB CRAB SALSA
    ——— Makes about 3 cups ———
    The ancient Carib salsa is very close in flavor to crab ceviche. If you want to taste the authentic version, boil your own crabs and combine the yellow-green liver from the inside of the crab shells with some minced habanero. But I think you’ll agree that this tamaulin-inspired crab salsa tastes a lot better with the addition of onion, cilantro, and citrus juice. Serve as a cocktail mixed with chilled boiled shrimp, as a salsa with grilled fish, or over greens or guacamole as a salad.
    6 Pepper Crabs or 1½ cups lump crab meat (8 ounces)
    ½ cup freshly squeezed lime juice
    1 habanero-type chile, minced
    ¾ cup chopped red onion
    4 scallions, white and green parts, trimmed and chopped
    1 tablespoon chopped