Recipe
🍽️ DINNER
Fungee and Pepperpot
Antigua's national dish: cornmeal fungee dumpling served with a thick stewed pepperpot of greens and meat.
Antiguan · medium · serves 6
prep 25 min · cook 60 min
~470 cal · 29g protein · 61g carbs · 14g fat · 10g fiber · 5g sugars · 5g sat fat (estimated, per serving)
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Fungee and pepperpot is the national dish of Antigua and Barbuda, pairing a cornmeal staple with a rich stewed pot in a combination that speaks directly to the islands' African heritage. It is the Sunday and celebration meal.
Fungee (related to Barbadian cou-cou) is cornmeal cooked with and stirred stiff and smooth into a dumpling-like mound. Alongside it goes pepperpot, a thick, dark stew of spinach and other greens, eggplant, squash, and meat, simmered until unified and savoury.
Turned out together, they make a comforting, wholesome plate rooted in local . Fungee and pepperpot is Antiguan and Barbudan home cooking at its most iconic, a dish that carries generations of tradition.
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Make it yours
✓ Naturally gluten-, dairy-, egg- and nut-free. No swaps needed.
Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.
🥕 Vegetarian
🌱 Vegan
🌾 Gluten-Free
🥛 Dairy-Free
🥜 Nut-Free
🥚 Egg-Free
🐖 Pork-Free
Dietary labels are a cooking guide, not allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish; we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, read the label on every product you use, and note that a kitchen can cross-contaminate in ways a recipe cannot control.
Ingredients
US
Metric
Serves 6
2 cups cornmeal
2 cups , sliced
1 lb salt beef or pork, soaked
1 bunch spinach
1 eggplant
1 cup squash
1 onion
3 cloves garlic
1 cup black-eyed or , cooked
1 tsp thyme
1
Instructions
1
Soak and simmer the salt meat (or ready the mushrooms) until tender.
2
Add the spinach, eggplant, squash, peas, onion, garlic, thyme, and Scotch bonnet, and stew into a thick pepperpot.
3
For the fungee, boil half the okra until soft, then start whisking the cornmeal into the okra water a little at a time.
4
Stir the cornmeal hard against the pot until stiff and smooth.
✎ Chef’s note
Like cou-cou, fungee needs muscle and constant stirring to stay lump-free. Add the cornmeal gradually and keep it moving.
5
Turn the fungee out into a smooth mound and serve alongside the hot pepperpot.
St. John's tradition.
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🌏 While it simmers, know your destination
📍
St. John's. Ducana is a Sunday item: grated sweet potato and coconut, sweetened and spiced, tied into a banana leaf and boiled, then eaten alongside saltfish, which is a sweet and salty pairing that surprises visitors. Thyme, scallion and hot pepper season nearly everything else.
🗺️
Antigua and Barbuda. Antigua and Barbuda's national dish is fungee and pepperpot, cornmeal dumplings with a rich vegetable-and-meat stew. Saltfish, seafood, and tropical produce define a warm Eastern Caribbean table.
🌍
North America. The most consequential technique on this continent is nixtamalisation, cooking maize with lime or wood ash. It loosens the skins, makes the dough that becomes tortillas and tamales, and frees up niacin the body cannot otherwise absorb, which is why maize spread around the world without the technique and took pellagra with it.
The story behind this dish is up top, worth a read while the pot works.
More from Antigua and Barbuda
Antiguan Fried Dumplings with CheeseGolden, slightly sweet fried dumplings split open around a wedge of sharp cheese, a simple, filling Antiguan breakfast.
Antiguan Chop-UpSpinach, okra, and eggplant boiled and chopped smooth with saltfish, an Antiguan everyday plate often eaten with fungee.
DucanaSweet grated sweet potato and coconut spiced and steamed in banana leaves, a traditional Antiguan treat.
Browse all Antigua and Barbuda recipes →
Good to know
You’ll need: Pot or saucepan.
Storing it: Stews and braises keep 3 to 4 days refrigerated and often taste better the next day. Reheat gently, adding a splash of water if it has thickened.
Make it a Antigua and Barbuda meal
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DucanaDessert
Antiguan Chop-UpLunch
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Frequently asked questions
What is Fungee and Pepperpot?
Antigua's national dish: cornmeal fungee dumpling served with a thick stewed pepperpot of greens and meat.
Where does Fungee and Pepperpot come from?
Fungee and Pepperpot is a Antiguan dish from St. John's, Antigua and Barbuda.
Can Fungee and Pepperpot be made vegan, gluten-free, or dairy-free?
This Fungee and Pepperpot recipe includes substitution suggestions for vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, egg-free, and pork-free versions, including several at once such as gluten-free and dairy-free together. Treat them as a starting guide rather than a guarantee, and see the allergen note below.
Is Fungee and Pepperpot safe for people with food allergies?
Our dietary labels and substitutions are a cooking guide, not medical or allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish, but we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, always read the label on every product you use, and remember a home or commercial kitchen can cross-contaminate ingredients in ways a recipe cannot control.
How long does Fungee and Pepperpot take to make?
About 85 minutes total (25 minutes prep, 60 minutes cooking), serving 6.
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