Bonjou! Learn to Speak Haitian Creole

Bonjou! ...Mèsi! ...E Orevwa! Search for English or Haitian Creole words translation. Also search the whole site for expressions, idioms and grammar rules. And ask questions about the language in the ASK QUESTIONS HERE section.

Most requested translations added here for your convenience: I love you → Mwen renmen w. I miss you → Mwen sonje w. My love!Lanmou mwen!

Monday, February 28, 2011

M dejene, M manje, do both mean, I eat breakfast.

No, "dejene" means to "eat breakfast".
and "manje" simply means "to eat"

When dejene is a noun, it means 'breakfast, n.'
when dejene is a verb, it means 'to eat breakfast'

m dejene - I eat breakfast
sa se dejene m - this is my breakfast

m manje - I eat
m manje yon pòm - I eat an apple
m manje yon mango - I eat a mango
sa se manje m - This is my food
M ap manje - I am eating

God bless you

God bless you - Bondye beni w

May God bless all of you - Ke Bondye beni nou tout

How do I say I don't understand in creole

M pa konprann

Are you a Michael Jackson fan? Why? Fave song of him?

yeap I am.
I was in Haiti when Thriller came out.
I remember drooling over his Beat It poster.
Beat it will always be my favorite.

Ask me anything

how do you pronounce "love"

lanmou pronouced luh-moo

you can't in crole

ou pa kabab

sweety

sweetie - cheri, boubout, kòkòt

Sunday, February 27, 2011

Friday, February 25, 2011

to hold a grudge

grudge - rankin pronounced ruh-keen
hold a grudge - gen rankin

cherie se pu nou ale wi paske nou pral byen fe wiii

Honey, we must go so we can do well...
(sentence not  clear - try to slice it to bits)
cherie - honey
se pou nou ale - we must go
wi - yes
paske - because
nou pral byen fè - we'll do well
wiii is not a Haitian Creole word.

Do you do private tutoring of the language?

Only if you were my padawan, then I'd be the jedi knight :)

I've been looking for the translation for 'depale', does it have anything to do with 'pale'?

pale means to speak, to talk
depale means to ramble, to speak in a foolish and meaningless way.

example: Lè Joe sou, li depale anpil - When Joey's drunk, he rambles a lot.

hey girl, what's the word for "sign your name here."

Hi :)
siyen - to sign (v.)
sinyati - signature
siyen non w - sign your name
siyen non w la - sign your name here
mete sinyati w la - put your signature here
nou bezwen sinyati w - we need your signature
nou bezwen pou vin siyen papye a - We need you to come and sign the document.

Mandaly, i'm stress, creole translation

I'm stressed - m sou tansyon (most popular way to say it)
I'm stressed - m anba tansyon
I'm extremely stressed - m anba anpil presyon

Can i see ur ID card, or do u have an ID card, or do u have a driver license, creole translation.

Eske mwen kapab wè kat idantifikasyon ou? -Can I see your ID card?
Eske ou gen yon kat idantifikasyon? - Do you have an id card?
id card - kat idantifikasyon is pronounced ee-duh-tee-fee-kah-scion , do not vocalize the n at the end:)

Kote lisans ou? - where's your driver's license?
Eske ou gen yon lisans? - Do you have a driver's license? or
ou gen lisans? - got a driver's license?
Ban mwen lisans ou tanpri - Let me have your driver's license please
driver's license - lisans is pronounced lee-suh-ss

Thursday, February 24, 2011

you're on my mind

you're on my mind - map panse ak ou.
or
you're on my mindou domine lespri m

Exercise 67 - Games children play

Vocabulary words
jacks - woslè
a game of jacks - yon jwèt woslè
count-and-capture, mancala - jwèt kay
firefly - koukouy
game - jwèt
play - jwe
jumping rope - sote kòd
Hopscotch - marèl
telling a tale - tire kont
roasted peanuts - pistach griye
Italian ice - fresco
hide-and-seek - kachkach liben sere liben, lago
*Jean-Jacques Dessalines was the first Haitian President

Some of my favorite childhood memories are from Arcahaie, pronounced ah-ka-yeah.
Arcahaie is a little town west of Haiti.
I attended primary school there at Ecole St Joseph de Cluny, an all-girls Catholic school.
The all-boys school was right across the street from us.  The schools were located on a big plaza which had a giant statue of *Jean-Jacques Dessalines raised on many steps and a tall concrete tower.  This monument is at least 3-stories high. It stands at the entrance to the town.

We went to school twice a day.  We got a break at midday to go home to eat.  school was out for the day at four o'clock.  Since we had no electricity, I finished my homework before sundown.  Then playtime followed.
"Vin jwe woslè!" Come play a game of jacks!  I would yell at my girlfriend, as I peeped through the thorny candelabra trees that separated our houses.
"M pito sote kòd. Ou gen kòd?" I'd rather jump rope. Do you have any ropes? she'd respond  at times.
Playtime was always outside. Other neighborhood kids watched to see when we came out and then they'd join us.  We had a huge front yard as I remember. 
"Yap jwe marèl!" They're playing hopscotch! another girl would yell from the street, while she ran to join us.
Other kids would join us and start digging small holes in the ground giggling,
"Nap jwe kay!" "We'll play count-and-capture!"
The boys would join us too, sometimes demanding we play hide and seek with them. 

By moonlight most of the neighborhood kids were in our yard playing hide and seek, krik krak, or listening to tales.  Different acquaintances from the neighborhood would stop by and tell us stories about the goddess of the sea, about Bouki a brainless boy, about a girl who falls in love with a dog, or about talking animals.  Most of the stories were about intelligent, resourceful animals, like a bee who bakes a cake, a chicken who outsmarts a cat, a donkey who does tricks, a cockroach who dresses finely, an ant who struggles to survive, etc... you name it, we'd  had a tale about it.
Often the storyteller would sing and mimic the voices of characters in the story.  Dogs always spoke in a low tone and cats had squeaky voices.

I had a jar labeled "koukouy" that I would bring out at night to catch fireflies.  I was fascinated by them!  Trapping a firefly was like capturing magic in my jar.  The fireflies didn't last long in the jar, but it was a delight walking around with a illuminated jar.

When you have no electricity in your home and no TV to watch, there's no need to be cooped up in a little hut at night. Everyone on our street was out on their porch at night.  I knew they were there because I could hear them chatting.  My ears were especially tuned to the neighbors who were courting.
Everyone in this tiny town was there. 
Bòs Pasètin, the shoemaker, lived right across the street from us.  He made our shoes. 
Rinya, the baker, brought us fresh pastries every morning.
The milkman brought us a jug of milk straight from the cow every morning.  We sterilized the milk by boiling it with a pinch of salt, some lemon zest, a couple of cinnamon sticks and sometimes a piece of ginger root.
Bèbète, the dressmaker, made our school clothes every year.
The Hertelous sold sugar, butter, candles, and oil for our lamps.
We got our school supplies from Emilia.
Bòs Marcel had the only bus service that took us to Port-Au-Prince.  He'd pick us up right at our front gate.
Julienne and Solange were the school teachers, etc...
And then there was Pierre who sometimes played the church organ.  He's the first boy I had kissed. One night he playfully handed me a note requesting a kiss.  So I kissed him, and that was the beginning and also the end of the affair.

A lot of people bathed at night. With no running water or faucets - there were no indoor showers.  In our neighborhood everyone had their own water well.  We bathed in the open with the water from our well.  So the boys just loved spying on the "night bathers" in the moon light.  They just followed the aroma of the bath soap. I don't know why they were always chuckling, it was hard to see much in the dark anyway, except for the shapely blue silhouettes of the bathers.

My Sunday afternoons were spent on the Dessalines Plaza with friends, eating ice cream, fresco (Italian ice), and pistach griye (roasted peanuts).

A few days ago, I saw a 2004 photo of the Arcahaie's plaza on Google.  The Jean-Jacques Dessalines monument seemed to be in good shape.  I could see the steps where I had sat hundreds of times while gazing at  that monument.  How nostalgic I felt!  Looking at the image on my screen, It felt as if
I were a little girl again back in Haiti.  As I looked at the photo,  I remembered a part of me from so long ago I had almost lost it forever. If I could ever travel back in time, I would go back to the Arcahaie of so many years past.
__________________________________________________________
Multiple choice questions

1. What does the Haitian Creole word koukouy mean?
a. catch
b.firefly
c. light

2. You are gathering a group of kids for story telling time in Haiti.  You would say:
a. nou pral jwe kay.
b. nou pral sote kòd.
c. nou pral tire kont.

3. The kids of Arcahaie were sad because they were missing out on TV.
a. True, they were apparently miserable.
b. False, they seemed to have fun.

4. How would you say, "I'd rather dance." in Haitian Creole.
a. M vle danse.
b. M pito danse.
c. M pral danse.

5.  You're walking down the streets in a Haitian city.  You see a merchant with a straw basket on her arms.  She's yelling out, "Pistach griye! Pistach griye!".  You know she's selling:
a. soap
b. oil
c. roasted peanuts

6. Arcahaie is a little town
a. on the south side of Haiti
b. on the west side of Haiti
c. on the east side of Haiti

7. Port-Au-Prince is
a. the capital of Haiti
b. on the rural side of Arcahaie
c. some walks away from Arcahaie

8. The very first president of Haiti was
a. Toussaint Louverture
b. Jean-Jacques Dessalines
c. King Henri Christophe

9.  Haitian tales were mostly about
a. Knights in shining armor
b. Prince and Princesses
c. talking animals

10.  Most Haitian kids would play a game of "kay" by
a. digging holes in the ground
b. jumping rope
c. hiding inside a house



Answers: 1.b,  2.c,  3.b,  4.b,  5.c, 6.b, 7.a, 8. b, 9. c, 10.a

Write down ur First & Last Name, what is ur street adress, what is ur date of birth, what is ur social security number.

Kijan ou rele? - what is your name?
Ekri non ak prenon ou la - write down your first and last name here.

Ki adrès ou? - what is your street address
Ekri adrès ou la - write down your address here.

Ki dat ou fèt? - what is your date of brith?
Ekri dat ou fèt la la - write down your DOB here.

Ki nimewo sosyal ou? - What is your SSN?
Ekri nimewo sosyal ou la - write down your SSN here

And in case you need to know,

sinyati (n.) - last name
siyen (v.) - last name
non fanmi - last name
prenon - first name
examples:
kijan ou siyen? - what is your last name?
ki non fanmi ou? - what is your last name or what is your family name
ki siyati ou? - what is your last name?
ki prenon ou - what is your first name?
Ask me anything

is manmzel French or Creole? Use it in a sentence.

manmzèl or manzèl is a Haitian Creole title for unmarried women also sometimes used as a subject pronoun for any women.
It is derived from the french word 'mademoiselle' which means miss, Ms or MS.

Example:
Manzèl Elizabeth Smith - Miss Elizabeth Smith
Manzèl pa kontan. - She is not happy.
M te wè manmzèl yè - I saw her yesterday

who is the most important person on earth

Ki moun ki pi enpòtan sou tè a?

Ask me anything

what do you think

What do you think?
Kisa w panse?
Sa w panse?

What did you think?
Kisa w te panse?
Sa w te panse?

are we suppose to memorizze these words?

is this a question or do you need translation?

too bad

malerezman

m ale

i am going
i'm leaving
i go
or i went

Ask me anything

grapefruit

chadèk

Ask me anything

fouyapòt

a digger, a very nosy person who especially likes to dig into affairs that doesn't concern him.

i'm gonna take some space there. clashes, extending, tribute, drench, engage, to inform, to collaspe. That a be it for today.

drench (v.) - tranpe
extending - alonje (may have other translation depending on the context in which it is used)
tribute - omaj
clashes (n.) - briganday
clash (v.) - twòke (may have other translations depending on context)
engage (participate)(v.) - angaje, patisipe
engage (v.) (promise to be married) - fiyanse
inform - enfòme
collapse (v.) - tonbe, kraze nèt (if you're talking about an object)
collapse (v.)- indispoze (if you're talking about someone)
collapse (n.)ranvèsman, chit (pronounced sheet)

to condemn, condolence, prohibit translation in creole.

to condenm - kondane (pronounced kon-dah-nay)
condolence - kòdoleyans (pronounced kor-doe-lay-yuh-ss)
My condolences - mè kòdoleyans (pronounced meh-kor-doe-lay-yuh-ss)
to prohibit - defann (pronounced day-fuh-n)

Happy Easter

Bòn fèt pak

Ask me anything

pongongon

pongongon, pès, tilandeng, nwizans, magouyan, in other words, pain in the butt

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Eske yo di shopping an Kreyol?

yes, Haitians in the US do use that word like if it was Creole.
But Haitians in Haiti don't.
They'd say, 'achete', 'fè makèt', or 'fè kèk acha'

Ask me anything

because in Haiti family means every body, Husband, wise, kids, sibling. Is it the same in America.

Yeah, in Haiti it does mean everybody: nephews, cousins, grandparents, etc...
I think that things have changed a bit here in America. Family may mean mom dad and kids, mom and kids, dad and kids, sometimes two moms or two dads, and don't forget the dog, the cat, and the pet snake. "Family" means something different to each individual.

When you use the word family in America, it means that the Husband, wise and kids.

It may also mean the "extended family", too.

Ask me anything

how do you say fruit?

fwi

Ask me anything

your Haitian, and you can't speak creole, no. This website is for you.

You're right

Ask me anything

cutie

bebe or ti cheri

Ask me anything

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

where's my plate?

you could say it many different ways. Here they are:
kote plat mwen an?
kote plat pa m?
kote asyèt mwen an?
kote asyèt pa m?

Ask me anything

are you ok

You can say this many different ways:
Ou byen?
Eske w byen?
Tout bagay byen?
Eske tout bagay byen?
Ou anfòm?
Eske w anfòm?

hi im haitian but i wasnt born in haiti and i can only say a few things to my grandma but i understand everything she says. what are some words to speed up our convo? like how can i start a convo and keep it going for a while with her?

Keep talking to your grandma and her Haitian friends and family. Say what they say. Talk like they talk. You'll learn a lot from them. Peace

this food is good

manje sa bon

Ask me anything

Exercise 66 - Turning on and Turning off Appliances

Turn on = limen or ouvè
Turn off = etenn or fèmen

Turn up = monte
Turn down = desann
_______________________________________________
Turn on the light limen limyè a
Turn off the lightetenn limyè a

Turn on the ovenlimen fou a
Turn off the ovenetenn fou a

Turn on the TVlimen televizion an
Turn off the TVetenn televizion an
or
Turn on the TV – ouvè televizyon an
Turn off the TVfèmen televizyon an

Turn on the AClimen èkondisyone a
Turn off the ACetenn èkondisyone a

Turn on the lamp limen lanp lan
Turn off the lampetenn lanp lan

Turn on the computerouvè konpitè a
Turn off the computer fèmen konpitè a

Turn the radio onouvè radyo a
Turn off the radiofèmen radyo a

Turn on the fanouvè vantilatè a
Turn off the fanfèmen vantilatè a

Turn on the cell phoneouvè telefòn nan
Turn off the cell phonefèmen telefòn nan

Turn on the water faucetouvè tiyo a
Turn off the water faucetFèmen tiyo a

Turn up the volume – monte volim nan
Turn down the volume – desann volim nan
_________________________________________________

Can you translate the following sentences?
1. You're wasting the water. Turn off the faucet.
2. It's hot. Turn on the fan
3. I am tired and sleepy. Turn off the television.
4. Turn on the light so I can read
5. Turn up the volume so I can hear the song.
Answers are at the bottom of this page









1.w ap gaspiye dlo a. fèmen tiyo a  2.li fè cho. ouvè vantilatè a  3.m fatige e m gen dòmi. etenn televizyon an  or m fatige e m gen dòmi. fèmen televizyon an 4.limen limyè a pou m ka li  5. monte volim nan pou m ka tande chante a

Monday, February 21, 2011

and what is 'zantray'

your guts

Ask me anything

So if you wanted to say 'it shook me to my core' how would say that.

there's an expression for that,
It shook me to my core - tout zantray mwen tresayi

Ask me anything

Hi, in Exercise 10, #16 you've got "nannan" translated as ''nucleus. Does that mean seed or something like that?

Partly. All the following terms describe nannan, pronounced 'nuh-nuh':
the core
the essence
the central point or
the innermost center of an individual, object or region

chat pa la, rat pren kay, can u use that term on a person.

Yeap, you sure can.
I've heard people use it to mean, "When the husband is not present, the wife does whatever she wants."

Ask me anything

Who is the most important person in the world to you?

Myself. If I can't manage who i am, life would be insignificant.

Ask me anything

Mandaly, I'm still searching the Haitian Creole word 'chat'. How popular is its usage? Is the pronunciation tha same as the English word 'chat'?

First of all, "chat" is a French word. It means "cat" in English.

Chat - French pronunciation is "sha"
Chat - Haitian Creole pronunciation is "shat"

In Haitian Creole this word is used in many proverbs and idioms. I'm listing the few that i can remember here.

1. Chat mawon - wild cat
2. Chat mawon - someone who commits white collar crimes
3. lage chat la - let the cat out of the bag
4. Tèt chat - being of poor quality, being unreliable, not authentic
5. fè pa chat - cheating on your significant other
6. chat pa la, rat pran kay - cat's away, mice will play
7. viv tankou chen a chat - living a cat and dog life
good luck in your search

m ale

I go
I'm going
or
I went

Ask me anything

If 'aswè' means 'night'. ho do you say 'tonight'?

night - aswè
tonight - aswè a

Ask me anything

I don't think that last question was sincere.

Message received. Thank you. I'm on my guard.

Ask me anything

Sunday, February 20, 2011

I can't view the words she is speaking

Click on the Green triangle, not the vocaroo box, so that you may remain on that present screen and be able to follow the vocab words.
If you're talking about the audio lesson, the list of words should be to the left side of the screen. Just scroll down as she speaks.

The green buttons are also on Lesson 1 and Exercise 2.  Thanks

I can't view the words she is speaking

Which exercise?

Ask me anything

john wants his black tie.

John vle kravat nwa li a

Ask me anything

Not much happening

Pa gen anyen kap pase

Ask me anything

Hi Mandaly, does this phrase have a non-literal translation? Or does it simply refer to confusion? "Mezanmi se mele mwen mele!"

Hi. This expression does not have a literal translation.
Mezanmi se mele mwen mele - Oh dear! I'm stuck, Oh dear I'm in trouble, or Oh dear! I'm in deep *#@%!

Mele - mixed, stuck
Mezanmi is derived from the french 'Mes amis'. Its literal meaning is 'My friends'.
Mezanmi is an interjection, it can be translated as: Oh dear!, Geez!, Oh God!
Both definitions are used in Haitian Creole.
Example:  You walk up to a group of people in a meeting and you say, Bonjou mezanmi! meaning 'good morning everyone' or 'Good morning friends!'
Or,
You are driving on the road and another driver just rear-ended you, you'd interject, "Mezanmi!"
Or
You're listening to the news and just learned of a very hainous crime that someone had committed, you may also interject, "Mezanmi! what is this world coming to?"

Notes you'd be interested in:
When you see this type of phrase "se mele mwen mele" (where the verb, adjective or attribute is doubled), it is a sort of authentication of the said sentence.
Example:
Se mache map mache - I am just walking
Se li map li - I am just reading
Se grangou mwen grangou - I am just so hungry
Se kontan mwen kontan - I am just so happy
Se kouri map kouri - I am just running
Se pale map pale - I am just talking
Se vini mwen vini - I am here.

HI ! What does delro means ?

Delro is not a Haitian Creole word. What sentence and context was it used in?

Ask me anything

Saturday, February 19, 2011

hi

Haitian Creole greetings
Bonjou - good morning
bonswa - good afternoon, good night
allo - hello
salut - greetings
lapè avè w - peace be with you
sak pase - what's up, what's going on
onè respè - honor and respect

How do you say kretyen in hatian Creole?

Kretyen is Haitian Creole for Christian.

It is pronounced "cray-t-yen". The "n" at the end is not vocalized.

How do you say on point

On point - a pwen

Other idioms
On point - direk
On point - direk direk

Friday, February 18, 2011

Hi, I have been looking for the meaning of the word 'pisannit'. I once intercepted a note in class with that word written in it.

Pisannit - pronounced pee-suh-neet means bedwetter.

menw ta kenbe chat la yon lot kote

That's an interesting one!
Although the Creole word "chat" means 'cat', often Haitians will use that word to describe a burglar or a "very" private part of the female anatomy

The meaning is in the context.
"I would have held that cat somewhere else."
"I would have caught that cat somewhere else."

Thanks. I do have one more question, how do you say 'tame a wild animal'? need help with part of speech.

tame (v.) - donte
tamed (adj.) - dosil
wild (adj) - sovaj (adj.) This adjective always come after the noun in Creole.
acting wild - debòde, dechennen
animal - bèt
Wild animal - bèt sovaj
tamed animal - bèt dosil
tame a wild animal - donte yon bèt sovaj
She is acting wild - li debòde or li dechennen

What is Haitian Creole for 'wild'?

Wild - sovaj

Ask me anything

What is 'chat mawon'?, Is it a brown cat?

Chat is Haitian Creole for Cat
mawon is Haitian Creole for the color brown.
But,
Chat mawon is a wild cat

what is "fè lésiv"?

fè lesiv - doing laundry

Mandaly, where do you place the pronoun when you want to say, "What's hurting you?" Is it at the end of the sentence?

usually after the verb.

examples:
hurt - fè mal, blese

fè mal - means causing pain
blese - usually means wounded, hurt

what's hurting you? - Kisa kap fè ou mal?
What's hurting him? - Kisa kap fè li mal?
That truly hurt me - Sa vrèman fè mwen mal
Does this hurt you? - Eske sa fè ou mal?
Also,
my head hurts - tèt mwen ap fè m mal
my teeth hurt - dan m ap fè m mal
her feet hurt - pye li ap fè li mal
my knee hurt - jenou m ap fè m mal

hope that helps.

Why do I sometimes hear a slightly different pronunciation to a word such 'ladan-l' and 'ladany" when the word clearly has the same meaning?

Haitians from different parts of Haiti do have different accents. That's what you're hearing. You can quickly discern whether someone is from North or South of Haiti by the way they speak.

Ask me anything

Thursday, February 17, 2011

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Preparing Rice with Lima Beans and Black Mushrooms

Ingredients:
1 cup of rice (white or brown)
1/2 cup of coconut milk (may substitute for water or broth)
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup of black mushrooms (will only find this at tropical Haitian grocery stores)
2 1/2 cup of water to boil mushrooms
1/2 cup of lima beans
2 to 3 tbsp of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Fresh seasoning mix (garlic, green onion, and parsley)

Preparation:
Black dried mushrooms
called "dyondyon" in Haiti.

In a saucepan, add 21/2 cups of water and the
dried mushrooms.

Bring to a boil.

Strain and discard the cooked the mushrooms.
I usually use a coffee filter to strain the mushrooms.

Retain the water and set aside. 
Discard fine residue that forms at the bottom
after the mushroom-boiled water settles.
In a saucepan, add oil and seasoning mix.

Add lima beans and salt.

 Add 1 cup of the mushroom-boiled water (for white rice) or

1 3/4 cup of mushroom-boiled water (for brown rice)
Add coconut milk (may substitute for water or broth)
Bring to a boil.

Stir in rice.
When the liquid has evaporated,
reduce heat, cover and simmer for about 15 - 25 minutes.


Rice with Lima Beans and Black Mushrooms

Serve with your favorite meat, sauces,
or vegetables.







Preparing Rice with Mixed Vegetables and Anchovies

Ingredients:
1 cup of rice (white or brown)
1 cup of water (for white rice)
1 3/4 cup of water (for brown rice)
1/2 cup of  coconut milk(may substitute for water or broth)
Small sardine box of flat fillet anchovies
1/2 cup of frozen mixed vegetables
4 tablespoons of unseasoned tomato sauce (may use 1 large fresh tomato)
2 to 3 tbsp of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Fresh seasoning mix (garlic, green onion, and parsley)

Preparation:
1. Heat up a saucepan, add oil, a pinch of your fresh seasoning mix
2. Add vegetable mix
3. Add 2 -3 small fillets of anchovies
4. Add tomato sauce (or fresh tomato)
5. Add coconut milk (may substitute for water or broth)
6. Add water
7. Bring to a boil
8. Stir in rice
9. Once liquid has evaporated, reduce heat, cover pan, and simmer for 20 minutes.

Rice with Mixed Vegetables and Anchovies

Serve with your favorite meat, sauces,
or vegetables

Preparing Rice with Lima Beans

Ingredients:
1 cup of rice (white or brown)
1 cup of water (for white rice)
1 3/4 cup of water (for brown rice)
1/2 cup of coconut milk (may substitute for water or broth)
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup of frozen lima beans
4 tablespoons of  unseasoned tomato sauce (may use 1 large fresh tomato)
2 to 3 tbsp of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Fresh seasoning mix (garlic, green onion, and parsley)

Preparation:
1. Heat up a saucepan, add oil, a pinch of your fresh seasoning mix
2. Add lima beans
3. Sprinkle salt to sizzling lima beans.
4. Add tomato sauce (or fresh tomato)
5. Add coconut milk (may substitute for water or broth)
6. Add water
7. Bring to a boil
8. Stir in rice
9. Once liquid has evaporated, reduce heat, cover pan, and simmer for 20 minutes.


Rice with Lima Beans

Serve with your favorite meat, sauces,
or vegetables




Preparing White Rice

Ingredients
1 cup of white rice
1 1/2 cup of water
1/4 tsp salt
2 tbsp of Extra Virgin Olive oil

Step 1
In a saucepan add water, oil, salt.

Step 2
Bring to a boil

Step 3
Stir in white rice

Step 4
When liquid has evaporated, reduce heat,
cover, and simmer for 15 minutes.

White rice especially delicious with vegetables.

How about sauteed spinach, green beans,
and shrimp in olive oil?

Looks good!

Do you have the name of the "greener beans" in Haiti In Creole?





pwa tyous
lima beans


pwa congo
green pigeon peas
pwa vèt
green peas


pwa tann
green beans
 

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Is tous a contracted form of toutous?

No. "Tous" is the Haitian creole noun for "cough"
and "toutous" is what you call a little puppy.

Tous - cough (n.)
Toutous - puppy

happy valentines day

Bònn fèt Sent Valanten. That's a little late, isn't it?

Ask me anything

Hi, i am looking for the translations for sideburns, barber, neck trim, and beard. Will greatly appreciate you posting it. Thanks

Hello inconnu, someone's taking a trip to the barber shop heh?
sideburns - pafouten

neck trim - tyas (n.)
beard - bab
barber - kwafè
mustache - moustach
shave your beard - fè bab ou, raze bab ou
shave my beard - fè bab mwen, raze bab mwen
shave your hair - koupe cheve w
give me a neck trim - fè tyas pou mwen
go to the barber shop - ale kay kwafè

How do you say Catholic?Where can I go to hear the rosary prayed in Haitian Creole?

Catholic - Katolik
Hi,
There are not too many sites where you'd find the rosary in Haitian Creole.  The ones below are the two best ones.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RSO6RMuA21s
http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chaplet_en_Créole_Haitien

If you're searching the internet, search under the title:  Je vous salue marie
If you're in Florida, take a little trip to Libreri Mapou 5919 NE 2nd Ave in Miami . Phone (305) 757-9922 or give them a call.  They've got some religious materials in Haitian Creole.
Thanks

Making Mixed Rice with Dry Beans.

Ingredients:
For rice
1 cup pf rice (white or brown)
1 cup of water (for white rice)
1  3/4 cup of water (for brown rice)
1/2 cup of coconut milk (may substitute with water or broth)
2 to 3 tablespoons of Extra virgin olive oil
1/4 tsp of salt
Seasoning spices (blended mixture of garlic, green onions, and parsley)
Pepper, thyme, parsley (for aroma)

For beans
1/2 cup of your favorite dry beans
6 to 8 cups of water.







Black beans.
 Preparing dry beans takes some time.
About two hours.

Use a lot of water and keep your fire on low-medium.
Use about 4 to 6 cups of water.
If your  fire is on "high", be watchful as
the water will dry quickly and you'll have to replace it until
the beans are cooked.





Red Pinto Beans
Let the beans boil for about two hours.
Add more water as it evaporates.



The beans are ready when they are soft,
and you can effortlessly squish them between your fingers.
Save the "boiling juice" as it is this very boiling juice you will
use to prepare your mixed rice.


In a saucepan, add 2 - 3 tablespoon of Extra Virgin Olive Oil.
When the oil is hot, add in your spices (a blended mixture of
garlic, green onion, and parsley)






Add cooked beans, sprinkle the salt.  Let it simmer for
about 4 minutes.

Add Coconut milk.
If you wish to skip on the coconut milk, you may substitute it
with water or even your favorite broth.


Add the 'bean juice'
For white rice your ration of water to rice is 1 1/2 liquid to 1 cup of rice.
For brown rice the ration of water to rice is 2 1/4 liquid  to 1 cup of rice.
That should include the coconut milk, broth, or water.


Bring to a boil and stir in rice.


Once the liquid has evaporated, add aromatic spices
such as peppers, thyme, parsley, etc..
reduce heat, cover and simmer for  15 to 25 minutes.


Serve your Rice and Red Pinto Beans with your favorite
meat, sauces, or vegetables.


Serve your Black Beans and Rice with your favorite meat,
sauces, or vegetables.








Making Rice with Peas and Spinach

Ingredients:
1 cup of rice (white or brown)
1 cup of water (for white rice)
1 3/4 cup of water (for brown rice)
1/2 cup of coconut milk (may substitute for water or broth)
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup of frozen peas
1/2 cup of chopped spinach
2 to 3 tbsp of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Fresh seasoning mix (garlic, green onion, and parsley)

Step 1 -In a saucepan, add 2 to 3 tablespoons of
Extra Virgin Olive Oil.
Once the oil is hot add a pinch of
seasoning mix (blended garlic, green onions,
and parsley).

Step 2 - Once the seasoning has browned, add
the peas.
Step 3 - Sprinkle the salt over the sizzling peas.

Step 4 - As the peas start to get crispy,
add the spinach.

Step 5 - Add coconut milk.
(you may substitute coconut milk with
water or your favorite broth)

Step 6 - Add water

Step 7 - Bring to a boil

Step 8 - Stir in rice

Step 9 - Once the liquid has evaporated,
reduce heat, cover, and simmer
for 15 - 25 minutes.

Rice with Peas and Spinach


Serve with your favorite meat, sauces,
 or vegetables and,
Enjoy!

Making Coconut Milk

Coconut milk is an essential part of the Haitian Cuisine when
preparing mixed rice.  Nevertheless if you're on
a low-fat diet, you may skip it.  Coconut milk
is high in saturated fat.
Minus the coconut milk, your mixed rice will taste just as delicious.


Breaking a coconut.
Sometimes I use a hammer to break a coconut.  And sometimes I
go to a concrete spot in my backyard and throw the coconut
to the hard surface with force.
When you break the coconut, the clear liquid that comes out is
called coconut juice or coconut water.

The coconut flesh should look fresh and crispy, otherwise
take it back to the grocery store for your money back.
Use a knife around the edge of the coconut flesh to
detach it from the hard shell.  When  preparing the
coconut milk, use big pieces if you'll
grate the coconut.  But if you're going to use a blender
cut the flesh into small pieces so you don't ruin your kitchen equipment.

I find it convenient to prepare the flesh in a blender.  Just add water.
When I didn't have electricity in Haiti, I grated the
coconut flesh.  Great exercise for my arms!

Strain the blended coconut.  You may discard the residue
or use it for your muffin recipes.
Use the milk to prepare your mixed rice.