Fusion Cuisine Follows the Beat of Miami Beach

Miami Beach has a style and pulsating rhythm all its own. Everything about it is big, bold, exciting and delightfully different due to the immense cultural diversity of the city. With large communities of Caribbean, South and Central American, European, Asian, Indian and American residents , Miami Beach is one of the most culturally diverse cities in the world.

The natural expression of this immense cultural diversity is a unique culinary style called fusion cuisine that harmoniously blends the flavors and cooking techniques of two or more different countries.

Fusion cuisine is a deliciously complex blending of big bold, exotic flavors ... interesting combinations of spices, ... unusual pairings of foods and the use of fresh local seafood, fruits and vegetables.

Red snapper, yellow tail snapper, grouper, mahi-mahi, gulf shrimp, conch, Caribbean lobster and chicken are popular ingredients in fusion cuisine. Usually they are prepared with savory sauces or relishes containing mangos, papayas coconuts, limes, oranges, plantains, green bananas, pineapples, onions, tomatoes, peppers and other local fruits, nuts and vegetables.

Chefs preparing fusion cuisine create a delicate balance between bold "hot" spices and more delicate seasonings. Most fusion dishes contain a combination of bold flavors from a hot pepper like the scotch bonnet that are perfectly balanced with the the distinct and aromatic flavors of spices such as ginger, lemon grass, shallots, allspice, sesame, garlic, coriander and spices from around the world.

Many different cooking techniques are used including baking, broiling, blackening, curing, frying, roasting, steaming and other methods.

A typical fusion entree, for example, could be an almond and coconut crusted grouper fillet baked in a brandied mango sauce, served with kalaloo ( a spinach like vegetable) and jasmine rice.

Throughout Miami Beach and the surrounding area, you'll find restaurants offering menus fusing the cuisines of Japan and Brazil, France and China, Mexico and Argentina, the Bahamas and Jamaica and various other countries. Some restaurants feature a fusion cuisine that blend the flavors and ingredients of several different countries.

"Floribbean" is a popular style of fusion cuisine that combines local southeastern regional cuisine and various types of Caribbean cooking including West Indian and French Caribbean.

In addition to being delicious, fusion cuisines served in the Miami Beach area are also very healthful as well, since they feature fresh seafood, fruits and vegetables that tend to be higher in protein, fiber and omega 3 and lower in fat, calories and cholesterol.

Here are some of Miami's finest fusion cuisine restaurants.

Sushi Samba on the Lincoln Road promenade in South Beach is one of Miami's finest fusion restaurants and offers an exciting blend of Japanese, Brazilian and Peruvian food. Their sushi is fantastic and rivals any traditional Japanese restaurant and they make a mean mojito ( a cuban rum cocktail) as well www.sushisamba.com/

World Resource Cafe, also on Lincoln Road, features a delicious fusion menu of Thai and Japanese cuisine and has long been a popular dining spot for visitors and locals alike. www.worldresourcecafe.com

Over on Ocean Drive, Nikki Beach offers a cuisine that is a unique blend of cuisine from the South of France and Southeast Asia. It's menu is very chic and sophisticated as it's cosmopolitan oceanfront ambiance. www.nikkibeach.com/miami.

Ocean Drive has dozens of top-rated restaurants featuring fine Floribbean cuisine including Quinn's, Lario's and A Fish Called Avalon. While these and other restaurants along the beach do not have an entire menu dedicated to a particular fusion concept, they do have many diverse fusion appetizers and entrees on their menus.

Ortanique, on the Miracle Mile in Coral Gables offers a unique Caribbean-Asian fusion cuisine that chef Cindy Hutson calls "cuisine of the sun". It's worth the 15 minute ride down to Coral Cables to sample this particular brand of fusion cuisine.

www.cindyhutsoncuisine.com