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Gordon Ramsay Voyages Deep Into The Rainforest Of Guyana
In the Amazon Basin, Gordon finds a wealth of opportunities to create his spin on traditional Guyanese cuisine.
Chef Delven Adams works on his ginger and coconut-cream green long beans while Gordon Ramsay checks his chicken pepperpot and pan-seared caiman tail.
National Geographic/Justin Mandel
Sitting in a boat at night on Guyana's Rewa River, Gordon Ramsay scans the darkness with his headlamp for the telltale orange eyeshine of a spectacled caiman. These crocodilians are smaller than their black caiman relations, but can still measure up to 8 feet long. Once he spies one, Ramsay and guide Rovin Alvin must get out of the boat and wade through the water to catch it by hand. "Make sure you shuffle your feet, because stingrays are here," says Alvin. "But don't shuffle them too much now, to attract the piranhas," adds Ramsay.
Georgetown, Guyana's capital city, is an exciting fusion of Caribbean, Indian, and European cultures, but the origins of Guyanese cuisine lie deep in the dense rainforest of the Amazon basin with Guyana's Amerindian people, where everything—including the wildlife and produce—can be deadly. "We take pride and joy in our First People," says Chef Delvin Adams of the Backyard Café in Georgetown. "Get in the jungle, hunt, fish, and you can learn their ways."
Gordon Ramsay with Chef Delven Adams in Georgetown, Guyana.
National Geographic/Justin Mandel
If there's one ingredient that's essential to the country's culinary DNA, it's cassava. Comprised of two types—sweet and bitter—cassava is among a variety of root vegetables referred to as "provisions" and is a staple food of the Amerindians who live in the country's interior. Sweet cassava is used in dishes like metemgee, which also includes sweet potatoes, plantains, and eddo (a relative of taro). Bitter cassava contains cyanide, so care must be taken to process it properly. After the cassava root has been peeled and grated, it's placed in a squeezer, known as a matapee. The extracted juice, after boiling, is known as cassareep—an important ingredient in pepperpot, the national dish of Guyana.
Ramsay learns that the indigenous Macushi Amerindian tribe at Rewa village has rich resources in the rainforest from which to create their varied cuisine. Plentiful spectacled caiman is favored over black caiman, which is protected by law. Despite its legendary sharp teeth, black piranha is a meaty fish that's usually caught by hand line and prepared by carefully butterflying and roasting over a fire. But to hunt the elusive arowana fish that can grow up to 4 feet, the Macushi use a bow and arrow, and Ramsay must make his own arrow for the adventure. On land, snacks come in the form of the Goliath birdeater—one of the two largest spiders in the world—after it's lured out of its burrow and roasted over a fire.
Rovin Alvin, an Amerindian fishing guide, teaches Gordon Ramsay how to make a bow and arrow used to catch Arowana, a freshwater bony fish.
National Geographic/Justin Mandel
Clarice shows Gordon Ramsay how to grate cassava. Cassava is an ingredient in cassareep used to flavor pepperpot, Guyana's national dish.
National Geographic/Justin Mandel
The adventures themselves have been thrilling, but after immersing himself in the elements to learn how valuable the rainforest is to the cuisine of Guyana, Ramsay presents his own spin on traditional Guyanese food to the tribe's chief. "This jungle is filled with some of the most exciting foods anywhere on the planet," Ramsay says. He's determined that it's been one of the most illuminating journeys for him, as a chef. "It's like a jungle vending machine."
This article was produced by National Geographic Channel in promotion of the series Gordon Ramsay: Uncharted.
Caiman In Poor Health After Recovery From Columbia Storage Unit
A reptile rescuer caring for a 2-foot caiman discovered in a Columbia area storage unit said Tuesday that the animal is in poor health.
Columbia police turned over the smooth-fronted caiman, also known as a Schneider's dwarf caiman, to the care of John Fitzwalter, who operates Triple J Reptile Rescue in Elizabethtown.
Fitzwalter's initial assessment of the animal's condition is bleak.
"He's in poor condition. I'm not 100% sure if he will make it or not," Fitzwalter said. According to Fitzwalter, the caiman was dangerously thin, and he has no idea how long the animal was kept in the storage unit without being fed.
Getting the caiman to eat is Fitzwalter's first priority.
"We'll know for sure in six months if he'll make it," Fitzwalter said. "Unfortunately there's not a lot you can do."
Caiman belong to the crocodilian order along with alligators and crocodiles but are distinguishable by their shorter, more rounded snouts. Smooth-fronted caiman are native to the Amazon basin in South America but have become common in the exotic pet trade through online pet stores and reptile shows.
Columbia police found the caiman and six cats inside a storage unit last Friday after receiving a complaint of animals left inside the unit. The caiman was found shut in a 2-by-1-foot plastic bin in a few inches of water.
Columbia police originally identified the animal as a crocodile.
"Please note that we are not reptile experts," Columbia Chief of Police Jack Brommer Jr. Said in a statement.
Police and the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission are investigating the incident.
Discarded crocodiliansThis is not the first abandoned animal Fitzwalter has rescued. Since starting Triple J Reptile Rescue in 2005, he has been responding to calls for abandoned reptiles when he is not working as a mechanic at Mars Wrigley in Elizabethtown.
In 2022, Fitzwalter rescued an alligator abandoned on the side of the road in Dauphin County.
Jesse Rothacker, founder of the Forgotten Friend Reptile Sanctuary in Elizabeth Township, has rescued caimans and other crocodilians and is warning people not to purchase the animals.
"Don't do it," Rothhacker said. "It might be fun for a week or a month, but they grow. They're not meant to be in Pennsylvania."
Forgotten Friend is caring for two caimans and an alligator rescued after owners abandoned them or turned them over to the sanctuary.
"Every month we are getting more crocodilian calls," Rothhacker said.
Eighteen states have banned the sale or purchase of caimans, but the trade remains legal in Pennsylvania.
Rothhacker says most vendors at reptile shows are responsible about who they sell to, but some take advantage of customers who don't understand the responsibility of taking care of large reptiles.
"Folks look at the sticker price for the animal and don't consider the cost of care," Rothhacker said. "Folks aren't thinking this through."
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Caiman Found In Storage Unit In Lancaster County Now At Reptile Rescue
WITH THE MAN WHO RUNS THE RESCUE. THERE WE GO. DON FITZWATER KNOWS HOW TO WRANGLE A REPTILE. HE RUNS TRIPLE J REPTILE RESCUE AT HIS HOME IN LANCASTER COUNTY, PROVIDING A SAFE HAVEN FOR SOMETIMES FOUND ANIMALS. RELAX. SO THIS IS ALI, A SIX FOOT, FOUR INCH AMERICAN ALLIGATOR. NO SURPRISE HE GOT A CALL WHEN A CAIMAN WAS FOUND IN A STORAGE UNIT AT THIS FACILITY IN COLUMBIA, LANCASTER COUNTY. COLUMBIA POLICE SNAPPED SOME PICS OF WHAT WAS FIRST THOUGHT TO BE AN ALLIGATOR, AND IT WAS TURNED OVER TO THE RESCUE. IT'S A DISGRACE. I MEAN, I'M HOPING THE COPS ARE ABLE TO CHARGE HIM. SO THIS IS THE TUB THAT HE WAS FOUND IN THE STORAGE SHED WITH THE LID ON. THERE'S THERE'S NO HOLES AROUND THE TRANSPORT THEM TO TAKE THEM SOMEPLACE. BUT FOR LIVING QUARTERS? NO. THE CAIMAN NAMED BILLY RAY IS NOW LIVING LIFE IN A POND FILLED WITH ABOUT 200 GALLONS OF WATER. WHEN I GOT HIM, HE WAS EASILY HANDLEABLE, BUT I DON'T KNOW HOW HE WILL BE NOW. YOU'RE A LITTLE GRUMPY TODAY. JOHN WAS ENCOURAGED WHEN HE GOT THE TWO FOOT LONG REPTILE OUT AND IT TRIED TO BITE HIM WITH ITS RAZOR SHARP TEETH. HE HAS SOME FIGHT IN HIM, SO I WOULD SAY HE HAS A BETTER CHANCE NOW OF SURVIVING COMPARED TO WHAT I THOUGHT THE FIRST DAY I GOT HIM. JOHN SAYS PEOPLE OFTEN GET ANIMALS LIKE THIS FOR THE WRONG REASON. A LOT OF THE REPTILES PEOPLE GET, THEY GET THEM BECAUSE IT'S COOL. BILLY RAY HASN'T EATEN SINCE IT ARRIVED HERE FRIDAY, BUT WHEN IT GETS HUNGRY, THERE'S PLENTY TO EAT. JOHN RAISES MICE AND RATS FOR THE REPTILES. HE SAYS THEY PROVIDE ALL THE NUTRITION THEY NEED AS LONG AS HE EATS CONSISTENTLY, HE SHOULD HOPEFULLY MAKE A FULL RECOVERY. ONCE IT DOES, IT WILL GROW TO ABOUT SIX FEET LONG AND LIKELY PRETTY STRONG. IN LANCASTER COUNTY, SUSAN SHAPIRO WGAL NEWS EIGHT. JUST SO SAD HOW IT WAS FOUND IN THAT CONDITION, BUT I'M GLAD I'M GLAD HE'S OKAY NOW. I AM TOO, AND HOPEFULLY WE'LL HAVE A LONG LIFE. LOOKS PRETTY YOUNG TOO, BUT THE PENNSYLVANIA FISH AND BOAT COMMISSION SAY SO FAR IT'S NOT FILED ANY CHARGES IN THIS CASE. AND IT IS ILLEGAL TO INTRODUCE NEW NATIVE SPECIES LIKE A CAIMAN INTO THE NATURAL ENVIRONMENT HERE IN THE COMMONWEALTH. YEAH. AND THEY SAY IF IT DETERMINES THE PERSON RESPONSIBLE FOR THE REPTILE VIOLATED THAT CODE, THE
Caiman found in storage unit in Lancaster County now at reptile rescue
Updated: 6:52 PM EDT Aug 23, 2024
A caiman that was found in a storage unit in Columbia, Lancaster County, is now in the care of Triple J Reptiles and Rescue in West Donegal Township.John Fitzwater, who has run the rescue since 2005, said about whoever left the caiman and six cats in the unit: "It's a disgrace. I'm hoping the cops are able to charge him." The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission, which was called to assist Columbia Borough police, said so far, no charges have been filed. The 2-foot-long caiman, now named Billy Ray, is living life in a large plastic pond filled with 200 gallons of water. It's quite a change from the plastic tub with a lid that the reptile was found in when Columbia police were called to the scene last week.The animal, which has razor-sharp teeth, has not been eating well since its arrival at the rescue. But when it gets hungry, Fitzwater has plenty of mice and rats he breeds to feed it."He has some fight in him, so I would say he has a better chance now of surviving compared to what I thought the first day I got him," Fitzwater said.If Billy Ray survives, he could grow to 6 feet long.
WEST DONEGAL TOWNSHIP, Pa. —A caiman that was found in a storage unit in Columbia, Lancaster County, is now in the care of Triple J Reptiles and Rescue in West Donegal Township.
John Fitzwater, who has run the rescue since 2005, said about whoever left the caiman and six cats in the unit: "It's a disgrace. I'm hoping the cops are able to charge him."
The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission, which was called to assist Columbia Borough police, said so far, no charges have been filed.
The 2-foot-long caiman, now named Billy Ray, is living life in a large plastic pond filled with 200 gallons of water. It's quite a change from the plastic tub with a lid that the reptile was found in when Columbia police were called to the scene last week.
The animal, which has razor-sharp teeth, has not been eating well since its arrival at the rescue. But when it gets hungry, Fitzwater has plenty of mice and rats he breeds to feed it.
"He has some fight in him, so I would say he has a better chance now of surviving compared to what I thought the first day I got him," Fitzwater said.
If Billy Ray survives, he could grow to 6 feet long.
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