Puerto Rican cuisine has its roots in the cooking traditions and practices of Europe (mostly Spain), Africa and the native Taínos.

Puerto Rican cuisine has been influenced by an array of cultures including Taino Arawak, Spanish, and African. Although Puerto Rican cooking is somewhat similar to both Spanish and other Latin American cuisine, it reflects a unique blend of influences, using indigenous seasonings and ingredients. Locals call their cuisine cocina criolla. By the end of the nineteenth century, the traditional Puerto Rican cuisine was well established. By 1848 the first restaurant, La Mallorquina, opened in Old San Juan.El Cocinero Puerto-Riqueño o Formulario, the island's first cookbook, was published in 1849.

Taíno influence

See: Native American cuisine

From the diet of the Taíno (culturally related with the Maya and Carib peoples of Central America and the Caribbean) and Arawak people come many tropical roots and tubers (collectively called viandas) like yautía (Xanthosoma) and especially yuca. Viandas are starchy root vegetables, including yuca, ñame, yautía, batata, malanga, and the Puerto Rican apio, all locally grown in the mountain regions of the Island.^[7]

Spanish/European influence

See: Spanish cuisine

• Arroz con Dulce – In Puerto Rico rice pudding is made with rice, sugar, coconut milk, milk, clove, cinnamon, ginger, star anise, rum, and raisins. There are other variations that include purees added such as squash, sweet plantains, batata, yuca, and ripe breadfruit. Cream cheese and pistachios are popular and a rice pudding made with additional egg, lemon peel, and cream cooked just like crème brûlée. The first written record known to exist about this dish dates 1859 but historians can trace it as far back as the 16th century.
• Flan – A milk and carmel custard very popular throughout Puerto Rico. There are several ways on making this dish. Some are unique to Puerto Rico such as breadfruit flan, sesame seeds milk among others. Coconut^[9] and pumpkin^[10] are two popular varieties.

African influence

See: African cuisine

Coconuts, coffee (brought by the Arabs and Corsos to Yauco from Kafa, Ethiopia), okra, taro (malanga), tamarind, yams (ñame), sesame seeds, gandules (pigeon peas), plantains, many varieties of bananas, other root vegetables and Guinea hen, all came to Puerto Rico from, or at least through, Africa. African slaves also introduced the deep-frying of food, such as cuchifritos.