Meaning
Whole fish — snapper, parrot, or the like — seasoned, sometimes scored, and fried crisp in hot oil, a Jamaican favourite especially at the seaside and on Fridays. Fry fish is classically eaten with bammy or festival, and often 'brown down' afterward in an escovitch dressing of vinegar, onion, and pepper. At the beach or the fish shop, a fresh fry fish and bammy is a whole meal and a ritual.
Examples
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Friday evening call fi fry fish an bammy.
Friday evening calls for fried fish and bammy.
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Season di fish good before yuh fry it.
Season the fish well before you fry it.
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Down a beach wi buy fry fish.
Down at the beach we buy fried fish.
Origin
From 'fry' + 'fish'; crisp-fried whole fish. See [[bammy]], [[escovitch]].
How it’s used
Crisp-fried whole fish; eaten with bammy/festival, often escovitch. See [[bammy]], [[escovitch]].