|
|
|
|
Sofrito
(base) - is the basis for most of our Puerto Rican dishes.
Adobo
(seasoning) - is used to season meats, fish and chicken.
Pasteles
(A Meat Tamale) - a banana dough filled with meat.
Arroz
con gandules - rice with green pigeon peas.
Habichuelas
pintas (pinto beans) - pinto beans puertorican style.
Lechon
asado - Roasted pork.
Pollo
Picante (Spicy chicken) - Chicken with spicy taste.
Alcapurias
- croquette filled with meat.
Bacalaitos
(cod fritters)- fried cod mixed with flour and water.
Mofongo
(mashed plantains) - fry plantains and mashed.
Tostones
(plantains chips) - the plantains common side dish in P.R.
Arañas
(plantains spiders) - Another way to eat fried plantains.
Sancocho
( beef stew) - puertorican beef stew.
Quindins
- coconut cupcakes.
Sofrito is the basis for most
of our Puerto Rican dishes.
Try this recipe out and enjoy
the wonderful flavor it gives to dishes.
Place all the ingredients
in a blender or food processor and chop
coarsely. Add in the water
a small amount at a time.
Pour this mixture into jars
with a tight fitting lid.
Keep the "sofrito" mixture
in the refrigerator, it also freezes well.
Add this mixture (to taste)
to bean dishes, stews, soups,
and anything else you want
to spice up.
Adobo is used to season meats,
fish and chicken.
When your ready to fry, barbecue,
or roast, you rub this
mixture on and let the meat
marinade for a day. It
imparts the meat with good
flavor.
You will need a pestle and mortar for this recipe.
Place the garlic and the dry
ingredients into the mortar and mash well.
It should be a pasty consistency.
Put the mixture into a
small bowl and add the oil
and vinegar. Blend this well.
Cover your chicken, fish,
and steak lightly with the mixture and
let it marinate well for
about a day. If you want to do a beef or pork roast,
you must pierce the meat
all over, then insert a small amount of the
mix into the holes and rub
some of it over the outside of the meat.
Let this marinate for two
days in your fridge. This seasoning
can be very salty, so use
it to your taste and have enjoy.
"Pasteles" is a christmas
traditional dish in P.R.. In everywhere in P.R. you can found this
delicious dish accompanied with "arroz con gandules" and "guineitos en
escabeche" (marinated green bananas).
Before you start read entire
recipe, it will make a difference on how you start out.
Meat Mixture
Place pork in a large pot
and brown slightly in about 2 Tbs. of achote, drain, return to pot and
add all other ingredients. Let simmer for about 1/2 hour, stirring occasionally.
Adjust ingredients to taste.
*NOTE: These are the basic
ingredients, everything depends on your taste. Start with the smaller amount
(let simmer about 15 minutes) and add as needed to suit your taste, if
it tastes okay let it cook for the rest of the 30 minutes.
MASA (dough)
Green Bananas (about 25 to
30 to use for the meat above) (make sure they are not gased or sprayed)
salt to taste (optional)
milk (evaporated or whole)
achote oil (to give it color)
or if you really want to have masa with flavor, double up on the meat mixture
ingredients (except for the pork) and add the extra juice to the masa -
remember however to save some juice for when you are putting the pasteles
together.
Mix "masa" ingredients together and make sure it is not stiff (if so add more liquid, either milk, water). The texture of this is hard to explain you want it to be firm enough to hold the meat and yet not so firm that you break a tooth on it!! This will take some practice.
To put "pastel" together,
place paper/banana leaves on a flat surface, place about 1 teaspoon of
the meat juice on the paper/banana leaves (this helps prevent sticking)
put about a to 1/2 cup "masa" in the center of the paper/leaves, and then
1 to 1 1/2 Tbs. meat mixture in the center of the "masa". Fold paper/leaves
to seal in "masa" and meat mixture and tie with string (string must be
strong enough to withstand boiling)
Procedure:
Rinse the rice and set aside
Soak the green pigeon peas
in 1 quart of water and 2 teaspoons af salt for 15 minutes. Then
rinse them and cook them in 4 cups of water until they have softened.
Test by picking up one pea in a spoon and squeezing with between two fingers.
You should be able to squeeze it without much effort. Take care to
not over cook them.
When they are cooked, set
aside 3 cups of water used to cook them in. Rinse the peas and set
aside
In a 4 quart cooking pan,
add the 2 tablespoons of oil, smoked ham and simmer over moderate heat
for 3 minutes. Then add the sofrito and the tomato sauce and simmer
for another 3 minutes as you mix the items.
Raise the heat to moderate
high and add two table spoons of the water that was set aside and the green
pigeon peas. Simmer for 3 minutes as you mix the items.
Raise the heat to high and
add the water that was set aside. Once the water begins to boil,
add the rice. Mix all the items well.
Once the water starts to
boil again, reduce the heat to moderate high and cook uncovered until most
(but not all) the water has evaporated.
Reduce the heat to low.
Mix the rice again then put the lid on the pan and cook for 15 minutes.
Mix the rice once more and
continue to cook until the rice is fully cooked. You can sample the
rice to see if it is fully cooked. It should be soft to chew.
Makes approximately 6 servings.
Ingredients:
Procedure:
In good-sized frying pan cook
bacon, then place it aside. Cook the onion, pepper, and garlic until onion
is translucent. Add tomato sauce, vinegar, and spices, heat through. While
sauce is heating, tear bacon into small pieces, and add it to mixture.
Add pinto beans and cook until they are heated through (about 3-5 minutes).
Serve over rice. Serves 2-3.
If you like more spicy, add
some hot pepper or Tabasco to taste.
Ingredients:
Procedure:
Wash the pork shoulder.
With a sharp knife make incisions in different place of the pork shoulder.
Grind together the garlic, pepper, oregano, and the salt. Spread
this mix in the incisions and on the outside of the pork.
Mix the vinegar and the remaining
oil and spread on the outside of the pork. Put away in the refrigerator
for 1 day. If you planned to cook it the same day, prepare the pork
at least 1 hour ahead of time.
Remove the pork shoulder
from the refrigerator 2 hours before putting it in the oven.
Reheat oven to 350ºF,
before you place the pork shoulder in the oven.
Cook the pork for 3 1/2 hours
or until is done. Then raise the temperature to 375ºF and cook
for 15 to 30 minutes until the skin is toasted.
Chicken is very popular in the puertorican cousine. They made it in different styles and ways. This could be served with White Rice and Pinto Beans, Puerto Rican style with avocado on the side.
Ingredients:
Procedure:
Wash the chicken parts, remove the skin. Place in a deep square pan and set aside. In the belly of a mortar, combine garlic, salt, oregano, and black peppercorns. Press down with the pestle until garlic is crushed and peppercorns are cracked, then add the chili peppers, minced ginger, and saffron threads. Slowly pound the mixture until achieving a paste and incorporate the oil slowly. At the same time, stir with a spoon to break down the paste.
Spread the mixture evenly over the chicken parts, lifting the chicken pieces to ensure distribution of the marinade to the bottom of the chicken parts. Sprinkle all parts with paprika. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
In a preheated deep skillet, over low-to-medium heat, arrange marinated chicken pieces side by side and brown the chicken on all sides. Spread the chopped onions, chopped tomatoes, and drizzle the burgundy over the chicken parts.
Cover and finish cooking on
low heat for approximately 35 minutes. Remove from heat and sprinkle chopped
cilantro on the chick prior to serving. You may serve directly from the
skillet.
Ingredients:
Masa(paste): 5 pounds of white yautia 8 green bananas 2 package of seasoning with achiote salt to taste Relleno (filling): 1 pound of lean beef or pork 1 spoonful of sofrito 1 tablespoon of salt 1/2 sweet chili pepper chopped, seeded
Procedure:Cook all the ingredients for the filling. Let cool. Clean the plantains and yautias. Grind and mixes until making a smooth paste . Mix the season and salt. In a plate it places a spoonful of the mass. Place in the center a little amount of "relleno" and Cover well with the masa and shape into a cylinder or croquette. Fry in deep fat or oil until cooked golden brown. Remove and drain on paper towel.
Bacalaitos (Cod Fritters)
Ingredients:
1 1/2 Cups of Water 2 Cups all purpose flour 1 Pkg. of Sazon With Annato 2 Garlic cloves minced 1/2 Lb of Salted Codfish(Flaked) 1 1/2 Cups water 1/2 tsp Baking Powder Procedure:
Mix the flour and baking powder in a bowl. Then add remaining ingredients. Stir to make sure that the ingredients are well blended. Heat 2 inches of oil to 350 degrees in frying pan. Use a large tablespoon to drop mixture in heated oil, a few at a time. Cook until golden brown. Drain on paper towel and serve warm.
Mofongo (Mashed Plantains)
"Mofongo" is definitely not a dish for those who are watching their cholesterol intake. But is good enough to make a cheat with the diet. On the island, "mofongo" is served as a side dish, as the"tostones", or as a main dish, stuffed with shrimps, lobster any kind of meat.Ingredients:
3 Green Plantains 3 Minced Garlic Cloves 1/4 Lb salted Pork skin or Bacon 1 Pinch of "adobo" or salt 1 Tablespoon of olive oil Peel plantains and cut into ½ inch slices. In a deep fryer or frying pan heat 1 ½ inches of vegetable oil to approximately 350F degrees. Fry plantains until firm, about 4 minutes. Remove and drain them from oil. In another pan cook pork skin or bacon with a bit of salt or adobo until pork fat is liquid. Add minced garlic and olive oil. Remove from heat. In a mortar and pestle or food processor mash the plantains and pork skin or bacon.
Form into balls, like an a baseball ball, and serve as a side dish.
Ingredients:6 large green bananas 2 tablespoons salt 3 cups of water Adobo 2 cups vegetable oil Procedure:
Peel the green plantains. Slice the plantains along its width into 1/2" pieces.
Soak in water and salt for about 15 minutes.
In a frying pan, place the oil and heat at moderate low heat for about 15 minutes.
Place about 10 pieces of plantains in the oil and cook until the plantains achieves a slightly golden color. Turn the plantains pieces over al least once while they are frying.
Remove from the oil and allow them to cool for about 10 minutes.
Using a brown paper bag, place one of the partially fried plantains pieces on the bag. Fold part of the bag over the piece of plantains and crush evenly until the plantains piece is about 1/8" thick. Remove from the bag carefully so that you don't break the plantains chip into pieces. Repeat this with the other banana pieces.
Place the crushed plantains pieces back into the oil and continue to fry until the plantains chips achieve a deep golden color. remove from the oil and place in a container lined with paper towel.
Season liberally with "adobo".
MENU
"Arañas" are served as the "tostones" are, as a side dish or appetizer. You may wonder why not just make "tostones". Well, Arañas have a wonderful texture and taste.Ingredients:
3 Green Plantains Vegetable Oil Salt or Goya Adobo to Taste Procedure:
Peel plantains. Grate them on the coarse side of the grater. Add salt or adobo. With a large spoon, drop a few at a time in 1 to 2 inches of 350 degree hot vegetable oil. Be cautious with splattering oil. Serve as appetizer or side dish.
Sancocho (Beef Stew)
This Puerto Rican beef stew is a typical food that has prevailed for five hundred years in Puerto Rican homes. In the beginning the natives use fish instead of beef. Its a nutritious meal that the people said that can "make come to life a dead one".Ingredients
2 tablespoons olive oil 5 garlic cloves, minced 1-1/2 pounds top round beef, cubed into 1-1/2-inch pieces 1/3 cup chopped yellow onions 1/3 cup chopped green pepper 1/3 cup chopped celery 1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger root 1 chili pepper; seeded and minced 5 sprigs of cilantro, chopped 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin 1 teaspoon pulverized rock salt 1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper 1/3 cup burgundy wine 4 medium tomatoes, cored and chopped 4 quarts beef stock 2 green bananas, peeled and slice into 1-inch pieces 1 yellow plantain, peeled and sliced into 1/2-inch pieces 1 medium sweet potato (1/2 pound), diced into 1-inch pieces 1/2 pound butternut squash, peeled and cubed into 1-inch pieces 3 medium new potatoes, scrubbed clean and quartered 1 large chayote, peeled, cored, and diced into 1-inch pieces 2 ears of white corn, cleaned and sliced into 6 parts each Procedure:
In a preheated kettle over low-to-medium heat, combine olive oil, garlic, beef cubes, and onions, stir until beef is brown on all sides and onions begin to clear. Fold in chopped pepper, celery, ginger root, chili pepper, cilantro, cumin, salt, white pepper, burgundy wine, tomatoes, and 1 quart of beef stock. Cook down until stock is reduced by half.
Stir beef, then fold in all the remaining vegetables and beef stock. Continue to cook until meat is tender and the vegetables soft.
Ingredients:4 tablespoons butter, softened 1 cup sugar 1 teaspoon orange flower water, if available 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon 8 egg yolks 2 egg whites 1 cup all-purpose flour 1 cup freshly grated coconut or 1 cup packaged flaked coconut 3 tablespoons melted butter Procedure:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, beat the 4 tablespoons of butter, sugar, orange flower water, cloves and cinnamon together with a large spoon, mashing and beating against the side of the bowl until the mixture is light and fluffy.
Beat in the egg yolks one at a time and then the egg whites, beating vigorously until the batter is smooth.
Add the flour, 1/4 cup at a time, and continue to beat until all the flour has been absorbed. Then stir in the coconut. With a pastry brush, liberally coat the insides of two 12-cup muffin tins with melted butter.
Pour enough batter into each cup to fill it about halfway. Place the filled muffin tins in one or two large shallow baking pans and pour in enough boiling water to reach at least halfway up the side of the tins.
Bake the cupcakes in the middle of the oven for 40 minutes until they are slightly brown on top. Let them cool to room temperature, then run a small, sharp knife around the inside rim of each muffin tin, invert the pans, and turn the cupcakes out on a rack to cool.
MENU
