Serves 2-4 Gallitos de Papa uses simple seasonings for big flavor. The smoky paprika and garlic go a long way to wake the humble potato up. An especially great breakfast/brunch dish, this Costa Rican favorite is perfect for serving with eggs. Traditionally served in corn tortillas – feel free to moisten with fresh salsa or sour cream. Ingredients: 4 small potatoes, cubed 1/8 cup olive oil 4 cloves garlic, crushed 1 tsp paprika 1 tsp sugar 1 tsp salt water (optional) chopped cilantro, for garnish Serve with Corn Tortillas Method: Add the oil to a wide skillet and heat over medium. The entire 1/8 cup is necessary to keep the potatoes from sticking. Sometimes our waists have to sacrifice for the good of mankind. Or for functionality and flavor. You’ll thank me later. When hot, add garlic and cook for a minute. And, when I say a minute, I really mean until fragrant. This could take as little as ten seconds. Yikes. I almost cooked mine too long. See? Garlic cooks very fast – you …
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Serves 4 Steaming fish in banana leaves – extremely common in Africa – results in a light, healthy dish. Liboke is a congolese word (in the Lingala dialect) for packets of food cooked in banana leaves. Ingredients: 4 fish fillets (I used tilapia, you can use any white fish you like) 4 banana leaves (or sheets of aluminum foil) 1/2 onion, thinly sliced 1-2 tomatoes, thinly sliced lemon juice, to taste salt cayenne pepper Method: First, prepare the banana leaves. Trim off the tough side of the leaf. Then run the leaf quickly over a flame to soften it and make it more pliable. When it changes from dull to shiny, it is soft enough. Next, assemble the liboke. First the onions. Then, a few tomato slices. Jewl red and just as juicy. A pristine fillet of fish. No square, pressed fish here! Sprinkle with a bit of cayenne, if you dare! Or just a bit of lemon juice. Once you have everything in there, fold up the leaf like a burrito. Top down. Then, …
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Serves 4 The people of the Congo forage for mushrooms deep within the forest. Mushrooms provide important nutrients and calories, especially when meat is scarce. This recipe is all about the lemon – with a flavor so intense that it brightens up any dish. Would be great with fish or wild rice. Ingredients: oil 8 oz button mushrooms, sliced 8 oz shiitake mushrooms, sliced 8 oz baby bella mushrooms, sliced 1 lemon, juiced salt & pepper Method: Heat up some oil in a large pan or wok over medium-high. Throw in the mushrooms. It’s not easy to chop a pound and a half of mushrooms. Unfortunately, Ava’s too young to use a knife or I would have put her to work. Mushroom #1 – button mushrooms Mushroom #2 – crimini mushrooms (a.k.a. baby bellas) Mushroom #3 – shiitake mushrooms Sautee until the mushrooms are soft. Lots of juices will accumulate in the pan. That’s ok, they form a light sauce around the mushrooms. It might be looking like mushrooms are the star of this dish …
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Serves 4-8 The plantain’s dense texture makes this a particularly hearty side dish. Our version is a rather coarse mash – like extra heavy duty mashed potatoes. You could keep going until it s as smooth as you’d like (you may need some hot liquid, like milk or stock, to help though). Ingredients: 5 ripe plantains salt pepper 3 Tbsp butter Method: Make sure your plantains are ripe. This is what ripe looks like… the blacker they get, the sweeter they taste, and that’s a promise. Peel and chop into even sized pieces. Steam for 25-35 minutes, or until a fork pierces them with no resistance. Mash with a little melted butter, salt and pepper. While it isn’t traditional, you can add milk, if needed, to loosen things up a bit. Especially good served with sauces and stews. Mashed Plantains Votes: 1 Rating: 4 You: Rate this recipe! Print Recipe The plantain’s dense texture makes this a particularly hearty side dish. Our version is a rather coarse mash – like extra heavy duty mashed potatoes. …
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Serves 1-2 Cooking a live lobster can be intimidating, but take it one step at a time and you’ll have a delicious dinner in no time! Please note this was my first time cooking a live lobster and is written in the hopes of preparing other first-timers for both the process and the emotions involved. Ingredients: 1 lobster (about 2 lbs) salt Method: First, come to terms with what is about to happen. I had a hard time with this step. I stood like this for several minutes. I was talking to the lobster. Silently, of course. But … you can only talk to a lobster so long before you run out of things to say. Next, take the lobster out of the bag. At this point, I’m not sure who was more stressed out – me or him. If you don’t think you can handle a live lobster, you can have the fish market kill the lobster for you (as long as you are going to cook it right away). I’m considering this for …
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makes 1/2 cup This rich dipping butter has warm vanilla undertones, mellow onion/garlic flavor from the shallot, and a bright acid note from the white wine. Recipe inspired by the New York Times. Ingredients: 1 stick (8 Tbsp) butter 1 shallot, minced (about 1/4 cup) 1/3 cup white wine 1/2 vanilla bean, split salt pepper Serve with Boiled Lobster Method: Melt a tab or two of butter over medium heat. Add shallots and cook. Shallots are incredible. I don’t think I’ve used one in 5 years. Thank goodness this recipe came along, to knock me to my senses! Once the shallot is soft and translucent, add white wine. Take a sip, if you have some extra. Simmer for several minutes, until almost all the liquid evaporates. Then, whisk in the rest of the butter. And add the scrapings of half a vanilla pod. Fresh vanilla scrapings take this dipping butter over the edge, into the realm of the divine. A little salt and pepper seals the deal. At this point many smart people – like the people …
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Makes about 1 cup Thick and rich, this dressing will add South American flavor to any salad. Also, try it as a dip. Ingredients: 2 avocados 2 limes, juiced 2 Tbsp white wine vinegar 1/2 cup olive oil (or to taste) salt pepper 1 Tbsp chopped cilantro Method: Scoop the flesh of two ripe avocados into a blender. These ones were so ripe, they were buttery-good. Add the juice of of two limes. There’s no substitute for the tart zing of lime juice. And a healthy pinch of fresh cilantro for even more South American flavor. You don’t have to chop it too finely because the blender will help you out. Thank goodness for modern appliances. Season with salt and pepper. Blend things up a bit. While the machine is still running, pour some olive oil through that peep hole in the top of your blender. Oh and don’t forget a splash of vinegar for a little extra pucker. Spoon into a serving bowl and use on salads or as a dip for veggies or …
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Serves 2-4 Ahhh… nothing like a nice glass of cola. But what about in rice? The slightly sweet taste will leave you begging for more, especially when served with spicy food (as is common in Colombia). Ingredients: olive oil 1 small onion, chopped 1 cup rice 1 cup broth or water 1 cup cola salt pepper Method: Add a little oil to a small pot. Olive oil makes the world go round. Heat over medium and add chopped onion. Stir and cook for about five minutes. Once they are soft and starting to turn golden, add rice. Stir and cook another few minutes, until rice is hot. Add stock… (or water)… And some cola. Beware the fizzies. Mmm. Drink the leftovers. Or use it to make a Brazilian Mocha Cola! Add salt and pepper. Um. I totally added way too much pepper. This rice had bite! Bring to a boil. Cover and reduce to a simmer. Cook for about 16 minutes. Turn off heat and eat – OR, if you want the best rice ever, follow …
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Serves 4 Rethink eggs! Poached eggs swimming in milky broth is a delicious Colombian specialty which is perfect for breakfast, brunch, lunch, or a light dinner. You can easily make this soup vegetarian by using vegetable broth. Ingredients: 4 cups broth (vegetable or chicken) 2 cups milk 4 eggs 3 green onions, sliced sprig cilantro, chopped salt pepper Method: Add stock to a large pot. Sploosh. Then add milk. Splash. Heat the broth and milk to almost simmering. Meanwhile, spread some thinly sliced green onion on the bottom of the bowls. Sprinkle with some chopped cilantro, too. When a few bubbles barely break through the surface of the hot liquid, you are ready to drop your eggs in to poach. Except you never, ever “drop” them. If you do, they’ll break, separate, make a big mess…. Instead, Break the eggs into a small, heatproof ramekin and gently “dip it and tip it” into the water. Let me show you what I mean. In this picture the ramekin is actually on the water… and partially dips …
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Makes about 8 pancakes Chinese Pancakes are quick and easy to make… and wonderful for scooping up stir-fry. The key to obtaining the characteristic chewy texture is to use boiling water. Make sure you use a healthy dose of salt to flavor the dough. Serve with Moo Shu Pork. Ingredients: 1 1/2 cups flour 1/2 cup boiling water pinch salt 2 scallions, sliced thinly sesame oil, as needed Method: Add flour and salt to a food processor… Add boiling water … boiling water actually blanches the flour (cooks it briefly) and makes for a nice, chewy pancake. This is desirable because the texture will hold up better to moist stir-fry mixtures. Pulse until dough starts to come together. I used my hands to press the shaggy bits into a smooth ball. The dough is not sticky and should not cling to your hands much. Add more water or flour as needed to get the right texture. Let rest for about an hour. The dough will relax and become super easy to work with. Make small …
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Serves 8 A cross between a yeast roll and a biscuit, pan amasado has a crispy exterior and slightly doughy interior. Ingredients: 2 tsp yeast 1 Tbsp sugar 3/4 cup warm water 3 ½ cups all purpose flour 1 1/2 teaspoon salt ½ Cup shortening, softened Method: Mix yeast, sugar and water together. Set aside. Add flour, salt, and shortening to the bowl of an electric mixer. Lard gives the dough rich fatty flavor, but shortening is okay too. Salt makes the flavor pop. Knead together until the shortening breaks up into pea-sized pieces. Add in the frothy, yeasty mixture. Knead with dough hook until the sides scrape clean. If you need a little more water or flour, adjust as necessary. Let rise for about 3 hours, covered and in a draft-free spot. Here’s what it looks like after the rise: Knead it as smooth as you can. I didn’t do a great job at this, so my biscuits are a bit shaggy looking. Spend some time on this step and you can have really …
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Serves 4-6 Cassava leaves are highly fibrous, dense and grassy. We found ours frozen and “ground” at Ebutte Tropical Market – which saved us a lot of sweat around a mortar and pestle. You could easily double the aromatics in this recipe as the flavors rather get lost behind the domineering cassava. Ingredients: red palm oil 1 large onion, chopped 2 tomatoes, chopped 1 1/2 lbs fresh ground cassava leaves 1 Tbsp peanut butter water salt pepper Method: Thaw out some fresh ground cassava leaves. Over medium heat, cook chopped onion in a drizzle of red palm oil. Note how the oil stains the onions gold. Add tomatoes. And the cassava leaves. The smell will transport you to hay-ville. If such a place exists. Add enough water to keep things moist and sludgey, so that the mixture doesn’t burn. Bring to a simmer. Stir in peanut butter. Stew over low heat, covered, for about 30 minutes. Serve immediately with an Adventurous spirit. Stewed Cassava Leaves Votes: 0 Rating: 0 You: Rate this recipe! Print Recipe …
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