# April 2014 Challenge - South America



## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

Before introducing this new challenge, BIG THANKS to @JonPaul for the great bean challenge. Always fun to see how many different members of our community take a common ingredient and what they can do with it. I personally find those challenges to be very inspiring, and I want to thank you all for sharing your dishes, sometimes along with photographs, sometimes even recipes that we may have never discovered otherwise.

For the month of April, let's focus on the cooking of South America! I can't wait to see what you all will prepare for this thread. I have myself never traveled to any countries in South America so most of its dishes are very exotic and mysterious. I look forward to learning a lot!! /img/vbsmilies/smilies/smile.gif

¡¡¡LET THE GAMES BEGIN!!!


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## phatch (Mar 29, 2002)

I can sense barros luco, and lomito palta in my future!


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## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

See I don't even know what those words mean Phatch, and yet they sound as beautiful to me as dulce de leche or Churrasco! /img/vbsmilies/smilies/smile.gif


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## phatch (Mar 29, 2002)

They're chilean sandwiches:

Lomito Palta, a thin cutlet of pork, mashed avocado, tomato, maybe mayo, onion on a roll that's a cross between a bun and ciabatta. Images all lifted from google search.





  








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Barros luco is the same concept but with steak and green beans and cheese.





  








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There's a ham variation that's popular too, barros jarpa





  








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If you can find a chilean restaurant, they'll usually have these on the lunch menu and a few others too. Usually very good french fries accompany them.


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## teamfat (Nov 5, 2007)

Brazil, Argentina, Peru - just picking one of those countries, for example, could have been sufficient.  Wow - this could be a really great, diverse theme.  I love it!

mjb.


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## everydaygourmet (Apr 4, 2012)

Wow the first(?) Continental food challenge, no more Mr. Nice Ingredient, you're not fooling around anymore huh FF?


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## ordo (Mar 19, 2009)

I'll have to learn how to cook Argentinean food, damned!


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## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

ordo said:


> I'll have to learn how to cook Argentinean food, damned!


@ordo I knew you'd probably be excited about this challenge. I expect to learn a LOT from you (granted, I already have)! /img/vbsmilies/smilies/smile.gif


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## koukouvagia (Apr 3, 2008)

Awesome! There are 14 countries to choose from!! And no, Mexico is not one of them. I'm totally inexperienced in this cuisine and looking forward to researching!


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## teamfat (Nov 5, 2007)

I think I'l just go to the Brazilian steak house up the street and take my camera. Will that work?


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## ordo (Mar 19, 2009)

*Locro*

Locro

From the Quechua languaje: _ruqru_.

Stew with meats, corn, potato, squash and other vegetables.





  








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Made with this:





  








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## butzy (Jan 8, 2010)

That's quite a challenge 
My surinam yellows (madam janette chili's) are almost ready so I should be able to do someting with those.....
Other than that: I don't really cook much latin american and I have never been there.
Time to go exploring!


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## petemccracken (Sep 18, 2008)

butzy said:


> ... I don't really cook much latin american and I have never been there....


Hm, I believe the challenge is *South America*, not Latin America, if so, the countries involved are:

Argentina
Bolivia
Brazil
Chile
Colombia
Ecuador
French Guiana
Guyana
Paraguay
Peru
Suriname

Uruguay

Venezuela
Central America includes:

Belize,
Costa Rica,
El Salvador,
Guatemala,
Honduras,
Nicaragua,
Panama
North America includes

Canada
United States
Mexico
But then again, who knows which is what today /img/vbsmilies/smilies/eek.gif

I know some refer to any country south of the USA as "Latin America", even though none speak Latin and some do not even speak Spanish or a dialect thereof and "tortilla" does not always mean a corn or wheat flatbread /img/vbsmilies/smilies/lol.gif


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## butzy (Jan 8, 2010)

@petemccracken:
You are totally correct. Sloppy wording on my side.
Still doesn't change the fact that I have never been there


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## jonpaul (Jan 5, 2014)

ordo said:


> *Locro*
> 
> Locro
> 
> ...


beautiful dish to start off the challenge,ordo!

great choice FF,the closest i've come to cooking south american food is opening a can of fray bentos for me corned beef hash & washing it down with a glass or three of argentinian malbec/img/vbsmilies/smilies/lol.gif!!looking forward to learning a lot & cooking some,too!


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## chrisbelgium (Oct 2, 2010)

South America,... south America... what do I know of south American cuisine?

Pollo en estilo belga, carne de cerdo en estilo belga, carne de vaca en estilo belga and a lot more in the same style.

@ordo; your locro already sounds and certainly looks very promissing!


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## oldschool1982 (Jun 27, 2006)

South America? That's quite a good choice. But don't be too surprised if you see many things that cross with other cultures from Europe. I've heard on several occasions of talk that some of my Calabrese relatives settled in South America. Take Argentina for example; from what I understand, during the height of the migratory waves leaving Europe, approx 6.7 million immigrants entered here, second only to the United States with close to 27 million. There are some great Italian, Spanish and Welsh communities and influences throughout the country and that's just one of several. This could be a very interesting challenge!

Not trying to give any secrets away since most of the info is available on-line. However, the more people can dig up, the greater the depth, variety and obscurity cuisines we'll be able to experience here.

28 days to go.


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## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

ordo said:


> *Locro*


First dish is in! Thanks @ordo , it looks stunning. What kind of sausages are those?


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## jaycobb1045 (Mar 6, 2012)

I've been away from this forum for some time - mostly because I've been busy with work and haven't had the chance to enjoy myself in the kitchen much.  I am incredibly excited to come back after my hiatus to find the monthly challenge is South American food!  I'm Ecuadorian and while I have a few solid traditional recipes under my belt, this will really inspire and motivate me to dig deep into the old family cookbooks and maybe even get my grandmother on the phone to show my country off well!  

The locro posted already has me thinking, because our typical version of locro is very different, made mainly with potatoes and milk.  There are a few additional things in there to round out the flavors, and it is usually garnished with cheese and sliced avocado, but it is far from the thick hearty meaty stew pictured above.  I love learning about these regional and national differences to dishes that must flow from a common recipe or at least a common idea somewhere back in history!

Ok, enough talk for now.  I have to figure out what my first dish is going to be.


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## jaycobb1045 (Mar 6, 2012)

Oh, one more thing.  The Chilean sandwiches that Phatch posted are excellent!  There used to be (Google just informed me that it has since closed) a sandwich shop in Boston called Chacarero which served these sandwiches.  I'm not sure if there was anything else on the menu, but there may as well not have been.  This place had lines around the block during lunchtime on a weekday, all clamoring for one of these sandwiches.  It was so good that a few places tried to rip them off by serving the same sandwich, but for one reason or another they could never get it just right and certainly never enjoyed the same success.


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## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

JayCobb1045 said:


> I've been away from this forum for some time - mostly because I've been busy with work and haven't had the chance to enjoy myself in the kitchen much. I am incredibly excited to come back after my hiatus to find the monthly challenge is South American food! I'm Ecuadorian and while I have a few solid traditional recipes under my belt, this will really inspire and motivate me to dig deep into the old family cookbooks and maybe even get my grandmother on the phone to show my country off well!


Wow great Jacob, I'm glad to hear you feel inspired, and I honestly cannot wait to see what you have to share. Ecuador is a bit of a mystery to me and I wouldn't know what kind of culinary tradition you have, so it will be a great education for me - and hopefully for many others here.


JayCobb1045 said:


> The locro posted already has me thinking, because our typical version of locro is very different, made mainly with potatoes and milk. There are a few additional things in there to round out the flavors, and it is usually garnished with cheese and sliced avocado, but it is far from the thick hearty meaty stew pictured above. I love learning about these regional and national differences to dishes that must flow from a common recipe or at least a common idea somewhere back in history!


I totally agree. It's fascinating to study where recipes and techniques come from and how they differ with geography or time.


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## pollopicu (Jan 24, 2013)

Ordo, that looks delicious! I love the vibrant colors, and the rustic bowl and charger you used. Great job!


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## teamfat (Nov 5, 2007)

I have a feeling that it will take more than a grilled steak with chimichurri sauce to nail this challenge.  Of course, I would love to see some examples of the dish posted here.


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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

ordo said:


> *Locro*
> 
> Locro
> 
> ...


Looks amazing! ordo comes out swinging! This dish is so delicious. I might have to go buy some squash now... Mmmmmmm


JayCobb1045 said:


> The locro posted already has me thinking, because our typical version of locro is very different, made mainly with potatoes and milk. There are a few additional things in there to round out the flavors, and it is usually garnished with cheese and sliced avocado, but it is far from the thick hearty meaty stew pictured above. I love learning about these regional and national differences to dishes that must flow from a common recipe or at least a common idea somewhere back in history!


Actually that's because this dish is normally just referred to as "Locro de Zapallo" in Peruvian cooking (not sure if this is a typical Brazilian dish; I've only been to Brazil once and never saw this there.). I don't think the common "Locro" with the unusual "Papa Chola" is too common in Peru (or Brazil) compared to the Locro de Zapallo dish that I've seen quite a bit in many restaurants. I'm sure this dish just adopted the Locro name because of the similarities.


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## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

teamfat said:


> I have a feeling that it will take more than a grilled steak with chimichurri sauce to nail this challenge. Of course, I would love to see some examples of the dish posted here.


It depends on the cooking technique used to grill the steak!





  








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## ordo (Mar 19, 2009)

Something to be considered:

Many (if not all) South American country's cuisines present a mix of other cuisines. For instance, Argentina has the enormous influence of Italian and Spanish cuisines. Also, French, German, Arab, etc. though in much lesser extent. On the other hand, there's the local indigenous influence. This Wiki article explains it pretty well:

*Argentine Cuisine*

That means you will find a lot of European food here, as well as some indigenous influenced dishes, particurlarly in the Cuyo region (North West).

Also, dishes like _locro_ have a lot of variants all along the Andes, the same that you'll find many ceviches, empanadas, carbonadas, etc.


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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

Here's a few dishes I used for my food truck's facebook page...

Not sure if I can use older images here, but if not, at least they might serve as inspiration for the rest of the thread...

Anticuchos

Beef Heart skewers grilled over charcoal.

Marinated in Aji Panca, Garlic, Cumin, Red Wine Vinegar

Served with Ocopa (Milk, Queso Fresco, Aji Amarillo, Peanuts, Bread, Huacatay)

Choclo

Fried Potatoes





  








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Pan con Chicharon

Pork Shoulder boiled and fried with Cumin

Sweet Potato Fries

Salsa Criolla (Onions and Aji pickled in lime)

Spearmint

Crema de Rocoto

Ciabatta





  








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Papa Rellenas

Mashed Potatoes stuffed with Arroz Chaufa de Pollo (Chinese Stir Fry) rolled in flour and fried

Salsa Criolla

Garlic Rice

Kalamata Olives





  








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## phatch (Mar 29, 2002)

I'm always a fan of yuca frita too.


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## koukouvagia (Apr 3, 2008)

teamfat said:


> I have a feeling that it will take more than a grilled steak with chimichurri sauce to nail this challenge. Of course, I would love to see some examples of the dish posted here.


For those of us quite unfamiliar with the cuisines of south America this is more of a learning experience. If I make a chicmichurri it will be my first venture into S.A. cuisine, but think about how marvelous that is!


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## flipflopgirl (Jun 27, 2012)

I may just dip my toes in the water for this challenge.

Phatch...I LOVE me a good sammich and both of those are now on my radar.

mimi

# imma hafta open that last jar of chimichurri from last summer's canning binge....


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## kaiquekuisine (Apr 11, 2013)

To think i am Brazilian and hardly cook Brazilian food LOLOL.


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## kaiquekuisine (Apr 11, 2013)

To think im Brazilian and dont cook Brazilian food... /img/vbsmilies/smilies/confused.gif

BUT... i do stick to my roots sometimes..

*Feijoada and spiced Tortilla Chips*

Both the feijoada and tortilla chips are homemade.

The feijoada iself has pork sausages, spiced pork sausages, bacon, belly, and muscle.... ALL FROM THE PORK.

Black beans and some seasonings..

The chips were made from a very thin dough, seasoned with pepper, salt, oregano, parsely, thyme, and baked till crisp.





  








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Then i have a traditional brazilian dessert....

*Curau*

Basically a corn pudding using sweet green corn. My family has a few corn plantations so it was organic as well XD.

I prefer mine with cinnamon on top.

Its very pasty, sweet, and traditionally made in religious holidays or when corn is usually at its peak.





  








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For those who want an interesting read... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curau

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feijoada

Best part about brazilian cuisine in general is the fact every state/colony has their own cuisine...witht heir own techniques, using different fruits, methods, and even protiens....

You could live here your whole life and never eat everything this country has to offer xD.


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## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

@Vic Cardenas, very nice dishes, thanks for posting them. I now see that French are not the only ones to put fries inside a sandwhich, something that I love (even though it never sounded good to me before I tried it). And the plate of beef heart skewers look amazing!

@KaiqueKuisine beautiful contributions too, and thanks a lot for providing links regarding the dishes you posted and a little background.


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## genemachine (Sep 26, 2012)

KaiqueKuisine said:


> To think i am Brazilian and hardly cook Brazilian food LOLOL.


And I, as a Bavarian, made some Moqueca de peixe just two weeks ago and did not document it. Guess this needs a repeat performance for this challenge... /img/vbsmilies/smilies/cool.gif


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## teamfat (Nov 5, 2007)

I'm making some red cooked pork belly today, thought of using some for feijoada.  Hmmm..

mjb.


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## michaelga (Jan 30, 2012)

KaiqueKuisine said:


> To think i am Brazilian and hardly cook Brazilian food LOLOL.


ROFL

I'm aboriginal Japanese, I spent 3 years bumming around various countries in Asia cooking - never once was I put into a position that made anything but western food.

Maybe my eyes are a bit too round... I dunno - at least I ate some amazing meals. Met great life-long friends and have the memories.


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## mise (Aug 19, 2013)

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Where's all my French technique?! Well, here's my offering. Papusa filled with chicharron and cotija. Red cabbage curtido with lots of oregano, al pastor sauce that has a craaaazy amount of depth lots of dried chili, garlic, oregano, pineapple juice, etc. My first time shaping papusas, pretty happy about how it came out.

Edit: Didn't even think about it, South America, not Latin America. Well, here is a Papusa I made haha.


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## flipflopgirl (Jun 27, 2012)

Sorry OT...
Phatch is that a line from Dune?

mimi


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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

Disqualified! 

LOL J/K An Arepa is pretty similar to a Pupusa (or, depending on how you made it, can be exactly the same thing!). Arepas are pretty common food in Columbia and Venezuela.


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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

French Fries said:


> @Vic Cardenas, very nice dishes, thanks for posting them. I now see that French are not the only ones to put fries inside a sandwich, something that I love (even though it never sounded good to me before I tried it). And the plate of beef heart skewers look amazing!


Thanks! Actually, the traditional way to make that sandwich is with sliced yams that are fried. I just used Ore Ida brand sweet potato fries because I find the texture of those to be perfect for the sandwich. That, right there, is quite literally the best sandwich I've ever eaten in my life... I should put that on the menu at my current job.

It is perfect in that you get the saltiness of the pork, sweet from the fries, acid from the salsa criolla, creaminess and slight spiciness from the crema de rocoto; crunch from the fries, pork and onions. Bread is nice and crunchy on the outside, soft on inside (Stoneground Ciabatta buns for the locals ...). And on top of all the contrasting flavors... you get an even more exaggerated contrast from the spearmint! The spearmint just gives it a wow factor.

This is very much the _perfect_ sandwich.


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## kaneohegirlinaz (Apr 24, 2011)

HEH!

Fun Fact about Chef Talk's monthly food challenges...

Did anyone realize that it has been a year now?

We started with gelatin back in April 2013...
[thread="75073"]April 2013 Gelatin Challenge [/thread]


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## teamfat (Nov 5, 2007)

And the "What did you have for dinner?" thread is now over two years old.

mjb.


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## ordo (Mar 19, 2009)

This is a classic Argentinean food from Italian origin. It's like a pizza on top of a milanesa.

*Milanesas a la napolitana con puré de papas*
Breaded eye round alla napolitana with mashed potatoes.





  








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Eye round slices (i use steaks or even tenderloin) are smashed (to tenderize), sometimes marinated in milk, classically breaded, fried, then layered with ham, fried tomatoes, cheese and finally broiled. Super food!


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## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

@mise that plate looks stunning. I wish I had 1/10th of your plating skills. How can simple look so elegant? While, at the same time, making me want to dive right into it!

@ordo you know where my eyes go when I see that last picture? Straight to the piece of bread in the back. I know it's not supposed to be the star on the plate but that bread looks KILLER! Is that homemade by any chance? As for the breaded steak I remember seeing those in the Argentinian grill we used to go to my wife and I. Never ordered it - but yours looks awesome.

Keep them coming, all. /img/vbsmilies/smilies/smile.gif


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## koukouvagia (Apr 3, 2008)

Wow everything looks good thought I have never even heard of these dishes.  Got some learnin to do!


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## chrisbelgium (Oct 2, 2010)

@mise

After reading your lovely post and watching your dish, I went searching for a dictionary on latin-American food. Most ingredients are totally unknown to me and maybe others too.

But with a little help form the internet;

http://www.hispanickitchen.com/page/latin-food-dictionary-spanish#.Uz6V19LNuCg


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## michaelga (Jan 30, 2012)

oh, nice site!

Bookmarking that one.


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## chrisbelgium (Oct 2, 2010)

KaiqueKuisine said:


> To think i am Brazilian and hardly cook Brazilian food LOLOL.


Hey Kaique, no more than a week ago I held the dutch translation of Alex Atala's famous cookbook D.O.M. What a delight! Best photography ever. I started browsing through the book and noticed that every recipe had a number of Brazilain ingredients that I never heard of. so I didn't buy it after all.

I also saw in a cooking program that Alex Atala became best mates with our famous chocolatier Dominique Persoone. They made chocolate frogs coated with... lidocaïne, (a suggestion of Atala), an anaestethic product used by dentists. But also Persoone started making chocolate with cupowaçu (spelling??) as suggested by Alex Atala. Put both of them together and you end up with sheer madness!!

Here's Brazilian's top chef Alex Atala's cookbook;


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## genemachine (Sep 26, 2012)

Speaking of Brazilian: Xinxim de galinha:





  








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Chicken legs, skinned and deboned, set to marinade with lime juice, salt, garlic and ginger.





  








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Fry onions in palm oil, add ground roasted peanuts, cilantro, parsley, shrimp paste (recipe calls for dried shrimp, but I was out), coconut milk, a dash of chicken broth and let simmer. Add the shrimps, season with salt,pepper and chilis, and serve with rice:





  








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## kaiquekuisine (Apr 11, 2013)

ChrisBelgium said:


> Hey Kaique, no more than a week ago I held the dutch translation of Alex Atala's famous cookbook D.O.M. What a delight! Best photography ever. I started browsing through the book and noticed that every recipe had a number of Brazilain ingredients that I never heard of. so I didn't buy it after all.
> 
> I also saw in a cooking program that Alex Atala became best mates with our famous chocolatier Dominique Persoone. They made chocolate frogs coated with... lidocaïne, (a suggestion of Atala), an anaestethic product used by dentists. But also Persoone started making chocolate with cupowaçu (spelling??) as suggested by Alex Atala. Put both of them together and you end up with sheer madness!!
> 
> Here's Brazilian's top chef Alex Atala's cookbook;


I have been to his restaurant and know of his food. Since his restaurant is number 6 in the world.

But i do not like his influence in Brazilian food. I find him too involved in molecular gastronomy an find his methods untraditional. I don´t know i kinda think he is a poser or exagerates too much.

His food is okay, but i rather have my grandmas or mothers food over his anyday lol.

CB if one day you visit Brazil im sure you would learn more about brazilian food and culture spending one day in an artisan kitchen then working one day in his restaurant. But like i said he is a good cook, but not my biggest idol. Check out Roberta Sudbrack, Thiago Castanho or Helena Rizzo they in my opinion are great. Checkout Rodrigo Oliveira too my first chef studied with him around 10 years ago.


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## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

GeneMachine said:


> Speaking of Brazilian: Xinxim de galinha


Nice dish. It's very surprising how close it is to an indian or even south-east-asian dish! I looked up the recipe and just reading it I could have thought this was an Indian or Thai curry. Looks tasty!


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## genemachine (Sep 26, 2012)

French Fries said:


> Nice dish. It's very surprising how close it is to an indian or even south-east-asian dish! I looked up the recipe and just reading it I could have thought this was an Indian or Thai curry. Looks tasty!


Aye, quite close to that, isn't it? As far as I understand the culinary history of the region, though, this is mostly influenced by the cooking concepts brought to Brazil by West African slaves. The palm oil gives it a rather distinctive flavour.


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## chrisbelgium (Oct 2, 2010)

KaiqueKuisine said:


> I have been to his restaurant and know of his food. Since his restaurant is number 6 in the world.
> 
> But i do not like his influence in Brazilian food. I find him too involved in molecular gastronomy an find his methods untraditional. I don´t know i kinda think he is a poser or exagerates too much.
> 
> ...


Thanks for posting a few names that I now can search for on the internet, Kaique. I totally agree that Alex Atala is a chef "hors catégorie" and enjoying his star status. Maybe not the best reference to traditional cooking but all the more for a very inventive kitchen using ingredients unknown to many Europeans like me.


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## ordo (Mar 19, 2009)

*Steaks*





  








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## pollopicu (Jan 24, 2013)

ordo said:


> *Steaks*
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Oh my God!!!!


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## genemachine (Sep 26, 2012)

MEAT! MEAT! MEAT! 

GLORIOUS MEAT!


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## phatch (Mar 29, 2002)

I cut a New York into thirds horizontally, and sliced up some pork sirloin into thin cutlets. Season with adobo, pepper, lime juice on both sides, let stand 10 -15 minutes.





  








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Sear them off. Meanwhile prep the avocado, beans tomato, buns and the condiments.

Steak--barros luco--on the left for my wife, pork --lomito palta-- on the right for me. Yeah, not a great shot, but it was delicious!





  








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## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

@ordo those steaks are stunning. Wow. Not surprising coming from Argentina. So on your previous plate, was that bread homemade or bought? It looked very tasty.

@phatch the sandwich sound tasty, I wonder, could you describe a bit more how you make them? Or is it just avocado slices, tomato slices, and ... beans? Almost sound like ingredients for a burrito, but in a sandwich instead. Interesting!


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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

I did a banquet today and made Aji de Gallina. It's similar to that other dish the genemachine made in some ways.

The main ingredients + chicken and rice and some type of bread to thicken the sauce (not this many carrots are needed). Those chiles are called "Aji Amarillo".





  








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I make and aderezo (sofrito) with the onions, garlic, Aji Amarillo paste and the cut chiles. Add enough turmeric to start to turn it yellow. Don't overdo this.





  








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Sweat the onions and mix in the paste and turmeric well and saute until fragrant and starting to reduce.





  








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I boil chicken breasts or thighs with some celery and carrots and some chicken bouillon for extra flavor. Boil until you can pull the chicken. Reserve the chicken broth for later. After boiled, I use all of the celery and just a little bit of the carrots and add that to the aderezo. I blend the aderezo with some milk, cream, evaporated milk... really you can use anything milky or creamy to make a cream sauce. I then add bread, or soda crackers to thicken the sauce and blend well (yup, soda crackers). Once the sauce is ready add the pulled chicken. Heat it up while stirring well so the milk doesn't burn. I cut the thickness with the leftover chicken broth, this will add more savory flavor too. Once it is heated up, keep adding milk and chicken broth until you get the mixture to the desired thickness and flavor. Add plenty of salt and cracked pepper.





  








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I made some garlic jasmine rice. I like to throw it on the flat top or in a pan to fry it a little so it develops a little socarrat bits (a spanish term from paella, not sure if peruvians use this term or technique).





  








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Served up buffet style for the banquet. Pour on top of rice. Top with parsley, kalamata olives, parmesan cheese, queso fresco.





  








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Plated up with the 2 cheeses, parsley and olives. You'll see this dish served with potatoes and hard boiled eggs quite often. Sometimes topped with pecans or walnuts.





  








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Get up in there...





  








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Very simple and cheap to make and soooo yummy with simple, comfort food flavors. I have some friends/family always requesting I make this dish for them when they come to visit me.


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## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

@Vic Cardenas great, thank you for your contribution, especially for the detailed photos. Those step by step photos really make it very clear what needs to be done and encourage me to give it a try one day. Must have been very yummy.


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## teamfat (Nov 5, 2007)

Wow.  That Aji de Gallina looks very similar to the mole amarillo I had at the Red Iquana last time I was there.  Wonder how the tastes compare?

mjb.


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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

Hmmm I'll have to try that one next time I go there. Never had it yet. Hey, I'll bet you can find some similarities with me and the owner of Red Iguana if you look at our names.  No relation AFAIK.


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## genemachine (Sep 26, 2012)

My take on Matambre:

Carrots, red peppers, boiled egg, garlic, spinach and a dash of lime juice, seasoned with salt and black pepper as a filling for roulades. Roll and bind, then braise:





  








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While it is braising blitz some garlic, green onion, parsley and cilantro with olive oil, red wine vinegar and salt and pepper for a chimichurri:





  








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Cut and serve with fried potatoes and the sauce:





  








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Most of the recipes I have seen call for whole boiled eggs to be wrapped up in the meat, but I decided to chop it up for a more homogenous look of the cut.


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## koukouvagia (Apr 3, 2008)

So many colors!


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## ordo (Mar 19, 2009)

Gene: well done skipping the eggs. Thats also an Argentinean classic and i always hated the whole eggs there.

Nice dishes people.


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## genemachine (Sep 26, 2012)

I have to say that I am quite pleased with the looks of the cut. The whole egg would indeed not help with the presentation.


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## pollopicu (Jan 24, 2013)

Looks good, Gene.


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## nicko (Oct 5, 2001)

@JayCobb1045 welcome back the challenges are a great way to get back into the community.

To All I know next to nothing about this so it is a good challenge for me to get involved. Be back shortly... /img/vbsmilies/smilies/licklips.gif


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## genemachine (Sep 26, 2012)

Welcome to the club. I am flying blind here myself. Never really explored these cuisines. Great stuff, so far, though. Working on something Peruvian at the moment, soon to be presented.


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## alex duo (Apr 6, 2014)

Hello guys.

I've been checking some info about the cousine in South america, and one very importante thing is, the regionality of the kitchen here, is mixed with the introduction of foreigners in the history, the south of the continent, is related to the meat, with lots of tecnics about a real good BBQ, but they have europe in they heritage, German, Poland, Italy, Japan, Portugal, Africans so many countries can be found here in the particular south american real kitchen, just need to find out how to keep the mind in some good ingredients.


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## ordo (Mar 19, 2009)

*Empanadas de carne*

Beef empanadas





  








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The dough is made with lard.





  








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Fried in lard





  








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In many Provinces of Argentina there're fierce competitions of empanadas. Each Province claims to make the best of course. This happens also in many South American countries, specially in Chile. In my opinion they are all good if well done..


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## genemachine (Sep 26, 2012)

Nice one, ordo!

I ventured to Peru for dinner today - my take on a Parihuela:

Onions, potatoes, garlic, chilis, lime, cilantro, parsley, tomatoes, fish, mussels, prawns, white wine, oregano, cumin and paprika:





  








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Obviously missing the proper peruvian chili pastes, so the dried chilis from my last harvest will have to do. Tasty it was, though.


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## jake t buds (May 27, 2013)

ChrisBelgium said:


> @mise
> 
> After reading your lovely post and watching your dish, I went searching for a dictionary on latin-American food. Most ingredients are totally unknown to me and maybe others too.
> 
> ...


In regard to the dictionary : I've always found interesting the discrepancy in naming empanada vs empanadilla. In Spain, smaller versions like ordo's gorgeous examples are called empanadillas(fried or baked), whereas in South America they are called empanada's. Empanada in Spain is a larger version baked in a sheet pan and cut up into squares.


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## ordo (Mar 19, 2009)

What is curious is that the name _empanada, _from latin origin: _panis_ (= bread = _pan_ in Spanish) should be translated as _breaded_. Like in a milanesa.

It seems we need a gastronomic interlingua.


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## pollopicu (Jan 24, 2013)

Love the empanadas de carne. I miss those.

Gene, your soup looks really good too.


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## ordo (Mar 19, 2009)

With plus 60% of Italians descent immigrants, pizza can be considered a classic in Argentina. And believe me, i tried pizza in Italy and many parts of the world (but not in New York… my miss) and our pizza a la piedra (stone pizza) is just as comparable.
Here's a homemade dough with a simple topping of very thin sliced tomatoes, fontina cheese, grated parmesan, dried oregano and olive oil. Yes I like it thin.





  








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## pollopicu (Jan 24, 2013)

I love how olive oily it looks when you raise it up to the light.


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## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

@GeneMachine Matambre, nice, I saw that recipe in one of Steve Raichlen's BBQ books and thought it looked beautiful and always meant to do it - but I never did because in the end it doesn't appeal to me so much. I mean, I'm sure it's really good, but I can't help and think that a grilled flank steak with grilled veggies would taste better to me... of course, the presentation is beautiful, and I may give it a try one day if for nothing else than to get a wow-moment from the guests. Honestly, do you think it has a taste that is interesting/different in a better way than just the grilled steak served along with veggies, or is it all about the presentation?

@ordo those empanadas look great. I used to buy empenadas from a local restaurant (a tiny hole in the wall) a while ago, but they were baked. Your are deep fried. Are both versions commonly served in your country? Just being curious really. Yours look a bit smaller than the ones I had, and they also look like they have less dough, which would probably taste finer and generally better. Wish I could sink my teeth into one of yours.

@GeneMachine that plate looks beautiful. The color on the broth! It almost looks like there's saffron. In fact when I read your list of ingredients I can't help but think I'd add a bit of saffran. But I'm and addict. I consume a lot of the stuff, and my wife loves it too. /img/vbsmilies/smilies/lol.gif In any case saffron or no saffron I'm sure that was delicious. The little bright spot at the bottom right of your plate allows me to see the 3D aspect of the "broth" and reveals its slightly thick consistency, looks like a perfect consistency.


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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

I decided to make a "Causa".

This is a very traditional, old school Peruvian dish consisting of mashed yellow potatoes that are molded into a shape and filled with usually chicken, tuna or some kind of seafood salad.

I had some of the shredded chicken from yesterday's banquet left over. I made some chicken salad. Typical chicken, mayo, carrots, celery, and apples.





  








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I made an Ocopa sauce for dressing. This is made with Huacatay herb (pictured below). I get this in frozen, compressed packets at the peruvian market. I make this sauce with the herb, milk, alfahores cookies my wife makes (without the manjar blanco/dulce de leche), Aji Limo, salt, all blended together. This sauce has a minty, sweet-spicy, berry flavor.





  








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I also made an Olive Aioli as another accompany sauce. I made the great choice of getting some Botija Olives. The Kalamata olives I used yesterday have nothing on the Botijas, even though they are very similar. The Botijas have a really nice, brilliant purple color compared to the Kalamatas and have much less of a sharp flavor. I made the Olive Aioli the simple blender way. Eggs, Veg Oil, one small clove of garlic, and about 10 of these suckers to give it a nice purple hue and a punchy olive flavor.





  








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Now, I boiled some potatoes and mashed them. I used some Aji Amarillo paste, butter, milk and lime juice in the mashers. The whole Aji Amarillo was chopped finely and added to the mix.





  








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I set the first layer of potatoes in the mold. I added the chicken salad to the next layer while suspending the mold, then I added the top layer of potatoes with another mold. Garnished with Aji Limo, Avocado, the Olive Aioli, the Ocopa and the olives.

Old School...





  








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## kaiquekuisine (Apr 11, 2013)

Vic that reminds me of a Brazilian classic. 

Escondidinho... means hidden in portuguese xD


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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

And a quick salad...

Quinoa

Black Bean

Spinach

Romaine

Tomato

Onion

Key Lime Juice

Balsamic

Olive Oil

S & P

Quinoa originated in the Andes before the Spanish Inquisition, it was a staple food among the Incas and pre-incan civilizations, so as the hipsters would say... Peruvians were eating Quinoa before it was cool. ... When the conquistadores came, they disregarded Quinoa as a peasant food and never exported it back to Europe... Instead they took back potatoes, corn, and tomatoes. My in-laws say that in Peru, the price of Quinoa is skyrocketing due to the the newfound popularity around the world. The price is now equal to the Quinoa in the states, which is pretty pricey for Peruvians.





  








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Turned out to be a great salad!


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## butzy (Jan 8, 2010)

I like all those dishes. Great choice for a challenge and some ingredients I have never heard of.

I went through my Surinam cookbook the other day, but that is almost like reading through my Indonesian cookbook. The Javanese influences are so strong !

It feels a bit like cheating to start posting my Indonesian dishes though.

I will find something to make before the month is over /img/vbsmilies/smilies/chef.gif


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## michaelga (Jan 30, 2012)

Damn Vic... you're a machine!

Love the food everyone- keep it coming!


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## koukouvagia (Apr 3, 2008)

@ordo you had me at lard.


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## ordo (Mar 19, 2009)

French Fries said:


> @GeneMachine Matambre, nice, I saw that recipe in one of Steve Raichlen's BBQ books and thought it looked beautiful and always meant to do it - but I never did because in the end it doesn't appeal to me so much. I mean, I'm sure it's really good, but I can't help and think that a grilled flank steak with grilled veggies would taste better to me... of course, the presentation is beautiful, and I may give it a try one day if for nothing else than to get a wow-moment from the guests. Honestly, do you think it has a taste that is interesting/different in a better way than just the grilled steak served along with veggies, or is it all about the presentation?


Are we talking about the same cut? This is our matambre, tho the video comes from Spain:


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## jake t buds (May 27, 2013)

ordo said:


> What is curious is that the name _empanada, _from latin origin: _panis_ (= bread = _pan_ in Spanish) should be translated as _breaded_. Like in a milanesa.
> 
> It seems we need a gastronomic interlingua.


Yes, from latin in-panis or in panata. Empanar is not _a la milanesa_, though. At least in the original intent. They were originally baked, but has evolved into fried as well. Both are delicious. It means to enclose ingredients with a dough or bread and bake in the oven to cook the inside. The origins come from bringing food as a medieval traveler/pilgrim or shepherd with you as "sandwich," if you will. There are sculptures adorning the cathedral in Santiago de Compostela in Galicia (where they trace their origins) of pilgrims bringing empanada.

It has also been said that its origins are persian before the time of Christ, and Arabs brought the idea to Spain - who eventually brought empanadillas to South America, even though they are called empanadas. Just as ordo originality posted, empanadilla is diminutive of empanada, thus the distinction in naming in Spain. Just like cuchara and cucharilla. But the idea of enclosing ingredients in bread certainly isn't new or only Spanish. Indian samosas, Italian Calzone_, _British Cornish pasty, Turkish börek and Arab fatayer are all similar.


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## genemachine (Sep 26, 2012)

ordo said:


> Are we talking about the same cut? This is our matambre, tho the video comes from Spain:


Probably not - as far as I get it. it is cut from the rib in Argentina. Many recipes here do call for flank, and to increase the confusion, I used a German style roulade cut, which generally comes from the rump or silverside. Getting an original cut around here would probably take some persuasion with my butcher, although he is generally rather open to trying stuff like that.

As for FrenchFries question - it is definitely something different. Slow braise vs. a quickly seared flank steak. Can't really say what I prefer, I like both preparations. The matambre I made has quite some similarities to Bavarian roulade. although we fill it with bacon, dill pickles, onions, carrot and mustard and serve it with a sauce made by thickening the braising liquid.


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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

MichaelGA said:


> Damn Vic... you're a machine!
> 
> Love the food everyone- keep it coming!


Thanks Michael! More to come...


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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

Next up. My breakfast this morning...

This dish is a variation of one my favorite breakfast dishes and it also is a great late night snack. There are a few variations of this that all have different names. This is Arroz a lo Pobre. There is a version with less ingredients called Arroz a la Cubana and then a version that includes steak called Bistec a lo Pobre.

Arroz a la Cubana is Rice, Fried Eggs, Fried Bananas or Plantains. My favorite and a breakfast I make quite often.

This version, Arroz a lo Pobre expands upon that and includes beans and maybe some garnishes.

Bistec a lo Pobre expands upon that even further and adds a tenderized, pounded steak. You will find Bistec a lo Pobre on most Peruvian restaurant menus. This dish was my first experience with peruvian food when I first started dating my wife. She took me to a restaurant here in salt lake. I ordered the Bistec a lo Pobre, Anticuchos and Lucuma Ice Cream. It was all over after that. The food I had just experienced was so different and like nothing I had ever eaten before.

So, here is my Arroz a lo Pobre...

Fried Garlic Rice

2 sunny side up Eggs

Fried Bananas

Fried "Biscochito" Bananas

Black Beans

Avocado

Aji Limo

Chives

The prepped Aji Limo, Chives and the Biscochitos and Avocado ready to be cut.

Biscochitos or Plantains need to be really ripe and start to turn black on the outside to fry. Regular bananas should be kind of green still with no black spots.

Split the bananas length-wise and peel before you fry.





  








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I fried up some some garlic rice until it started to take on a little crust and turn a little brown





  








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The black beans being warmed





  








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Fried the biscochitos and bananas in some butter on the flat top. Just to the point where they caramelize.

Turn them and pick them up easily as they are really delicate.





  








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Plate rice and beans on the bottom and top with the eggs, then bananas, then garnish.





  








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## ordo (Mar 19, 2009)

What a great dish Vic. Colorful, beautiful.


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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

Thanks!


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## pollopicu (Jan 24, 2013)

Those eggs look perfect.


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## teamfat (Nov 5, 2007)

Pollopicu said:


> Those eggs look perfect.


Perfect eggs. Perfect steak. Perfect roast chicken. We've never discussed those things before 

But I agree, that is a GOOD looking meal!

mjb.


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## jaycobb1045 (Mar 6, 2012)

I was home to visit my folks this weekend and my mom and I made fanesca. This is an Ecaudorian soup/stew traditionally eaten only during holy week. I wasn't going to be home during holy week, and it _is _Lent, so I felt justified preparing and eating this dish a few weeks early. Also, it's delicious and I couldn't resist.

Each household has its own twist on it, but the basic components are a variety of grains and legumes, peanuts/peanut butter, and salt cod (can't eat meat during Lent).

The trick is to save the cooking liquid from your grains and legumes and to use that to build your soup. Here's how ours started:





  








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Black eyed peas, white hominy, pink beans, diced green and yellow onion, yellow hominy, fava beans, lentils, white corn, yellow squash, zucchini, garlic. (Not pictured: Rice and green peas)

Note: For the rice, you want to use about 1.5 times the amount of water you'd usually use, so the end result is quite soupy. As with the cooking liquid for the beans and such, this soupy rice will help provide the right texture to your end product.

Once you have all your ingredients ready, start by sauteing the onions and garlic in achiote oil, with a little cumin, salt, and pepeper.





  








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For reference, achiote oil is just a tablespoon or so of whole achiote seeds simmered in vegetable oil for few minutes until the color, flavor and aroma leeches out of the seeds. This stuff is a cornerstone of Ecuadorian cooking, so we always have some on hand. Heck, we even have a special little pan for it called an "achiotera." But I digress.

After this, you add the peanuts and milk. There are two ways to do this, and it varies based on family. Some recipes call for blending roasted peanuts in milk, making a sort of peanuty milk. My family uses peanut butter. I know, but I even asked my 90 year old grandmother and she said that's how she always remembers it. Add the peanut butter and milk and stir it until it's all incorporated. Let that simmer for about five minutes.

Next you add the salt cod. I've seen some versions with very large pieces, but I like them to be about 1 inch chunks.





  








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As with the veggies, reserve the stinky fishy salty (delicious) liquid you used to soak the salt off the salt cod.

Let the salt cod simmer in the pot for about 10-15 minutes.

Then you add all your grains, veggies, and legumes to the mix. Stir it around and let the flavors incorporate a little (no more than a minute or two, though) before adding your various cooking liquids and the soaking liquid from the cod. This is where the glorious inexactness of family recipes makes it difficult for me to pass on, but the best I can say is to eyeball it. The only one you have to be careful with is the cod liquid - that can be an acquired taste, so add it a little at a time.

Bring the whole deal to a boil, reduce to simmer for about a half hour or so. If it is too thick, add some milk until you reach the desired consistency.

Traditional garnishes are sliced hard boiled egg, fried sweet plantains, sliced cheese, chopped herbs (usually parsley, but I kind of prefer cilantro), and if you're really looking to go the whole nine yards, tiny little cheese empanadas.





  








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Enjoy, and then take a nap, because as I'm sure you can tell, this isn't exactly a light dish!


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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

Pollopicu said:


> Those eggs look perfect.





teamfat said:


> Perfect eggs. Perfect steak. Perfect roast chicken. We've never discussed those things before
> 
> But I agree, that is a GOOD looking meal!
> 
> mjb.


Thank you. I learned how to make nice sunny side up eggs when I worked at Village Inn for a week. LOL True story.

I decided I didn't like that last Causa I made since it was so old fashioned looking.

Tried my hand at making a more "modernist" looking Causa. My first time.

Pure de Papa y Aji Amarillo

Ensalada de Pollo

Quinoa

Acetuna de Botija

Aji Amarillo

Queso Fresco

Aioli de Acetuna

Cebollino

Limon





  








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## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

@Vic Cardenas , what a colorful plating on that last Causa! Very nice, and makes me want to try it. I just googled Causa and it's an exciting concept. I'll have to give it a try!!!


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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

JayCobb1045 said:


> photo 3 (1).JPG
> 
> 
> 
> ...


That looks yummy! I'm just imagining the bacalao flavors in there and drooling...


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## ordo (Mar 19, 2009)

Nice causa Vic. i've been trying my take at causa also, but with not so good presentation. Yours look just as the mother of a friend, Peruvian, used to make causa, except the aceituna alioli. I need to decide, a tartar or a roll presentation. I retouched your pick.





  








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## pollopicu (Jan 24, 2013)

Beautiful presentation, Vic. Not bad for a first time. I love that kind of plate too. I'm always on the lookout for that kind of dishware.


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## sonecac (Aug 11, 2012)

I'm a Brazilian and at every challenge I promisse myself I will submit a dish but I never do! Now I have a national responsibility to post something....


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## michaelga (Jan 30, 2012)

JayCobb1045 said:


> For reference, achiote oil is just a tablespoon or so of whole achiote seeds simmered in vegetable oil for few minutes until the color, flavor and aroma leeches out of the seeds. This stuff is a cornerstone of Ecuadorian cooking, so we always have some on hand. Heck, we even have a special little pan for it called an "achiotera." But I digress.


digress more - it's the little tid-bits like this that I love the most. Going to have to get me an 'achiotera' now!!


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## teamfat (Nov 5, 2007)

Quick question.  I'm slated to provide dinner tomorrow for the pastor at Karen's church ( Yes, I attend sometimes ) and was looking at a slow cooker Cuban pork roast.  Should I divert my attention to similar dishes further south that may qualify for this challenge?

mjb.


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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

French Fries said:


> @Vic Cardenas , what a colorful plating on that last Causa! Very nice, and makes me want to try it. I just googled Causa and it's an exciting concept. I'll have to give it a try!!!


Thanks again!


ordo said:


> Nice causa Vic. i've been trying my take at causa also, but with not so good presentation. Yours look just as the mother of a friend, Peruvian, used to make causa, except the aceituna alioli. I need to decide, a tartar or a roll presentation. I retouched your pick.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Thanks! Yeah, my camera sucks and I suck at my free photoshop, Gimp 2. Thanks for the retouch. That looks much better!


Pollopicu said:


> Beautiful presentation, Vic. Not bad for a first time. I love that kind of plate too. I'm always on the lookout for that kind of dishware.


Thanks! You know, I got that plate for $1.50 at my local restaurant supply store. They have some extra large tapas style plates for like $10! I got a set of small tapas and small square sushi plates for between $3-5 a piece!


SonecaC said:


> I'm a Brazilian and at every challenge I promisse myself I will submit a dish but I never do! Now I have a national responsibility to post something....


You are obligated to do so. I insist! 


teamfat said:


> Quick question. I'm slated to provide dinner tomorrow for the pastor at Karen's church ( Yes, I attend sometimes ) and was looking at a slow cooker Cuban pork roast. Should I divert my attention to similar dishes further south that may qualify for this challenge?
> 
> mjb.


I was thinking about submitting, later this month, a peruvian dish called "Seco de Cordero" or Seco de Carne". Super easy to make. Slow cooker hunk of meat in a cilantro sauce and some mayocoba/canary/peruano beans. Super delicious and you just make it in the dutch oven or crock pot.


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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

Alright, I know you guys know I was getting around to this. How could I not include some type of Ceviche in this competition when it is arguably Peru's national dish? In Peru, Ceviche is an art. It is revered and loved and as Douglas Rodriguez said... "Stately" for Peruvians.

For this, I will be making a Sea Bass and Passion Fruit Ceviche. (Corvina y Maracuya)

Started out with this beautiful 6 oz portion. This turned out to be 3 servings.





  








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Cut into bite sized cubes...

I reserve the cut fish in a stainless bowl.





  








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Now, for the passion fruit aspect of the dish I use this pack of frozen pulp.

I took off a small amount of the block and boiled it and then added a corn starch mixture to make a passion fruit syrup while retaining the edible seeds.





  








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I also have this nice passion fruit jam I will utilize on the dish...





  








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I boiled some yuca until it starts to soften and then I pan fried it (not pictured) until it was crispy and took on a little color.

I also boiled some large kernal Peruvian corn.





  








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I like to shave onions paper thin for ceviche and then I quench them in ice water to remove some of the harshness and it helps chill the dish more.

Here I am "finding the edge" of the onion with my blade in order to get it super, super thin. You may want to just do this on a mandolin but I prefer just using my knife to get it this thin.





  








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Paper thin... This is important...





  








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Of course, the fish needs some citrus to make it Ceviche. Here, I am using key limes as they are very similar in flavor to the peruvian limes. I find that these do not have the right amount of acid to cut into the fish well like the higher acid peruvian limes do. So, I usually use a common, large lime to add more acidity for every 10 or so key limes. I find this ratio to work well. Also, when making a passion fruit ceviche, you can use the passion fruit juice to help cure the fish too, along with limes. The passion fruit juice is also very acidic. For this dish, I will just be curing the fish in lime juice and using the passion fruit syrup afterwards while plating.

Also pictured is one half of a green Aji Limo. I'll add this, minced, into the bowl of fish and citrus too, along with salt (salt ratio and quality is also a very important aspect of a ceviche dish) and pepper.

For this dish, I want green, yellow and orange colors.

In Lima, because of the huge Japanese immigrant influence on the ceviche culture, usually the citrus is added to the bowl of fish "a la minute" right before serving the dish. In the past, you would add the citrus half-an-hour or more before you served the dish to give it time to "cook" the fish well. Now, you tend to see more of the new style of ceviche where the fish is mostly raw. I find that with the thick flesh of the sea bass, it is best to give it some more time to marinate because it cooks much slower than most other fish. I like to marinate my sea bass for about 10 minutes... Other fish, I do prefer it cooked "a la minute".





  








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At the last minute before serving, in the mixing bowl, I add the onions and some chopped cilantro to the fish/citrus mixture and incorporate.

Sea Bass Ceviche

Maracuya 2 ways

Choclo

Yuca





  








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This is the "Leche de Tigre". It is the citrus "milk" from the ceviche. You drink this afterwards... So, good!

It is said that Leche de Tigre is a great cure for hangovers and will also give you sexual powers! :-/





  








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I enjoyed this with a nice, frosty mug of Shades of Pale "Publican" Pale Ale...

Yum!





  








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## pollopicu (Jan 24, 2013)

I didn't know Goya sold Passion fruit jam. I need to keep an eye out for it.


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## ordo (Mar 19, 2009)

Stunning stuf Vic. I'm following your recipes.

(I guess i will need about a liter of Leche de Tigre).


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## jaycobb1045 (Mar 6, 2012)

Pan de yuca! Not the healthiest choice, but such a delicious snack in the morning with a hot cup of coffee! I believe these are of Brazilian origin, but in the last several years lots of little shops have popped up around Ecuador selling these along with various flavors of yogurt (the drinkable kind, not like the kind we see here in the states).





  








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Yuca flour (also called yuca starch), with a little baking powder and salt.





  








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Lots of shredded cheese. I use a very simple "farmer's cheese" that friends and relatives always manage to bring me from Ecuador, but absent that the internet seems to suggest using oaxaca cheese or even mozzarella, though the latter seems to me like it wouldn't achieve the right texture.

Mix the cheese into the flour mix either in a food processor, or if you want to have some fun you can smash it together with your hands. I like to use my hands! Once those are incorporated, add eggs, room temperature butter, and a little water if necessary. The end result should be a nice uniform dough - not crumbly at all, but also not loose or sticky. Almost like soft play doh.





  








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Bake em up till they're ever so slightly browned, and the end result is a thin crispy outer layer with a light, chewy, almost gooey center that tastes like heaven! Whenever I make these, I have to regulate the quantities cause I can put down a dozen of 'em without batting an eye!





  








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## phatch (Mar 29, 2002)

I find Oaxaca and Mozarella very similar. I can see the thinking behind the substitution.


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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

Pollopicu said:


> I didn't know Goya sold Passion fruit jam. I need to keep an eye out for it.


 Yeah, I found that at my Mexican grocery store. Pretty much all of the specialty ingredients I have posted , usually the Mexicans stock. I think the only thing I can't find there is Aji Limo. But they always have Rocotos and Aji Amarillo if I need it. Luckily, there is a nice, little Peruvian/South American Market here where I get most of my stuff. 


ordo said:


> Stunning stuf Vic. I'm following your recipes.
> 
> (I guess i will need about a liter of Leche de Tigre).


Thanks ordo! I love the leche! I'm glad to hear so do you. I'm always disappointed if you go to a cevicheria and they don't give you much.

Thanks to you, I took it upon myself to learn more about my Gimp 2 program. I retouched a couple of the ceviche pictures as I felt the two "porn" shots did not do it justice...





  








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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

JayCobb1045 said:


> Pan de yuca! Not the healthiest choice, but such a delicious snack in the morning with a hot cup of coffee! I believe these are of Brazilian origin, but in the last several years lots of little shops have popped up around Ecuador selling these along with various flavors of yogurt (the drinkable kind, not like the kind we see here in the states).
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Lovely! I know these as "Pao de Queijo" from Brazilian Cuisine. I didn't know that's typical Ecuadorian Cuisine now. I wonder why Peruvians haven't adopted them as their own because they are so delicious!!!!!! Like you, I could easily eat about 100 of these in one sitting. Mmmmmmmmm


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## jaycobb1045 (Mar 6, 2012)

Vic Cardenas said:


> Lovely! I know these as "Pao de Queijo" from Brazilian Cuisine. I didn't know that's typical Ecuadorian Cuisine now. I wonder why Peruvians haven't adopted them as their own because they are so delicious!!!!!! Like you, I could easily eat about 100 of these in one sitting. Mmmmmmmmm


Well, I'm not so sure if it can be considered "typical" Ecuadorian, but there sure are a lot of those shops! You know what they say - imitation is the sincerest form of flattery!


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## lattegal (Jun 14, 2012)

How timely. I just got a craving for paella (Spain), and made one for practice before having the crowd over.

We ordered some of the ingredients from La Tienda for authenticity, but made do with local ingredients for the practice piece. We cooked it over our charcoal grill, but the big one for the crowd will be done over the firepit.





  








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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

Spain isn't in South America! Lol...

I guess I won't call shenanigens and tomfoolery because in Peru there is a riff on Spanish Paella called "Arroz con Mariscos".

Although the technique and ingredients do vary enough so that no spaniard would consider "Arroz con Mariscos" a worthy paella.


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## lattegal (Jun 14, 2012)

Duh, you are absolutely right.  Because of the language I always associate it with South America.  My bad lol


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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

Looks great though! Love a good paella and that one looks snackin! Where are you from?


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## kaiquekuisine (Apr 11, 2013)

JayCobb1045 said:


> Pan de yuca! Not the healthiest choice, but such a delicious snack in the morning with a hot cup of coffee! I believe these are of Brazilian origin, but in the last several years lots of little shops have popped up around Ecuador selling these along with various flavors of yogurt (the drinkable kind, not like the kind we see here in the states).
> 
> 
> 
> ...


You just made Pao de Queijo , its Brazilian and was adapted into other south american cuisines... 

The use of yuca flour is a bit strange but i can def see the use of other starches as a base.

I have had them stuffed with potatoes or presuitto yummm !!!


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## jaycobb1045 (Mar 6, 2012)

KaiqueKuisine said:


> You just made Pao de Queijo , its Brazilian and was adapted into other south american cuisines...
> 
> The use of yuca flour is a bit strange but i can def see the use of other starches as a base.
> 
> I have had them stuffed with potatoes or presuitto yummm !!!


I always thought yuca flour was used even in Brazilian cuisine - what is it traditionally made with?


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## lattegal (Jun 14, 2012)

Thanks.  Currently in Florida, but lived in Central America for years and years.  I love food from all over the world.  Where are you?


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## petemccracken (Sep 18, 2008)

lattegal said:


> Thanks. Currently in Florida, but lived in Central America for years and years. I love food from all over the world. Where are you?


Just a reminder, you may list your geographic location in your profile


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## kaiquekuisine (Apr 11, 2013)

JayCobb1045 said:


> I always thought yuca flour was used even in Brazilian cuisine - what is it traditionally made with?


Regular flour with a mix of povilho.

White is basically like whey flour. But i have seen people use potatoe and yuca flour, but both retain a bit of moisture.


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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

JayCobb1045 said:


> I always thought yuca flour was used even in Brazilian cuisine - what is it traditionally made with?


Yeah, I was under the same impression, that it usually always made with Yuca/Cassava flour...

The Google/Wiki machine spits out the same thing...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheese_bun

Interesting, this says some varieties are made with Catupiry. I'd like to try that... Catupiry is like a liquidy milk/cream cheese spread that's popular in Brazil. I imagine you'd have to thicken it slightly to get it to work well in Pao de Queijo but I'm sure it would be good and rich! I've made my own version a few times here in the states and put it on top of my pizza and lasagna just like they do in Brazil. I've gotten some strange looks but that stuff is good on italian food! 


lattegal said:


> Thanks. Currently in Florida, but lived in Central America for years and years. I love food from all over the world. Where are you?


I'm in SLC, UT.


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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

KaiqueKuisine said:


> Regular flour with a mix of povilho.
> 
> White is basically like whey flour. But i have seen people use potatoe and yuca flour, but both retain a bit of moisture.


Isn't Povilho just Yuca flour? Is Manioc Root the same thing as Yuca? If so, a quick search says that Povilho is just Manioc Root/Yuca/Cassava/Mandioca and it's all the same thing. Tapioca being the starch rolled into pearls. At least that's my understanding.


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## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

Great! I just made Pao de Queijo yesterday but the recipe resulted in a liquid batter to be poured into molds - more like little popovers or yorkshire puddings! The result was okay, but not exactly like what you get from the Churrascarias around here. I will have to try your technique recipe/tonight Vic, and hopefully I'll get results closer to what I'm used to eating. Going to the store now to buy oaxaca. I use Tapioca starch, which is apparently the same as all those flours you've named.

Here's what I got yesterday:





  








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## kaiquekuisine (Apr 11, 2013)

Vic Cardenas said:


> Isn't Povilho just Yuca flour? Is Manioc Root the same thing as Yuca? If so, a quick search says that Povilho is just Manioc Root/Yuca/Cassava/Mandioca and it's all the same thing. Tapioca being the starch rolled into pearls. At least that's my understanding.


I had no idea Povilho used Yuca.

Because i dont use it regularly. But yeh it does. If im correct their are 2 kinds of povilho doce and amargo/azedo each result in a differente taste. Both in my opinion both are delicious independent of the flour used.

But in some cases people dont use yuca flour and use regular whey flour which also results in a decent pao de queijo..

PAO DE QUEIJO IS MY CHILDHOOD TREAT (one of them anyway).

But when making pao de queijo is it very often that people use botha combo of flour and povilho...


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## pollopicu (Jan 24, 2013)

French Fries said:


> Great! I just made Pao de Queijo yesterday but the recipe resulted in a liquid batter to be poured into molds - more like little popovers or yorkshire puddings! The result was okay, but not exactly like what you get from the Churrascarias around here. I will have to try your technique recipe/tonight Vic, and hopefully I'll get results closer to what I'm used to eating. Going to the store now to buy oaxaca. I use Tapioca starch, which is apparently the same as all those flours you've named.
> 
> Here's what I got yesterday:
> 
> ...


Omg, I know these...they are the best little evil things God ever helped someone invent. They serve them to you on purpose in Churrascarias so you get full on them and you don't eat as much as that yummy meat they bring around the table. The one at the churrascarias are more gluten-y, cheesy dough-y.





  








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## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

Pollopicu said:


> Omg, I know these...they are the best little evil things God ever helped someone invent. They serve them to you on purpose in Churrascarias so you get full on them and you don't eat as much as that yummy meat they bring around the table.


Hahaha yes that's EXACTLY what they are! /img/vbsmilies/smilies/lol.gif


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## ordo (Mar 19, 2009)

Pao de queijo. Very similar to _Chipá_, from Paraguay and Guaraní regions.

Heres my take at:

*Causa limeña*

Some ingredients.





  








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Making a roll over oiled butter paper.





  








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The roll goes to the fridge.





  








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Final plate, with eggs, black olives and tabasco.





  








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## pollopicu (Jan 24, 2013)

Very nice, Ordo.


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## pollopicu (Jan 24, 2013)

French Fries said:


> Hahaha yes that's EXACTLY what they are! /img/vbsmilies/smilies/lol.gif


Yes, you know that I searched high and low for a recipe for those back when I didn't know what they were, but when I finally found out that they were Pao de Queijo, I couldn't locate tapioca flour to save my life. Thanks for reminding me of these. I'm putting them on my to-make list.


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## kaiquekuisine (Apr 11, 2013)

Oh then i think it would be time for everyone to try at least once in your life a brazilian artifical treat.

Bone Marrow Gello or Geleia de Mocoto as we call it.

Sweet, creamy, stable like jello, and made of marrow XD Delicious... /img/vbsmilies/smilies/rolleyes.gif


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## pollopicu (Jan 24, 2013)

Brazilians make an Oxtail stew that is to die for too.


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## phatch (Mar 29, 2002)

If you're eating Brazilian, you have to try Guarana soda at least once.





  








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## teamfat (Nov 5, 2007)

Was planning to do a couple of ceviches over the next little while.  Saw one recipe with boiled corn and sweet potato that looked fun.  Used to hang out with a fellow who was married to a Peruvian woman.  Love to chat with them now!

mjb.


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## kaiquekuisine (Apr 11, 2013)

I LOVE GUARANA!!

But i prefer Kuat XD


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## ordo (Mar 19, 2009)

FF: your _pao de queijo_ looks very yummy. Some curiosities about the dish:

It's named _Chípa_ in Paraguay, a Quechua word meaning "big woman",

In Guaraní it's named _Cuñapé_, with the same meaning.

Its a recipe probably originated in Jesuitic Missions. Hence its known in Brasil, Paraguay and Argentina as well. Some variants:

_Chipa guazú_ (big chipa): made with fresh corn.

_Chipá asador_ also _chipá caburé_ also _chipá mbocá_: kind of a big stewered chípa.

_Chipá avatí_: corn flour

_Chipa so'o_: with a ground beef filing

_Chipá quesú_: made with goat cheese.

_Cipá manduv_í: made with a mix of corn flour and peanut flour

_Chipá rora_: made with the peels of corn seeds.

_Chipá ma_í: the classic Brasilian pao de queijo.

Here's a video of a Paraguayan family that hardly survive making chípa. They talk a mix of Spanish and Guaraní languages. I can understand half of the words, or less. Even so, there're some hints about how they do it.


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## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

ordo said:


> Here's a video of a Paraguayan family that hardly survive making chípa. They talk a mix of Spanish and Guaraní languages. I can understand half of the words, or less. Even so, there're some hints about how they do it.


Thank you for sharing that video ordo, it was beautiful and moving, even though I cannot understand a single word (except maybe the word "kilo"). I have a lot of admiration and respect for people who prepare food the old fashioned way like that.

I decided to try them again tonight, but with a recipe closer to what @JayCobb1045 posted earlier, yielding a non-liquid dough. The resulting balls were more uniform and IMO looked more the part, and I thought they kinda tasted better; but my wife and kids preferred the ones I made yesterday with the liquid dough. This time I used oaxaca cheese from the Mexican supermarket (vs good Parmeggiano in the ones I made yesterday), but the cheese taste was actually less pronounced.





  








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PS: Looking back at the ones posted by @JayCobb1045 earlier (here) and comparing them with mine in that last picture, I realize that I may have overcooked them. I have some dough left so I will make some more tomorrow and try cooking them less.


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## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

Vic Cardenas said:


> Alright, I know you guys know I was getting around to this. How could I not include some type of Ceviche in this competition when it is arguably Peru's national dish? In Peru, Ceviche is an art. It is revered and loved and as Douglas Rodriguez said... "Stately" for Peruvians.


Wow Vic, you really opened my mind with that ceviche. I realize now that the few Mexican ceviches I've had in my life are only the tip of the iceberg, and there's much more to ceviche than I ever imagined. I love that idea of using passion fruit. The consistency, and the way the bright yellow color contrasts with the black seeds is visually striking.


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## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

Pollopicu said:


> Yes, you know that I searched high and low for a recipe for those back when I didn't know what they were, but when I finally found out that they were Pao de Queijo, I couldn't locate tapioca flour to save my life. Thanks for reminding me of these. I'm putting them on my to-make list.


You're welcome! I found tapioca in a Thai restaurant, originally bought it to make steamed wrappers for a Vietnamese dish, but I ended up using it for the Pao de Queijo. I noticed that they also sell tapioca starch at the Mexican supermarket. I'm not sure wether or not it's a common item but I would assume it shouldn't be too hard to find? It goes under many different names. Today I went to an Argentinian carniceria and found a pack like this (note the many different names):





  








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## jaycobb1045 (Mar 6, 2012)

@French Fries That's the exact stuff, down to the brand and the funny quirk of listing three different names on the bag, that I use! You're right, you can find that in many "international" sections of large American supermarkets or certainly in almost any Latin American market.


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## lattegal (Jun 14, 2012)

When in Buenos Aires we called and ordered a combination pizza.  It took hours before being delivered.  What we didn't know was…they misunderstood the concept and made each wedge loaded with different ingredients.  Sliced egg and chopped sausage on one wedge, olives and anchovies on another etc.  It lost something in the translation haha.


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## jaycobb1045 (Mar 6, 2012)

@lattegal The mere fact that such an incredible journey of pizza variety is even an option is reason alone for me to return to Buenos Aires! Forget the delicious beef, the incredible wine, the people, the culture, the music - I'm going for the combination pizza!! And, of course, the provoleta.


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## lattegal (Jun 14, 2012)

When you go back, go to La Ideal and tango!  They have classes for the first hour, then open dancing.  Drink all the local wine and lose your inhibitions!


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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

French Fries said:


> Wow Vic, you really opened my mind with that ceviche. I realize now that the few Mexican ceviches I've had in my life are only the tip of the iceberg, and there's much more to ceviche than I ever imagined. I love that idea of using passion fruit. The consistency, and the way the bright yellow color contrasts with the black seeds is visually striking.


Thank you. I'm hoping to include a few different types of ceviches before the month is over.


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## michaelga (Jan 30, 2012)

I'm just soaking everything in and enjoying the ride - I figure about mid month I'll start to experiment, we'll see what happens but I'll post both good and bad.


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## teamfat (Nov 5, 2007)

It just occurred to me that a few days ago I bought some stuff for a ceviche.  I've been kind of sick and off my feed, haven't done much cooking, other than the pastor's dinner last night.  That fish is buried in the fridge somewhere.  Probably not fit for ceviche, or any other food use at this point.

Oops.

mjb.

PS:  After checking, I bought it tuesday evening.  Already have tonight's dinner going, think I'll be having fish for lunch tomorrow.


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## genemachine (Sep 26, 2012)

On to Ecuador today - Arroz con Camarones. No pictures of the preparation, unfortunately, since the battery died on me. In short: boil prawns marinaded with salt, pepper, garlic and cumin, put aside, save the water. Fry onions and red peppers, add tomatoes, parsley and white wine, let simmer. Fry garlic, add rice and coat in the oil, add the cooking water from the prawns. When nearly done, add the vegetable mix and the prawns and finish it.





  








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I don't know if I will have enough time, but I am trying to do a dish from every country this round


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## pollopicu (Jan 24, 2013)

Gene, that looks fantastic!

I love arroz con camarones. it has such a wonderful smell. I haven't had that since my childhood.


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## pollopicu (Jan 24, 2013)

teamfat said:


> It just occurred to me that a few days ago I bought some stuff for a ceviche. I've been kind of sick and off my feed, haven't done much cooking, other than the pastor's dinner last night. That fish is buried in the fridge somewhere. Probably not fit for ceviche, or any other food use at this point.
> 
> Oops.
> 
> ...


Don't you hate when that happens? ugh.


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## michaelga (Jan 30, 2012)

One solace is that you can now think of yourself as feeding your fur-friends the very best quality!


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## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

@GeneMachine that sounds/looks very, very tasty!

I decided to try my hand at Feijoada. I used peppers and smoked ribs. Here served simply with white rice, fried plantains and pao de queijo. It was delicious!





  








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## pollopicu (Jan 24, 2013)

Oh Jesus Christ.





  








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I'll take an extra large serving of those beans too, please.


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## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

Haha anytime @Pollopicu ! /img/vbsmilies/smilies/lol.gif Thanks for the comment.


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## genemachine (Sep 26, 2012)

Columbian style Carne Asado today:





  








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Marinade the beef with garlic, lime and ornage juice, salt, pepper, cumin, beer, worchestershire sauce, red wine vinegar and olive oil.





  








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Prepare a Salsa with tomatoes, onions, lime, habaneros and cilantro.





  








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Fire up the grill, and, I have to show off, monitor the meat with my new wireless temp probe....





  








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Put on the meat with some potatoes in foil.





  








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And serve.


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## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

Ooooh that looks mighty tasty @GeneMachine ! What cut of beef is it?


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## genemachine (Sep 26, 2012)

Hm. always difficult to translate between the different cutting techniques. I suppose in American parlance, this would be sirloin. Hüftsteak in German.


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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

That looks tasty!


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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

Ok, I'm trying to get back to this on my free time.

I made some "Papas a la Huancaina".

Let's face it. Boiled potatoes suck. Especially cold, boiled potatoes.

Who in their right mind would come home and say to themselves "I got a hankerin' for some cold, boiled potatoes!"?

Well, my friends, I have found a solution! Papas a la Huancaina is the solution for your cold, boiled potato blues!

"Boil up yer some pertaters!"





  








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I make Huancaina sauce in the blender. Start with milk, and Aji Amarillo puree.





  








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Add some crushed saltines and Queso Fresco





  








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Chopped some Aji Amarillo, Onion and Garlic





  








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Fried up the "Aderezo"





  








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Added that to the blender





  








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Blend very well to get a smooth, velvety texture.





  








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Consistency should be thick. Add salt to taste





  








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I poached an egg and chilled the potato. Pour the sauce generously on the potatoes. This is a very traditional peruvian dish you see on all the peruvian restaurant menus, usually served on lettuce with boiled eggs and some olives. I like poached eggs! A little smoked paprika on the egg for me.

This is always an great dish despite it's super, super simple ingredients.





  








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## genemachine (Sep 26, 2012)

That certainly takes the old taters to another level. Nice one.


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## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

@Vic, beautiful potatoes. Wouldn't the dish work even better with warm potatoes though? Just wondering. I love that you used a poached egg instead of boiled, that makes the dish more refined. And very nice plating as usual.


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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)




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## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)




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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

I just ran cold water on them for a few minutes as soon as they were done boiling. Works nice that way because you arrest the cooking process so they are perfectly done and they end up nice and cold. The sauce is cold.


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## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

Vic Cardenas said:


> I just ran cold water on them for a few minutes as soon as they were done boiling. Works nice that way because you arrest the cooking process so they are perfectly done and they end up nice and cold. The sauce is cold.


Thanks. That sauce sounds really delicious, I wish I had a functioning blender... meanwhile maybe I can get close with my food processor.


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## ordo (Mar 19, 2009)

Very nice and enriched huancaina sauce wiith the "aderezo".


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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

ordo said:


> Very nice and enriched huancaina sauce wiith the "aderezo".


Thanks! Do you guys in Argentina call it "sofrito"? That's what they call it in the south of Peru like Arequipa and Cusco, and seems to be a more widely used term for that around the world. I'm curious what they call it in Ecuador and Columbia, too? I know in Venezuela and some Chileans call it "sofrito". Most Chileans seem to call it "aderezo", too. Also curious what the Brazilian Portuguese equivalent term is???


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## ordo (Mar 19, 2009)

In culinary terms, _aderezo_ in Argentina, means _dressing. _


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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

Here is another staple Peruvian meal. Lomo Saltado...

Lomo Saltado is a stir fry beef dish that is sort of a hybrid of Chinese and Peruvian flavors. Chinese immigrants in Peru have been highly influential on Peruvian Cuisine since they started immigrating in droves in the 1800's. "Chifas" are Chinese restaurants in Peru, and if you order a Lomo Saltado in Lima, usually the best place to get one is at one of the Chifas on the corner.

Typically you would use "Lomo Fino" (Tenderloin) as your meat but I've found you can use many different cuts of beef depending on your technique. I've used Top Sirloin with a lot of success. I've used Chuck, that worked well. Today I am using boneless short ribs.

I slice the beef really thin and against the grain. Marinate (for 30 minutes or so) the beef in cumin, lots of garlic, lots of salt and pepper, a few splashes of red wine vinegar and about a tablespoon of soy sauce.

While the beef is marinating, chop your onions, tomatoes, potatoes, parsley...





  








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Cook some Garlic Rice.

I use the twice cooked method to fry my french fries. I cut the fries fresh then fry them for about 5-10 minutes in 225-250 degree F oil. Then when I'm ready to stir fry, I fry them at 350. Quickly.





  








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Like the other dishes, I like to fry my rice in a pan...





  








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Stir fry the meat, then onions, nearly at the same time. You have to work fast when using a real wok burner. I add the meat, then stir it around for 10 seconds or so. I add the onions and stir it quickly and cook it for maybe 1- 2 minutes. Then, as the lomo and onions are finishing up, I add the tomatoes, just to warm them enough. If you cook the tomatoes much, the skin will fall off and look terrible.

Here are some gratuitous stir fry action shots...





  








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Then, I garnish the dish with parsley. It should be salted correctly already at this step from the marinade. If not, add a bit more to finish. Pour the meat, onion, tomato mixture over the rice on a plate. Top with the Fries. Enjoy!

Plated up with the rice and fries. Added some Huancaina sauce and Olive aioli...





  








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## dhmcardoso (Apr 29, 2013)

Ok, this time I have no excuses…

So yesterday I decided to cook a Brazilian Moqueca with Pirão and multigrain rice. You guys may not know this, but we have basically 2 recipes of Moqueca, the Moqueca Baiana and the Moqueca Capixaba, each from a different state. Basically, the Baiana uses coconut milk and "azeite de dendê" (a kind of palm oil). However, my personal recipe is in the middle, just because I love coconut milk but "dendê" makes me feel bad. In the end, frieds from both states are not totally happy but myself, in the other hand…





  








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PS.. Sorry for my baby in the backgound.. ;-)

DANIEL


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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

Nice!


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## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

@Vic Cardenas You keep cranking them up!!! Great! Is one of your sauces kinda purple-ish? Is that from the use of purple potatoes perhaps?

@dhmcardoso Great contribution, thanks for posting your gratuitous action shots. I couldn't spot a baby in the background, but that wouldn't have bothered me a bit, in fact I'm kinda of missing it now that you mention it. WHERE'S THE BABY??? /img/vbsmilies/smilies/lol.gif


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## dhmcardoso (Apr 29, 2013)

French Fries said:


> @Vic Cardenas You keep cranking them up!!! Great! Is one of your sauces kinda purple-ish? Is that from the use of purple potatoes perhaps?
> 
> @dhmcardoso Great contribution, thanks for posting your gratuitous action shots. I couldn't spot a baby in the background, but that wouldn't have bothered me a bit, in fact I'm kinda of missing it now that you mention it. WHERE'S THE BABY??? /img/vbsmilies/smilies/lol.gif


HAHA where is Julia? 5th pic, on the floor...


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## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

WOW! She was really well hidden!! /img/vbsmilies/smilies/smile.gif We should have a new thread "spot the baby on that food picture".


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## kaiquekuisine (Apr 11, 2013)

I dont think i could ever make moqueca without palm oil <_<. 

Did you use Colorau to get the color?


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## dhmcardoso (Apr 29, 2013)

KaiqueKuisine said:


> I dont think i could ever make moqueca without palm oil


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## pollopicu (Jan 24, 2013)

Thanks to you guys the "what's for dinner" thread has been practically dead so far this month.... /img/vbsmilies/smilies/laser.gif

/img/vbsmilies/smilies/lookaround.gif


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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

French Fries said:


> @Vic Cardenas
> You keep cranking them up!!! Great! Is one of your sauces kinda purple-ish? Is that from the use of purple potatoes perhaps?
> 
> @dhmcardoso
> Great contribution, thanks for posting your gratuitous action shots. I couldn't spot a baby in the background, but that wouldn't have bothered me a bit, in fact I'm kinda of missing it now that you mention it. WHERE'S THE BABY??? :lol:


That was the same olive aioli I used for my causa dishes.


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## dhmcardoso (Apr 29, 2013)

My father in law is Peruvian and I have their food quite regularly. I make a really good ceviche and tuna causa, however, I totally love the Aji de Galina. The problem is that our family recipe takes far too much oil. I've tried to reduce but it is not the same. I tried some other recipes but with no success also.

@Vic Cardenas, do you or anyone else has a killer Aji recipe to share with us?

Another thing, is it my impression or the AJI gets better on the day after?

Daniel.


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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

dhmcardoso said:


> My father in law is Peruvian and I have their food quite regularly. I make a really good ceviche and tuna causa, however, I totally love the Aji de Galina. The problem is that our family recipe takes far too much oil. I've tried to reduce but it is not the same. I tried some other recipes but with no success also.
> 
> @Vic Cardenas, do you or anyone else has a killer Aji recipe to share with us?
> 
> ...


You are absolutely right. Aji de Gallina gets better the day after. But then again, so does my garlic rice.

Look back to post #59 in this thread... I made Aji de Gallina, buffet style for a banquet I had... 

I don't have a recipe per-se. I just make it by color, taste, smell, consistency... mainly. I don't use much oil in the recipe at all. I'll use a bit of oil in the pan to fry up the onion, garlic, aji, turmeric aderezo/sofrito. A heavy drizzle of oil in the pan, really. Just enough to coat the veggies well to brown them up. I let all that fry up and then throw the aderezo into the blender to make the puree with all the oil. That gives it a velvety smooth texture. So, in other words... No, I don't use that much oil in the recipe.

One thing I do do that is a bit unusual for some peruvians is that I boil the chicken with the celery and carrots. I use all the celery and just a hint of the carrots (don't turn your sauce orange!) in the puree. So, it's kind of a spin on utilizing the flavors of the french mirepoix. I've seen this is some peruvian cookbooks like this but I find that most peruvians don't cook it this way. I find that using a good cracker or white bread is the key to the flavor in this puree. Old bread with a thick brown crust will make it taste bitter. A good chicken stock, or in my case, using a good bouillon is also key to the flavor. If you use a cheap bouillon it will be nasty. I use Maggi most of the time unless I have a good stock... which is rare. Use plenty of the chicken broth to make the puree. For the consistency, you want it to be thick, but not gloopy from the bread or crackers. If it's too gloopy/doughy, just cut it with more chicken broth or milk or both.

I'll tell you what though, when I made that Aji de Gallina for that banquet, there were a bunch of peruvians there. They were asking me and my wife "How does he know how to cook peruvian? How does he do it?" (I look like a typical ******) After they ate the Aji, they were all raving. I even impressed a few mexicans (who typically hate all peruvian food for some reason)! A few said that it was the best Aji de Gallina they've had in their life. One peruvian guy at my wife's work was still talking about it like 4 days later, raving with compliments to everybody at her job.

That's what makes it all worth it!

Oh, did somebody say _Ceviche_?...

(edited by phatch to insert link to post 59)


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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

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## dhmcardoso (Apr 29, 2013)

Dude I love Aji de Galina so much. It is a pitty I took 25 years to be introduced to it.

I really recommend everyone here to try it at least once.

I will try your version with my family and return to you with the feedback.. hahaha

nice ceviche BTW...

Ohh.. I am hungry /img/vbsmilies/smilies/biggrin.gif


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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

...Yes, somebody did say Ceviche!

Here is a typical Peruvian Ceviche. Sometimes called Ceviche Limeña, after the city of Lima. You find this style of ceviche everywhere in Peru. Sold in the streets, sold in fine dining restaurants this way. Everywhere. It is simple, fresh, clean and tart. In my opinion, the best typical ceviche out of any country's typical ceviche. In my opinion, ceviche is best when it is kept simple, and typical Peruvian Ceviche is about as simple as it gets. A nice Fish, Lime, Onion, Salt. That is the basis of all Peruvian Ceviche and it usually does not vary much from that. That's all Ceviche needs! Any more ingredients and it just gets more convoluted and complicated. Of course, any variations from this can still make a great meal. I like to add Ginger and Aji Limo personally, yet it still keeps it simple enough.

To make a great ceviche...

Start with a really fresh fish. A firm, white fleshed fish works best. Or, if you are like me, living in an area hundreds of miles away from the coast, use flash frozen fish. The health department would require me, or sushi restaurants, to use this in a commercial setting anyway. Flash frozen fish works great.
Fresh Lime. I emphasize Fresh because it's easy to ruin a ceviche by using substandard, too old, limes. A lot of peruvians even cut out the core of the lime because they say the juice around the core is bitter. I use a ratio of 1 persian lime to about 10 key limes. I find that this replicates the flavor and acidity of the small peruvian limes that look like key limes. They are not the same thing. Key limes are not acidic enough, persian limes are too bitter, IMO. This way, I get a nice balance.
Good Salt. The salt used is key in a ceviche. I've always used Morton's Kosher salt but other fine sea salts and kosher salts work great.
I chop the onions very finely, like paper thin. I always use red onions for the Ceviche Limeño. I also quench them in a bath of ice water to cut down the initial rawness and punch of the onion flavor. The ice cold onions also help to chill the dish further.
I'm using Mahi Mahi for this ceviche... I think it works well for ceviches and adds a nice red hue to the dish.





  








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I toast some "cancha chulpe" corn nuts. This adds a nice crunch to the dish. I toast these in a sauce pot with some oil and salt until they start to pop and take on just a bit of color.

Not pictured, I also boiled some choclo corn kernals like I use in some of the other dishes. I also boiled a yam until tender and skinned it. Cut into large chunks.





  








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Here are the ingredients about to be mixed up for the ceviche. Red onion, Key and Persian Limes, Aji Limo, Cilantro, Ginger





  








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Toss them into a bowl with the cut fish and plenty of lime juice. I marinade this fish for about 5 minutes before it's plated. Lots of salt and a fair amount of pepper are added.





  








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Plated up with the chulpe, cancha, yam and some more aji limo





  








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On the lower plate, I put lots of "Leche de Tigre" and the top one is more dry.





  








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## jaycobb1045 (Mar 6, 2012)

@Vic Cardenas That ceviche looks amazing! Very different from the Ecuadorian "ceviche de camaron" that is next on my list for this thread, but then again, I'm pretty sure our version is the odd man out in the world of ceviche!

I had a question about your papas a la huancaina. You indicate that the sauce should be blended until very smooth and velvety, but most times I've had that dish the sauce has been...grainy isn't the right word, because it isn't an unpleasant texture, but maybe more "chunky." The impression I always got was that the cheese and crackers were crushed up by hand but not pureed or blended, creating the texture I'm having a hard time describing. Your version certainly seems more refined for a fine dining setting, but I am curious about what the more traditional or typical style is. Have I just had crappy huancaina sauce all my life?!?


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## ordo (Mar 19, 2009)

I've been in many Peruvian restos here in Argentina. In fact there's a growing Peruvian community here. Well, i've never had such a good ceviche as Vic presented.


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## petalsandcoco (Aug 25, 2009)

I agree Ordo. Vic presented a beautiful one. I made one today as well. I tried doing a montage but alas it didn't work.





 Florencio Coronado





  








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Some ingredients. sea bass, couple scallops, shrimp etc





  








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I went to a Central American Market and bought Maiz en Mazorca (large white corn) imported from Peru.





  








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Aji Limo 3 colors





  








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Prep of coriander, lots of lime - 10 to be exact, garlic, ginger, peppers..... (sorry the pic is that way)





  








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Peppers chopped





  








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Chop and toss in bowl





  








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I par cooked the shrimp (why - felt like it) cut and tossed in bowl, added sea bass and scallops. Set in fridge for 3 hours.





  








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Cooked up 2 of the largest kernal corn I have ever seen in my life. How was I going to plate/serve this ?





  








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Prepped platter with sweet potato , the corn sliced, cucumber and lime wedges.





  








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Deep fried in oil , sprinkle of sea salt. Served with ceviche (they were light as air)





  








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Place fish mix on plate, sprinkle dry salted corn nuts, Platter done.





  








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Leche de Tigre.

I have learned so much from this thread, its incredible. I don't know anything about most of the dishes that have been presented here and I am absolutely inspired by all of you. It is humbling.

Makes for 6 servings.


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## ordo (Mar 19, 2009)

Amazing, Petals. A truly work of love.


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## petalsandcoco (Aug 25, 2009)

L-O-V-E ? Yes. lol Thank you  Ordo.


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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

JayCobb1045 said:


> @Vic Cardenas
> That ceviche looks amazing! Very different from the Ecuadorian "ceviche de camaron" that is next on my list for this thread, but then again, I'm pretty sure our version is the odd man out in the world of ceviche!
> 
> I had a question about your papas a la huancaina. You indicate that the sauce should be blended until very smooth and velvety, but most times I've had that dish the sauce has been...grainy isn't the right word, because it isn't an unpleasant texture, but maybe more "chunky." The impression I always got was that the cheese and crackers were crushed up by hand but not pureed or blended, creating the texture I'm having a hard time describing. Your version certainly seems more refined for a fine dining setting, but I am curious about what the more traditional or typical style is. Have I just had crappy huancaina sauce all my life?!?


Thanks! I think maybe you've been getting crappy huancaina. I've seen it like this before where it's chunky but not too often. I just think it's cooking half assed. I learned it from my father and mother in law in Lima and they've always blended it smooth. Every restaurant in Peru I've had it at it was smooth or mostly smooth. I think the only time I've had it chunky was at a festival here in Utah. All the restaurants here serve it smooth too.



ordo said:


> I've been in many Peruvian restos here in Argentina. In fact there's a growing Peruvian community here. Well, i've never had such a good ceviche as Vic presented.


Wow! Thanks!



petalsandcoco said:


> I agree Ordo. Vic presented a beautiful one. I made one today as well. I tried doing a montage but alas it didn't work.


Thanks! Yours looks great too. So elaborate and elegant.


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## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

Wow very nice ceviches guys. Vic, your plating is beautiful, everything looks fresh and vibrant, very inviting, very artistic. Love it.

Petals your plate is very flowery!! The cassava chips are stunning. They look exactly as you describe them: perfectly crispy and light as air. Could you please pass me one so I can dip it in the ceviche and eat now? /img/vbsmilies/smilies/biggrin.gif


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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

French Fries said:


> Wow very nice ceviches guys. Vic, your plating is beautiful, everything looks fresh and vibrant, very inviting, very artistic. Love it.
> 
> Petals your plate is very flowery!! The cassava chips are stunning. They look exactly as you describe them: perfectly crispy and light as air. Could you please pass me one so I can dip it in the ceviche and eat now?


Hey thanks again!


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## jaycobb1045 (Mar 6, 2012)

@Vic Cardenas Thanks for the information! I've never had papas a la huancaina in Peru or even in Ecuador - it has always been here in the states and often at dodgy places. I'm glad I asked so that if I ever make the dish myself, I know to make the extra effort and blend it smooth.

These ceviches that folks are posting make my mouth water! I've been quite busy at work this week, but hope to get in the kitchen over the weekend so I can contribute a few entries to the thread!


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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

JayCobb1045 said:


> @Vic Cardenas Thanks for the information! I've never had papas a la huancaina in Peru or even in Ecuador - it has always been here in the states and often at dodgy places. I'm glad I asked so that if I ever make the dish myself, I know to make the extra effort and blend it smooth.
> 
> These ceviches that folks are posting make my mouth water! I've been quite busy at work this week, but hope to get in the kitchen over the weekend so I can contribute a few entries to the thread!


No problem, glad I could help. I'm excited to see your Ecuadorian ceviche. I've always wanted to make that style and never tried it. I've always been intrigued by Ecuadorian ceviche because Douglas Rodriguez stated in his book "The Great Ceviche Book" that it's his favorite.

I want to get some of that ketchup that they use in peru and ecuador because it is so much better than american ketchup! I remember the Anthony Bourdain in Ecuador where he's eating ceviche on the beach and he's talking about how he "couldn't get past the whole ketchup in ceviche thing". The whole time I'm remembering the distinct flavors of south american ketchup and thinking to myself "that would be good, actually." I dig it. And I love the dark red color of it. I can't find that stuff in my peruvian store but I'm sure I could get some sent back if I needed it.


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## jaycobb1045 (Mar 6, 2012)

Vic Cardenas said:


> No problem, glad I could help. I'm excited to see your Ecuadorian ceviche. I've always wanted to make that style and never tried it. I've always been intrigued by Ecuadorian ceviche because Douglas Rodriguez stated in his book "The Great Ceviche Book" that it's his favorite.
> 
> I want to get some of that ketchup that they use in peru and ecuador because it is so much better than american ketchup! I remember the Anthony Bourdain in Ecuador where he's eating ceviche on the beach and he's talking about how he "couldn't get past the whole ketchup in ceviche thing". The whole time I'm remembering the distinct flavors of south american ketchup and thinking to myself "that would be good, actually." I dig it. And I love the dark red color of it. I can't find that stuff in my peruvian store but I'm sure I could get some sent back if I needed it.


It's funny you mention that, because that's one of the things that I've monkeyed with over the years to try and get the best flavor out of my ceviche! My dad swears by Heinz in his recipe, but I find it a little too acidic whereas the south american ketchups tend to have a deeper sweet flavor to them, in my opinion. If you're gonna go straight out of the bottle, I actually think Hunts is a little closer. I've tried mixing in some tomato paste along with the ketchup to simulate the flavor, but it doesn't quite get there. One ingredient I've added recently that is far from authentic is a bit of banana ketchup. This adds sweetness and an extra layer of flavor that I really enjoy. I've read recipes that suggest cooking the shrimp in coconut milk. I've not tried this, but I think it would add a similar "costeño" element to the dish. Since plantain chips are one of the many traditional garnishes for our ceviche, I think the banana element makes a little more sense than the coconut element, but that's just me.


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## ordo (Mar 19, 2009)

*Pastel de choclo*

Sweet corn pie (without ground beef)

Corn

Milk

Egg yolks

Egg whites
Soft cheese

Walnuts

Sugar

Dry rocoto pepper

S&P





  








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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

Mmmm... I bet that tasted good!

Funny, the next thing I was going to cook was "Humitas" made with a ground up sweet corn too! Great minds think alike. I'll have to try making that pastel too, it looks good!

......

Sorry, been trying to get back to this thread with some new goodies before the month is over. I've had another project that took precedence the past few days.

In the mean time, my wife has been making some goodies for Easter Sunday.

Unfortunately, I'll be working a 14 hour shift tomorrow so I will not get to enjoy her delicious empanadas.

But I did get to try this goodie she made just now...

_Mazamora y Arroz con Leche_

She said she never made Arroz con Leche before. It turned out pretty damn good for her first time, I'll say!

Mazamora is made from boiling purple corn husks and using the liquid left over and sweetening with sugar and thickening it with corn starch. I think she said she put pineapple juice in it too. There are prunes, dried apricots, pineapple and apple mixed in. Little dash of cinnamon over the whole thing.

Give up for my wife, Rocio. She has taught me a lot over the years!

When I met her, she rarely cooked, her parents always cooked everyday and she lived with them in Lima up until she came to America and met me. After she moved here the second time, after we got married, she took up cooking as a super-novice but she was a natural and learned very quickly.

There are dishes that I don't dare to cook and I leave it up to her because she does it best!

Here's to 8 years married to the best cook I know! (Although, she was a terrible business partner! LOL)





  








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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

Ok, so I whipped up a little snack pretty quick. My wife had some leftover ground beef from making her empanadas for tomorrow that I just mentioned. I decided to make...

_Rocoto Relleno_

This is a dish that is typical in Arequipa, Peru. It is Aji Rocoto that is stuffed with usually ground beef and raisins and topped with browned Parmesan cheese. The Rocoto Pepper is very closely related to the common Bell Pepper but is smaller and can be very spicy. About on par with a jalapeno but in some cases can be quite a bit more potent than that. This one turned out to be a few ticks higher than I expected and after I was done eating this I was quite surprised at the fire brewing in my belly!

Here are the Aji Rocoto's...





  








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Cut them open to find their very spicy black seeds. I clean them out and reserve just a few for garnish.





  








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Stuffed with cooked ground beef and raisins, topped with Parmesan. Set at 350 for about 7 minutes and then when the interiors are hot I turned on the broiler to toast up the cheese just for a minute or so.





  








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Garnished with Olive, Chive, Rocoto seeds, and a little black pepper on top.





  








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## kaiquekuisine (Apr 11, 2013)

Vic loved the presentation of both dishes xD.


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## oldschool1982 (Jun 27, 2006)

Vic Cardenas said:


> Ok, so I whipped up a little snack pretty quick. My wife had some leftover ground beef from making her empanadas for tomorrow that I just mentioned. I decided to make...
> 
> _Rocoto Relleno_
> 
> ...


Vic, great job!

I have to admit there was a plan to try this dish after I found it a couple weeks ago, but after unsuccessfully being able to locate the peppers, I gave up. I ended up using the more readily available Poblano for the meal last week and since that was already used in the last challenge and would be more Mexican/Tex-Mex than South American, I didn't post any picks. It would be great to know where these can be found in the Virginia area....and hopefully won't involve a trip to the DC metro! If that's the case, I'll keep using Poblano's.

The plan was also to substitute currants in place of raisins. When I was a kid, my Grandmother used them in a couple dishes and never was a fan of the raisins w/meat thing.

Anyhow, there have been so many great looking dishes here, just don't know where to begin sampling. Guess the trick is to start at the beginning. Probably won't have anything to post since the the only dish remaining in my documented repertoire is a tired old Seviche del Peru recipe I put together for a place in Atlanta years ago. To give you an idea of the last time used........it remains it's original, hand written form since a computer wasn't available as an option. Maybe I'll dig it up and just post the recipe for someone to try and see what ya'll think.

It has been mentioned earlier in the thread and also understand this doesn't count toward the challenge but today, for our annual Easter Sunday meal.....we are eating South American at Texas de Brazil.

Out of all the chains out there, this is one place that we always enjoy the food and ambiance. Posting a meal done in that fashion was also a thought but the grill rotisserie finally crapped out and took it off the table.....literally! Had a really nice cut of flank steak and some beef ribs that would have been perfect!

Seriously though, if you've never been to a Churrascaria, make your way to one as soon as you can. Even when meat is off the menu for my meal, the salad area is like no other I've ever seen anywhere today and is easily made into a meal by itself and being much less expensive than the full dinner price makes it a great option. Plus it takes me back my early days where a brunch buffet was more a work of art and not just the "trough" experience that seems to be out there nowadays.


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## jaycobb1045 (Mar 6, 2012)

@oldschool1982 Not sure where you are in Virginia, but just the other day I discovered Grand Mart on Little River Turnkpike. I don't know if they have aji rocoto, but they are divided into three sections - latin american, asian, and indian/middle eastern. I specifically found a lot of packaged Peruvian food products like aji amarillo puree, jarred aji amarillo and aji limo, etc, so you might have luck. Otherwise, there are several latin american grocery stores out towards manassas, though they do tend to be aimed more at a central american clientele so you may not find what you're looking for.

This weekend I made Ecuadorian style ceviche de camaron. Three things that make this different than most ceviches are (1) the shrimp is par cooked before putting it in the ceviche; (2) it is more like a cold soup, served in a bowl and with plenty of liquid; and (3) ketchup!

Start by slicing red onion pretty thin





  








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Blanch the onions just enough to take away the bite, then transfer them to a bowl with seasoned lime juice - you end up with sort of quick pickled onions





  








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I like using relatively small shrimp (about 30-40ct.) so that they're not too big to eat in one bite in the finished product! You're going to want to cook the shrimp about 70-80% of the way there. How is up to you! This is a great chance to introduce different flavor elements - I've seen recipes say you should cook the shrimp in coconut milk, grill them, etc. I like cooking them in beer.





  








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Orange juice, lemon and lime juice, ketchup, and banana ketchup. The last ingredient is something that I've started adding recently, though it's far from traditional. I also add several dashes of hot sauce - most red vinegar based hot sauces will do, but I don't like Tabasco here because I think it has too distinct a flavor that changes the entire dish.





  








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Whisk it all together and you should end up with a beautiful light orange color.





  








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Add the shrimp, the quick pickled onions (with all the juice) and enjoy! Some traditional garnishes are popcorn, tostado (similar to corn nuts), and plantain chips. Here I added cilantro, green onion, thinly sliced vinegar chiles (I always keep these on hand because the juice is just as useful as the chiles themselves!), and popcorn.





  








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Pro tip - this stuff is exponentially better after it has spent a night in the fridge, which is a nice coincidence of life as it is one heck of a hangover cure!


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## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

Great dishes guys, very inspirational. Keep 'em coming! /img/vbsmilies/smilies/smile.gif


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## pitufina73 (Mar 26, 2012)

Oh man, thats awesome! can i still participate? Can i pick another country or its all set?


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## pitufina73 (Mar 26, 2012)

hi all, last post i made this morning with my phone, didnt see all the 7 pages of delicious, addicting, drooling food, been drooling for 15 minutes reading all posts haha, awesome dishes and those pan de queijos are so evil haha, Vic Cardenas you are really killing me!!!! i love ceviche soooo bad!

i have 4 nationalities, born in Lima, raised in Bolivia and USA, i live in the latin american capital of the country, Miami, where half of my family lives, and the other half lives all over in Spain. I will make a dish with quinoa, i love it, let me get all the ingredientes together and will surprise all of you later..../img/vbsmilies/smilies/licklips.gif

Have a gorgeous day!


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## phatch (Mar 29, 2002)

I'm still hoping to see some more yuca, tamal, empanada...

Here's my sister's report on Peruvian cuisine from a trip she took.


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## pitufina73 (Mar 26, 2012)

Phatch, will try to make something snacky, i just got an idea! /img/vbsmilies/smilies/licklips.gif


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## dhmcardoso (Apr 29, 2013)

phatch said:


> I'm still hoping to see some more yuca, tamal, empanada...
> 
> Here's my sister's report on Peruvian cuisine from a trip she took.


Ok, I was also missing some yuca... So here is the "Escondidinho". It is a Brazilian dish, sore of pie, made of yuca puree, a animal protein (I prefer salty dried beef because it has more punch and shows up even with the yucca puree) cooked with a lot of onions (I use the proportion of _one to one) _and cheese.

This is so easy you won´t believe… It is one of the examples of the simple things of life that makes anyone happier.





  








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## genemachine (Sep 26, 2012)

Made this a few days ago, but I was to busy to post much over the holidays: Biche de pescado.

Fry onions, garlic, peanuts and cumin, add milk and fish broth, then blitz:





  








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Chop more onions, corn, sweet potatoes and green peppers, season with achiote, cumin, pepper, salt and oregano, let it simmer in the peanut-fish broth.





  








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Add fish and the plantain, simmer until finished, serve:





  








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## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

dhmcardoso said:


> Ok, I was also missing some yuca... So here is the "Escondidinho". It is a Brazilian dish, sore of pie, made of yuca puree, a animal protein (I prefer salty dried beef because it has more punch and shows up even with the yucca puree) cooked with a lot of onions (I use the proportion of _one to one) _and cheese.
> 
> This is so easy you won´t believe… It is one of the examples of the simple things of life that makes anyone happier.


Splendid. It's like a Brazilian Shepherd's pie!


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## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

GeneMachine said:


> Made this a few days ago, but I was to busy to post much over the holidays: Biche de pescado.
> 
> Fry onions, garlic, peanuts and cumin, add milk and fish broth, then blitz:


Interesting! I'm sure the peanuts add a very specific flavor and texture.. I wish I could taste it! /img/vbsmilies/smilies/smile.gif


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## dhmcardoso (Apr 29, 2013)

French Fries said:


> Splendid. It's like a Brazilian Shepherd's pie!


Yes,

And in the same day, the desert was a "Pudim de Leite Condensado" (Condensed Milk flan). By the way, this one did not last longer than 30min.





  








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## genemachine (Sep 26, 2012)

French Fries said:


> Interesting! I'm sure the peanuts add a very specific flavor and texture.. I wish I could taste it! /img/vbsmilies/smilies/smile.gif


The recipe is from Ecuador again. And you are absolutely right, apart from the taste, the peanuts also bind the broth, but still leave a bit of crunchiness in it, if you know what I mean. I am falling more and more in love with the Ecuadorian recipes I tried so far!


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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

oldschool1982 said:


> Vic, great job!
> 
> .....
> 
> Seriously though, if you've never been to a Churrascaria, make your way to one as soon as you can. Even when meat is off the menu for my meal, the salad area is like no other I've ever seen anywhere today and is easily made into a meal by itself and being much less expensive than the full dinner price makes it a great option. Plus it takes me back my early days where a brunch buffet was more a work of art and not just the "trough" experience that seems to be out there nowadays.


Thanks! 


JayCobb1045 said:


> This weekend I made Ecuadorian style ceviche de camaron....


Loved it, Jay! I'm imagining all the flavors. I have to make this now... 


Pitufina73 said:


> Oh man, thats awesome! can i still participate? Can i pick another country or its all set?


Any south american country's cuisine and of course you can participate..


Pitufina73 said:


> Vic Cardenas you are really killing me!!!! i love ceviche soooo bad!


Thanks! 


phatch said:


> I'm still hoping to see some more yuca, tamal, empanada...
> 
> Here's my sister's report on Peruvian cuisine from a trip she took.


I just had some of my wife's empadandas for easter dinner. Oh man, they were good! 


dhmcardoso said:


> Ok, I was also missing some yuca... So here is the "Escondidinho".


That looks great! I have to try this too! 


GeneMachine said:


> Made this a few days ago, but I was to busy to post much over the holidays: Biche de pescado...


Love this too! I love a good fish soup. Never had one with peanuts! That would give a great flavor I had never though of before. So many new things I must try now! 


dhmcardoso said:


> Yes,
> 
> And in the same day, the desert was a "Pudim de Leite Condensado" (Condensed Milk flan). By the way, this one did not last longer than 30min.


Mmmmm, flan....


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## oldschool1982 (Jun 27, 2006)

@JayCobb1045, Thanks for the point........I looked where Little River turnpike was and a trip to Alexandria is not going to work. However, the DW is headed to Baltimore this weekend so maybe I can talk her into stopping by a market near her destination. I'll need to look at what's close by so she can conduct her business without too much a delay.

I'm definitely on a mission to find the Aji Rocoto peppers and I equate this to trying to find the elusive Melrose pepper that I grew up with in the Chicago area. With those, I know where to get them but I'm somewhat location challenged. I've bought seeds for these too but they turned out to be just your typical Anaheim pepper.

It's just one of those things that gets you fired-up to find mostly because you can't find it and if all else fails, I'm buying the seeds and starting from scratch. Hope the result is the correct pepper and I don't run into what I did with the Melrose.

I really have become quite fond of peppers and since they are on my approved food list, it'd be nice to have some additional varieties. Plus, the idea of this pepper having the flesh thickness of a bell and the heat of a strong jalp is very intriguing.


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## pitufina73 (Mar 26, 2012)

omg flan! that doesnt last in my house, gone in a minute....

also i wanted to point that the huancaina sauce is diferent in peru and bolivia

in peru they use cheese, crackers, yellow aji and milk

in bolivia they use roasted peanuts, blended in the food processor with yellow aji and a little milk to make it pasty.

and both sauces are served over boiled potatoes, I love both versions but the peanut one gives some crunchiness and roasted taste, its sooo goood!!!!

Im making sonsos, which are smashed yucca with cheese on a bamboo stick, from santa cruz, bolivia,  i will finish it tomorrow,.. nite nite chefs


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## genemachine (Sep 26, 2012)

oldschool1982 said:


> I'm definitely on a mission to find the Aji Rocoto peppers and I equate this to trying to find the elusive Melrose pepper that I grew up with in the Chicago area. With those, I know where to get them but I'm somewhat location challenged. I've bought seeds for these too but they turned out to be just your typical Anaheim pepper.
> 
> It's just one of those things that gets you fired-up to find mostly because you can't find it and if all else fails, I'm buying the seeds and starting from scratch. Hope the result is the correct pepper and I don't run into what I did with the Melrose.


Beware, beware. As soon as you start growing your own peppers, it tends to grow out of hand. For this year, I have jalapenos, habaneros, anaheims, anchos, serranos, an unnamed turkish variety (when sun-dried makes pul biber), bird's eyes, tabasco, and some varieties of bell peppers. Good thing I set up that new greenhouse...


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## butzy (Jan 8, 2010)

I feel pretty humbled by this thread. So many amazing dishes and ingredients that I never heard of before!

It's been very busy this month, so not many entries from my side, but I did try my hand on some empanadas and filled them with some left over chicken stew. I am cheating a bit here as this stew was more Indonesian in style than anything, but it does get eaten in Surinam a lot as well. And I added some madam Janette chili's (Surinam yellow) to make sure /img/vbsmilies/smilies/smile.gif

So I suppose it is something like South American fusion?

A picture of the uncooked ones:





  








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The dough was made of milk, flour, olive oil and lemon juice and they got cooked in the oven.

No picture of the cooked ones as I forgot.

I definitely need to work on the shaping, but they tasted good.


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## pollopicu (Jan 24, 2013)

dhmcardoso said:


> Yes,
> 
> And in the same day, the desert was a "Pudim de Leite Condensado" (Condensed Milk flan). By the way, this one did not last longer than 30min.
> 
> ...


I haven't had much time to peep my head in here for more than 4 seconds, but boy oh boy does this look delicious.

I'll be sad when this challenge is over. So many wonderful-looking dishes. Great job, everyone.


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## chrisbelgium (Oct 2, 2010)

dhmcardoso said:


> ...desert was a "Pudim de Leite Condensado" (Condensed Milk flan). By the way, *this one did not last longer than 30min.*


I kind of believe you! Too bad I wasn't there to help...


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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

Here are some _Anticuchos de Corazon_...

This is Beef Heart that is marinated in Aji Panca, Garlic, Red Wine Vinegar, Cumin and served kebab style on skewers and traditionally cooked over charcoal. You find this being served on the street quite often in Lima. When I was living there, I would walk down to the corner of our apartments and there was a neighbor lady who every so often, at random times for a few hours a day, would be sitting cross legged in front of a small charcoal grill and just be grilling a few of these up for the foot traffic, even late at night.

To anybody a little queasy about eating heart... It's kind of like a cross between Tenderloin and Round meet with a real normal, fleshy, hearty (no pun) beef flavor and not too strong of that skunky offal flavor you get from liver or other organs. I really enjoy this meat like I do any steak and I'm not too big of a fan of liver, tripe or "mollejas" or "pulmones" like I've experienced before.

You can usually find heart for a pretty good price...





  








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You need to trim off all of the exterior, slick surfaces and all of the veiny areas. You are looking to get nice pieces of clean flesh. Nothing will ruin this dish more than a terrible butcher job so take your time...





  








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It helps to put the areas you want to trim off facing down on the board and push down and use a fileting action with you knife like you're skinning a fish. You should be able to get large cuts about 6x6" to 8x8" with this method. Cut those pieces into small chunks for your kebabs...

As you can see, it does resemble cut tenderloin very much...





  








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Soak your skewers as long as you can beforehand...





  








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Here is the Aji Panca Paste...





  








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I make a marinade with Aji Panca Paste, Cumin, Garlic (I was actually out of garlic  so I skipped it this time), Red Wine Vinegar, Pepper, Salt. This was marinaded for about 30 minutes before they went on the fire. If you use a small amount of Vinegar you can marinade it long beforehand and get good results...





  








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Make a very hot charcoal fire. You want to sear these off quickly. These are easy to make too tough if you overcook them. I cook mine for about 2 minutes on each side and that's about it. I cook mine to about medium to mid well and just as they are starting to get a dark brown around the edges. I find that charcoal gives it the best flavor but I have used a cast iron griddle with grill grates on one side and got it screaming hot and I've gotten good results this way too...





  








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Plated up with a couple of hot sauces...





  








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## jake t buds (May 27, 2013)

Vic, I see a label as your signature with the word "winner" in it sometime in the near future. . .

Ok. So this is what I did. No pictures because it looked like a picture from a cheesy south american restaurant in Queens NY. You know, the kind have frames above the order window with generic dishes. Happens a lot in chinese restaurants as well.

I deconstructed _Lomito Saltado_.

Made risotto with beer and olive oil. Added chopped cilantro at the end. Very creamy, even without butter or cheese.

Marinated a steak with soy sauce, cumin, olive oil, white vinegar, pepper and parsley.

I sliced red onions and yellow aji pepper, stir fried it with some garlic and the steak marinade. Long enough to kill any nasties. It steamed like it should on a blistering hot wok; added some aji powder

I made shoestring fries and grilled the steak.

Plating :

Peppers into a ring mold, curly shoestring fries on top

Risotto 'round' next to the peppers, sliced steak on top, surrounded by seasoned fresh deseeded tomato slices.

Flavour was great, picture not so much. You'll have to bribe me to post the iphone pic.


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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

jake t buds said:


> Vic, I see a label as your signature with the word "winner" in it sometime in the near future. . .
> 
> Ok. So this is what I did. No pictures because it looked like a picture from a cheesy south american restaurant in Queens NY. You know, the kind have frames above the order window with generic dishes. Happens a lot in chinese restaurants as well.
> 
> I deconstructed _Lomito Saltado_.


Hey, thanks! I would be proud!

Stop with the tease, spoil-sport, and post some pics!! I posted a couple of dumpy pics. You're all plating it up with molds and everything, I wanna see!


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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

$$$$$$$  these are for jake.


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## phatch (Mar 29, 2002)

In all honesty, I feared this month's challenge might be a little slow. But it's been excellent!


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## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

phatch said:


> In all honesty, I feared this month's challenge might be a little slow. But it's been excellent!


Yup, incredible contributions for a cuisine that may not be the most well known to many of us (me first). I've learned a lot, and I have still a lot to learn from this thread.


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## dhmcardoso (Apr 29, 2013)

Ok guys, as yesterday was holyday down here in Rio, my friends and I decided on doing a lunch party. So here are two other Brazilian dishes for you.

First is the "Bolinho de Feijoada" (made by a friend of mine), which is a reconstruction of the classic Feijoada (that I swear I won´t cook ;-P).





  








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Second, is the Rabada. A Cow's tail stew with potatoes and watercress (I guess this is the translation of Agrião. I looked for it online and this was the best I could find).





  








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Served with white rice. Another good option is to replace the potato by yuca or by Polenta (in this case serve the rabada over the polenta, jut like a Ragú).

All served with Caipirinhas and lots of beer, as you can imagine. But unfortunately, we had a problem with the desert (it would be a coconut flan called Manjar de coco)… We blamed the caipirinhas…

Concluding… today is a bad day at work… hehehe

PS.: I love cow tail, and I also make a badass lasanha with it. Just make a ragú of it, take the bones out and build the lasanha (always with extra thin homemade pasta)!!!


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## dhmcardoso (Apr 29, 2013)

Vic Cardenas said:


> Here are some _Anticuchos de Corazon_...
> 
> This is Beef Heart that is marinated in Aji Panca, Garlic, Red Wine Vinegar, Cumin and served kebab style on skewers and traditionally cooked over charcoal. You find this being served on the street quite often in Lima. When I was living there, I would walk down to the corner of our apartments and there was a neighbor lady who every so often, at random times for a few hours a day, would be sitting cross legged in front of a small charcoal grill and just be grilling a few of these up for the foot traffic, even late at night.
> 
> ...


@Vic Cardenas I love hearts... Chicken's or cow's… Chicken heart is a must do on our BBQ, however, never tried to BBQ cow's heart. But I will, soon. It looks NICE!!!!/img/vbsmilies/smilies/thumb.gif


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## genemachine (Sep 26, 2012)

dhmcardoso said:


> PS.: I love cow tail, and I also make a badass lasanha with it. Just make a ragú of it, take the bones out and build the lasanha (always with extra thin homemade pasta)!!!


Oh heck, yeah - oxtail rocks for ragu! So much more flavour than just using some minced meat, and all the gelatin... Love it for chilis, too.


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## dhmcardoso (Apr 29, 2013)

GeneMachine said:


> Oh heck, yeah - oxtail rocks for ragu! So much more flavour than just using some minced meat, and all the gelatin... Love it for chilis, too.


the funniest thing is how chefs are going back to the origins of cooking, rewriting dishes considered for poor people not long ago. Unfortunately, this phenomena is making prices rise really awkwardly. things such oxtail, stomach and tongues are much more expensive today than they were just a couple of years ago. At least here in Brazil. But I think that's just the way it is...

Daniel.


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## teamfat (Nov 5, 2007)

dhmcardoso said:


> the funniest thing is how chefs are going back to the origins of cooking, rewriting dishes considered for poor people not long ago. Unfortunately, this phenomena is making prices rise really awkwardly. things such oxtail, stomach and tongues are much more expensive today than they were just a couple of years ago. At least here in Brazil. But I think that's just the way it is...
> 
> Daniel.


I used to buy cryopack packer cut briskets for about $1.40 a pound. Looked at one yesterday, $4.95 a pound. Yikes!


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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

Ok, sorry, I know this thread has been slow... I've been meaning to knock out a few more dishes before the month is over... I got an unexpected day off work today so I had the chance to quickly bust out some goodies. But, of course my internet is giving me the fits and won't let me upload any pictures without taking FOOOOORRRRRREEEEEEEVVVVAAAARRRR...But, I did find some older pics of the same meal using the same technique on my photobucket account. I will make due with these old pics because stupid internet. I am sooooo disappointed because I took about 25 pictures so I could show you guys the technique I use to assemble these... I guess you guys will just have to make due with a teaser of sorts... I ended up making...

_*Juanes *_

This is a dish that I was exposed to early on when I first traveled to Peru but I really just started making it recently. You do not often find these on Peruvian restaurant menus and some Peruvians, especially Limenians and southern peruvians have never even heard of this dish, in my experience, or it is a very exotic dish to them. You find this as more of a typical dish up north in the jungle areas. Both my mother and father in law are originally from Mayobamba and Rioja in the San Martin region of Peru, the deep jungle, so they cook this every so often.

This dish is chicken cut finely or whole legs that is stir fired in lots of turmeric and seasoned. Rice that is mostly, but partially cooked with garlic, and again lots of turmeric. You take the rice and add egg and lots and lots of oil or lard, mix it up, season. You get a very liquidy rice mixture from all the oil. Add the rice on top of banana leaves, (or Bijao leaves if you can get them) put the chicken on top, wrap the leaves around it and tie it up tight with butchers string. Once they are assembled, you boil the "packs" until the rice and eggs set up, drain, and then open them up and enjoy the goodness inside.

What you should get is a highly fragrant, and extremely flavorful interior when you open up the leaves to reveal the rice and chicken. The eggs should be enough just to bind the rice together without it being omelet like. This is one of my favorites...





  








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## phatch (Mar 29, 2002)

It's like a rice tamale.


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## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

dhmcardoso said:


> Ok guys, as yesterday was holyday down here in Rio, my friends and I decided on doing a lunch party. So here are two other Brazilian dishes for you.
> 
> First is the "Bolinho de Feijoada" (made by a friend of mine), which is a reconstruction of the classic Feijoada (that I swear I won´t cook ;-P).
> 
> ...


Very interesting. Did you make little Feijoada balls and fry them? Like Brazilian arancini! What's the green in the middle of the cut ball? And is that a Cai Perinia in the background? More info please! /img/vbsmilies/smilies/lol.gif


dhmcardoso said:


> Second, is the Rabada. A Cow's tail stew with potatoes and watercress (I guess this is the translation of Agrião. I looked for it online and this was the best I could find).


Very nice. I love oxtail. I'm sure this is very tasty.

Two great contribution, thank you dhmcardoso.

*TO EVERYBODY!*

You have today and tomorrow to get your South American dishes in this thread! LAST CALL! /img/vbsmilies/smilies/smile.gif

And Vic, thanks for posting your Juanes, I like phatch's description, indeed, like rice tamales.


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## dhmcardoso (Apr 29, 2013)

French Fries said:


> Very interesting. Did you make little Feijoada balls and fry them? Like Brazilian arancini! What's the green in the middle of the cut ball? And is that a Cai Perinia in the background? More info please! /img/vbsmilies/smilies/lol.gif
> 
> Very nice. I love oxtail. I'm sure this is very tasty.
> 
> ...


You take some of the beans, smash them with little yucca flour (just enough to be modelled but not to get too dry). Then fill it up with some of the meats ant the Couve (which is the greens), let tem rest in the freezer a little, just to set, and deep fry them… The greens are called Couve and are an important side dish for feijoada. I think it is collard in English.

Yes it is a Caipirinha, which is the best friend of feijoadas. Do you guys know how to make a killer caipirinha? I can make one this weekend just to show you how…


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## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

dhmcardoso said:


> You take some of the beans, smash them with little yucca flour (just enough to be modelled but not to get too dry). Then fill it up with some of the meats ant the Couve (which is the greens), let tem rest in the freezer a little, just to set, and deep fry them… The greens are called Couve and are an important side dish for feijoada. I think it is collard in English.
> 
> Yes it is a Caipirinha, which is the best friend of feijoadas. Do you guys know how to make a killer caipirinha? I can make one this weekend just to show you how…


Why not? Please do! I think I may have a bottle of Cachaça lying around somewhere... thanks for the details on making those bean-balls.


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## dhmcardoso (Apr 29, 2013)

Ok @French Fries, here we go.

As I am currently at work, and I ran out of caçacha (obviously after the feijoada), I will give you guys the tips to make a good Caipirinha and also some variations to make them shine in your events. I will also try to illustrate with some pics I find in the web just to make it easier to understand.

First of all, the Caipirinha uses Cachaça (about 40-45% alcohol and made from sugar cane) and lime. However, there are variations using other liquors (most common is vodka, but sake and rum are also used and called Caipi-vodca, caipi-sakê and I the one with rum I heard Caipirosca and Caipirissima, don't know which is right) and fruits (usually passion fruit, pineapple, tangerine, kiwi, grape, strawberry, or any other acidic juicy fruit, but oranges do not work well).

*So let's start with the traditional Caipirinha:*

Lime - 1 small size (around 50mm diameter) preserving. Small limes are more flavourful and acidic. Also, look for silk shiny and thin skin. Wash the skin well, remember it will be inside your drink.
Cachaça - about 2 shot per serving. Use a good cachaça, I know you are limited in brands but you can still find good stuff worldwide. I've been to SFO 2 months ago and I found Montanhesa and Nega Fulô there. If you can keep the bottle overnight in the freezer is better (don't worry it won't break over 30% alcohol beverages don't freeze).
Sugar - I use 1 table spoon per serving, but it is up to you. You can also use a sweetener, but I think it severely interfere on taste.
Ice - about 5 rocks per serving (don't worry, it will melt a little in the cocktail bottle).
A pinch of salt.
*How to and Tips!*

(TIP) Cut the ends of the lime until the flesh shows up (the white part, under the skin is too bitter, so you want to avoid it as much as you can
(TIP) Cut the lime half in length and cut the white bulb off (as the picture). It is also bitter.





  








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Cut each half on half again in length, than perpendicularly (you will have 8 pieces per lime).
Toss them in a cocktail bottle with the sugar and the salt (TIP - when you press the lime, the sugar helps to abrade the skin and take some of its flavourful oil out of it).
Press the lime - try to press each piece once in average (TIP do not over press it, not only on strength but also in number).
Time for the cachaça and ice - just pour it in.
Shake it pretty hard, dance if you want. On the third one you will be dancing anyway…/img/vbsmilies/smilies/crazy.gif
Enjoy…/img/vbsmilies/smilies/drinkbeer.gif

*As I promised, here are the tips of glory … */img/vbsmilies/smilies/peace.gif

For every 2 shots of cachaça, add one of sprite.
When pressing the lime, put a couple of lemongrass leaves and/or a slice o ginger.
Hope you like it!

Daniel.


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## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

Great Daniel, thank you so much for all the details. I'll try them out soon! I had no idea the drink could be made with so many variations.


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## genemachine (Sep 26, 2012)

Final entry - Pollo picante alla parilla with a Venezuelan Guasacaca, grilled corn and fried plantains:





  








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Nice stuff from everyone - looking forward to the next round!


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## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

Thanks Gene for this last minute entry. You had me google for "Guasacaca", had never heard of it before. Looks quite tasty!


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## genemachine (Sep 26, 2012)

phatch said:


> In all honesty, I feared this month's challenge might be a little slow. But it's been excellent!


I think this was an excellent round! To be honest, the ingredient-focussed challenges got a bit tedious at times. You can only have so much beans in a month without getting tired of it. A regional theme can be way more motivating in the long run. I liked this one - learned a lot.


French Fries said:


> Thanks Gene for this last minute entry. You had me google for "Guasacaca", had never heard of it before. Looks quite tasty!


First time I tried it - the vinegar is definitely a nice touch. Liked it.


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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

GeneMachine said:


> I think this was an excellent round! To be honest, the ingredient-focussed challenges got a bit tedious at times. You can only have so much beans in a month without getting tired of it. A regional theme can be way more motivating in the long run. I liked this one - learned a lot.


Agreed...

What kind of marinade or "picante" goodness is on the chicken? It looks great! Love me some charcoal grilled chicken...


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## genemachine (Sep 26, 2012)

Thanks!

Marinaded with yoghurt, lime, sugar, cumin, chili, smoked paprika. Meanwhile, make a sauce with bacon fat, olive oil, vinegar, garlic, chili, smoked paprika, salt and sugar and use that for basting the chicken while it is grilling over charcoal with a bit of hardwood.


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## pitufina73 (Mar 26, 2012)

I really couldnt make it on time, i will do my best for the May Challenge! im looking forward to it!  great job everyone!!  fabulous dishes!


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## teamfat (Nov 5, 2007)

Grilled chicken is one of my all time favorites.  May have to try that Venezuelan version of guacamole.

Too late to post an entry for this month's challenge, we'll see what May brings us.  An ingredient?  A region?  A technique?

mjb.


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## kaneohegirlinaz (Apr 24, 2011)

FF, who will be our next host then?


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## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

Well this is the end. Thank you so much to all of you who participated, this thread is now full of great information regarding South American cooking. Bravo.

I have to say that while reviewing all the submitted dishes they were a few close runner ups... I salivated in front of ordo's collection of steak pictures: those look like truly delicious!!! Or dhmcardoso's incredible oxtail & potato stew, not to mention @GeneMachine's Columbian grilled steak and potato dish.

Our winner of the month is... Vic Cardenas! Vic, all of the dishes you submitted were inspiring and displayed techniques, colors, ingredients and recipes I was completely unaware of before this month. Thank you! /img/vbsmilies/smilies/smile.gif

I look forward to see what you have in store for us for the month of May!


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## genemachine (Sep 26, 2012)

Very well deserved! Congrats, Vic! That would have been my choice, too!


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## butzy (Jan 8, 2010)

And mine !

Well done Vic, looking forward to the next challenge


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## chrisbelgium (Oct 2, 2010)

Enhorabuena Vic!


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## dhmcardoso (Apr 29, 2013)

Good work @Vic Cardenas.
Your Aji de Galinha will be soon starring in my kitchen! I will send some pics...
Lets see what you'll bring to us!
@French Fries thank you for the great challenge. I logged in virtually every day to see the good stuff everyone shared!

daniel


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## ordo (Mar 19, 2009)

Absolute winner, no doubt about it. Congrats!


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## petalsandcoco (Aug 25, 2009)

Terrific dishes Vic, we learned so much from this valuable thread. A well deserved win, congrats ! :thumb:

A thank you to FF for being such a great host :thumb:


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## vic cardenas (Nov 11, 2012)

Wow, thank you so much for all the kind words and the win! Everybody put out excellent dishes and shared some great ideas. I learned quite a bit too and you can bet I'll be making some of these dishes from the other south american countries I might not have ever learned about otherwise. Looking back there were some amazing dishes!

@ordo got me to push myself with that Locro in the beginning. I'm still salivating over that! I'll take some time here to go over some of the dishes that were particularly striking to me...





  








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ordo's steak. .....





  








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Perfect pizza...





  








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This is one of the best causa presentations I've ever seen...





  








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@GeneMachine Everything looked soooooooo good!





  








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@mise This picture made a huge impression with me...





  








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@JayCobb1045 Who can forget this?! Best snack food ever!





  








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Mmmmm... ceviche!!!





  








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@dhmcardoso Sooo snackin!





  








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Oh, and that caiparinha recipe... THANK YOU! The only time I've had one was when I stayed in Rio. Now, that changes everything!

As you can see, this thread was truly epic!


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## koukouvagia (Apr 3, 2008)

Some incredible dishes here this month.  I can't believe April came and went so quickly without even getting a chance to participate.  Granted I know nothing of south American cuisine except chimichuri but I've enjoyed seeing and learning about all your dishes.  Congrats Vic!


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