My patience was tested. It all started with malware, but the story about why I didn’t post on Monday will have to wait for another post. Today I’m just happy to share this recipe for my first food preparation with chicken and vegetables for five days. Obviously I could make it for more days, but can we go little by little? Español aquí.
As I shared with you, or maybe I dreamt that I did, I started working again in April and from the first day I knew that lunch would be an issue. I’m quite used to living (mostly) without rice, eating lots of vegetables. But this is not normal food in Lima. I also don’t have time to make a wholesome meal every day. Solution, make lunch in advance. I promise you it keeps well in the refrigerator. If you do not mind eating the same thing five days in a row, follow my lead.
Ingredients 1 ½ kilo of boneless chicken breast 3 large carrots, peeled and diced Zucchini or eggplant, peeled and diced Salt and pepper Olive oil
Preparation Clean and cut the chicken into medium pieces.
Salt and pepper.
Cook in water over low heat.
Set aside.
Cook the vegetables in water or steam.
Set aside.
Add to containers and let it cool.
Freeze what you will eat in two days or more, and bring down to the refrigerator what you will eat the next day to thaw.
This week’s post is dedicated to this favorite Peruvian side. As my fellow countrymen and countrywomen know, white rice is the companion par excellence for Peruvian dishes such as Sauteed beef, Seco Stew and more. In fact, several of the recipes I’ve shared this year recommend serving “with rice”. It’s something like the fish is to the water as the Peruvian is to the rice. So, if you don’t know how to make rice, this is for you. Español aquí.
The history of rice in Peru begins in China, about nine thousand years ago. From there it traveled to Spain with the Arab migration, from where it was introduced to the new continent. Although the type of rice which is common in Peru is short grain, there are other varieties of long and medium rice. I emphasize this because during a visit to Texas I spent 15 minutes looking for rice. In the end, I learned about basmati rice, which is a long grain rice that can be prepared with Peruvian seasoning.
I recommend not helping yourself different types of carbohydrates in on plate as is customary here when served generously. Its best to choose one. Personally, I replace rice with fibrous carbohydrates like cooked vegetables such as broccoli. Or, when I do have it I like to measure half a cup to know how much I’m eating.
For the recipe we will make the rice on stovetop and with a rice cooker. I used a cup of rice with 1 ½ cup of water. If you make more rice, always use the same amount of water as rice + ½ cup of water. For example, for 3 cups rice, 3 ½ cup water. Some people rinse the rice with water before cooking. It’s a preference associated with washing off starch and other elements.
1. Stovetop
Ingredients 1 cup of rice 1 ½ cup of water 2 garlic cloves finely chopped Salt to taste Oil to taste
Preparation Heat a greased pot. Brown the garlic and salt.
Pour in the water. Throw in the rice.
Cook over low heat for 12 to 15 minutes. Watch over so that the rice doesn’t burn.
2. Rice pot
Ingredients 1 cup of rice 1 ½ cup of water 2 garlic cloves finely chopped Salt to taste Oil to taste
Preparation Grease the pot. Introduce the garlic and salt.
Add the rice. Incorporate water. I realized that I added water and rice in different order between the stovetop and rice pot preparations, but don’t worry about the order because it doesn’t matter.
Cover the pot and select the cook option. The rice will be ready when it changes from the cook option automatically. In my case it took about 20 minutes.
Thank you for reading. I hope you liked this post!
Hiya! This week’s post joins the Cookpad Peru # PortiPerú challenge to share recipes for Peruvian flooding victims that use non-perishable ingredients and don’t call for a lot of water. We propose this easy to make recipe for tuna fritters. Español aquí.
Fritters are a very simple dish that isn’t exclusive to Peruvian food. There are numerous other variations that originate in Asia and Europe, some of them are salty and others are sweet. What I like most about this recipe is that you can change the tuna filling for any one you prefer.
Making fritters brings back very special memories for me. Its flavor makes me remember being seven years old and spending the afternoon with my grandmother. She made fritters with lettuce and tomato that smelled amazing. I hope you like it!
Ingredients 1 can (170 grs with water & 120 grs when drained) of tuna 4 eggs 1 medium onion minced and browned in oil 3 tablespoons of flour Salt and pepper to taste Oil
Preparation Add the egg whites to a bowl. Beat the whites until stiff.
Join in the yolks one by one and mix them in.
Add salt and pepper. Mix in the onion and flour.
Add the drained tuna and mix in.
Heat an oiled pan.
Add the batter with the help of a spoon.
Flip over to cook on the other side.
Repeat.
Serve with white rice, spaghetti or cooked greens.
Solidarity was palpable during this past week of hard trials for Peruvians. So many good deeds made me feel very proud to be Peruvian. Pride reaffirms this blog’s commitment to share Peruvian food with the world – I hope – in the simplest of ways and with lots of photos! Español aquí.
That is why this week I am very happy to share this week’s Peruvian dish with you: Peruvian style cheese, corn and flava bean salad otherwise known as Solterito. For those who aren’t familiar with it, solterito is a cold dish from Arequipa. Arequipa is in both a southern region of Peru and the main city. The food from here absolutely delicious.
But coming back to the solterito, it’s traditional recipe includes flava or broad beans, peruvian corn, onions, tomato, rocoto pepper, cheese, potatoes, olives and parsley. Other variations depend on the region where you prepare. If you are not in Peru, look for andean corn and rocoto peppers in latin markets. The rocoto pepper has black hot hot seeds inside. For the fresh cheese we talked about in the our pesto recipe you can also look in latin markets or replace with feta.
Today’s recipe is based on my Nicolini recipe book, and does not include olives, although you can surely add them. What I love about this recipe is that you can eat as you want. While it is usually served as an entrée, you could add grilled meat or chicken and serve it as a hearty salad.
In Peru it is usually served with cooked potatoes, although flava beans have the same amount of carbohydrates as the potatoes. Doing that is double your share. If you are looking for a healthy option, I recommend accompanying it with fresh vegetables. I hope you like it!
Ingredients 1 cup of peeled flava beans – Before cooking the beans, remove them from this pod and the first sachet that covers them. I did it this very carefully with a knife.
1 cup of Andean corn 1 finely chopped red onion 250 grs of white cheese 2 tablespoons of finely chopped, seedless and veinless, rocoto pepper or Peruvian peppers 1 tablespoon oil 1 tablespoon white vinegar Juice from 2 peruvian lemons Finely chopped parsley leaves Salt and ground pepper to taste
Preparation Cook the beans in water or steam them.
They cook in about five minutes. Repeat with the corn.
Set both aside.
Bring the onion and pepper together in a bowl. Add the beans and the corn.
Add the cheese. Season with oil, vinegar, lemon juice, salt and pepper.
Add the parsley leaves. Let it sit for at least five minutes so that the peppers will cook in the lemon juice.
Serve as starter as main course. It is customary to accompany with potatoes boiled in dice. Some people enjoy it with olives.
Hello. I am really excited to share today’s recipe with you for one of my favorite Peruvian finger foods. I am referring to Peruvian style wonton (or wanton) cheese fingers or what we call “tequeños”. Personally I love them, in fact I have no self control when they are close to me. I also have a small surprise for you in the recipe video. I am very nervous about it and I really hope you like the recipe. Español aquí.
A funny thing about these cheesy treats is that although they are very popular throughout Latin America, they originate from Venezuela. Apparently they were invented in Los Teques, at the vacation home of the affluent families from Caracas. For us is a very common finger food you can have while entertaining guests, although they are also enjoyed as entrees. Either way you have them, they are delicious!
Ingredients 200 grs. of fresh white cow cheese or any other cheese that melts 250 grs. of wonton pasta – I used a pack of 500 grs.of wanton pasta Oil 01 scrambled egg
Preparation Cut the cheese into slices. Place the cheese in the center of a wonton.
Moisten the edges with the egg. Roll it up. It is recommended not to close the tips so that it cooks better.
Repeat.
Heat a pan with oil. Place in the pan.
Let it brown and flip over.
Repeat.
Serve with a sauce. It goes very well with guacamole or Peruvian Huancaina sauce.
