Criollo Halloween is here! This is Halloween + Creole Song Day (Aka Día de la Canción Criolla), which also falls on October 31 and is a Peruvian holiday to celebrate our Creole culture. This is why this week’s recipe is dedicated to Carapulcra, a stew of dried potatoes and meat, heavily seasoned with chilies and spices. A trivia fact about Carapulcra, did you know it is the oldest Peruvian dish in history?
Carapulcra de tres carnes |
Because this is a typical and traditional dish it has many recipe versions and secrets. Let’s call this is a basic recipe, for beginners like me. You can also make it with a single type of meat. If you are in the United States or another location outside of Peru, you may find these ingredients in a Latin supermarket.
Ingredients
½ kilo of boneless pork and diced
½ kilo of boneless beef and cubed
½ kilo of boneless chicken breast and diced
15 oz. / 425 gr. dried potatoes
½ cup finely minced onion
2 cloves garlic, peeled
Peruvian yellow pepper, to taste – I used one whole, gutless and boiled twice in water
¼ teaspoon Peruvian panca pepper
2-4 cups of chicken broth – I recommend you make 2 liters
¼ teaspoon of ground cloves
½ cup toasted and ground peanuts – you can ground them quickly in the blender
½ cup of sweet wine – I used dry wine
Salt, ground pepper, and cumin, to taste
Oil
Preparation
Toast the dried potato lightly in a pan without oil. Then soak in water for 30 min.
Cook the pork meat in hot oil. Set it meat aside.Repeat this for the beef and chicken.
Fry the onion and garlic in the same oil. Add the Peruvian yellow and panca peppers. Spice with salt, pepper, and cumin.
Add 2 cups of broth. Then add all the meats. Following that add the drained potatoes.
Cook this for about 20 minutes, adding broth or water if it dries. When the potatoes are cooked add the clove, peanuts, and wine.
Garnish with cilantro and serve with white rice. Traditionally, Carapulcra is also served with cooked yucas.
Serves 8 to 10 people.