Hello all! I hope you had a very nice week. Last week I was still in New York. Right now I’m feeling a little guilty because I did not go to the gym all week, although I did some exercise from home using elastic bands. No need to film that.

Tacu tacu

For my non-Peruvian friend, tacu tacu is a fried mixture of rice and legumes, commonly beans although it can also be lima beans or others. They originate from our Afro-Peruvian ancestors, and the name comes from the Quechua word “Tikuy”, meaning “to mix one thing with another”. This, according to the Dictionary of traditional Peruvian cuisine.

But we are not the only ones who like to mix up our rice with beans. There are similar dishes all over the world, like Nicaragua and Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, and Cuba, among others.

Ingredients
2 cups of cooked beans or other legumes – here is a recipe for Peruvian Style Beans
2 cups cooked rice
½ cup finely chopped onion
4 cloves garlic
1 tablespoon of Peruvian pepper (optional) – this can be yellow or pancha chili
Oil

Preparation
Bring the beans and rice together in a bowl. Let sit.

The tacu tacu can be decorated with chopped cilantro leaves, and served with a meat and vegetables. It goes very well with Peruvian Sauteed Chicken or Beef, fried steak, or seco stew.

Tacu tacu con pollo saltado

Serves 2-3 people.

How was your week? I hope it was excellent. Mine was great, with a typical Thanksgiving dinner in New York and a visit to my family in New Jersey. So much food inspired me to think of more food, and to bring you this easy to make recipe for preparing Peruvian Style Beans.

Peruvian style beans

Beans are pretty much a meal on their own, as they contain carbohydrates, proteins, vitamins, minerals, and fiber. If you want to avoid the gassy side effects, don’t forget to soak them and discarding the water in which they were soaked, as it absorbs the properties that causes them.

Another bonus point for beans is that it keeps well in the refrigerator, where it can be stored for up to five days. It also tastes better when it is reheated and refried with rice for a Peruvian Tacu Tacu dish (recipe coming soon).

Ingredientes
2 cups of canary beans
1 red onion – used as ½ whole and ½ finely chopped or liquefied
100 grs. Pork (optional) – can be a slice of bacon
4 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
Oil
Salt to taste

Preparation
Soak the beans in abundant water since the night before. The next day, drain it.

Cook in abundant water

I recommend adding ½ onion (trick # 01) and a piece of pork (trick # 02) while you cook to give it a rich flavor. The onion will dissolve and you can remove the pork after the beans are cooked.

Brown the minced onion and garlic in an oiled pot. Add the beans and cook on them low heat for about 30 minutes, adding small amounts of water to avoid drying.

Garnish with cilantro, and serve with white rice

Serves 4 people.

In Peru, pesto is traditionally prepared with a soft unaged white cheese known as “queso fresco”. My Peruvian friends would say, “I know what queso fresco is Alessandra”. But I’m really stuck on this ingredient because it’s hard for me to find right now that I’m abroad.

Tallarines verdes de queso parmesano

A trivia fact I didn’t know about this green sauce known as “pesto” is that it originates in the Genoa city in Italy, and that traditionally it is made with Parmesan cheese! Among other ingredients, of course. Did you know that the term pesto originates from the Genovese verb “pestâ”, which means to crush or ground? These were times without blenders, when the sauce was prepared in a mortar.

Oh! This sauce keeps well in the refrigerator, preferably if you freeze it after blending it and before cooking it. A useful tip I found online is to freeze the sauce in ice trays so you can access it more easily when needed.

Ingredients
Sauce
2 cups spinach leaves – packed
⅔ cup basil leaves – packed
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
½ cup toasted walnuts – can be toasted lightly in a pan without oil before use
½ cup olive oil
½ water, approx.
4 cloves garlic, peeled
Salt and pepper to taste

Pasta
1 lb. / 500 g. pasta – noodles, ravioli, or other.
Bay leaf, oil, and salt to taste – optional

Preparation
Sauce
In a blender, mix everything, helping yourself with the oil and water to achieve a medium consistency. Not too stiff and not too watery.

Pasta
In a large saucepan, bring water, with a little oil, one bay leaf and salt, to a boil. When the water boils add the pasta and cook for 8 minutes, approx.

Colar los fideos y mezclar con la salsa

Serve the pasta mixed with the pesto, and accompany with meat and cooked vegetables. In Peru it is common to use linguini pasta, and serve with a fried beef steak and cooked potatoes slices that have been lightly browned in a pan. We love our carbs.

Serves 4-5 people.