& Recipes ‐ February 2011 Featured Program: PINCC

In This Month’s Recipes:

♀ Salvadorian Equee, Customs & ♀ Menu & Recipes from El Salvador

Located on the Paciic coast, El Salvador “has made a rich contribution to Central American . The cuisine of El Salvador is similar to that of its neighbors, with a strong reliance on indigenous like corn, beans, squash and tomatoes.” (http://www.whats4eats.com/central-america/el- salvador-cuisine) Fresh fruit is readily available.

Mayan culture has had a strong inluence on Salvadorian cuisine, along with contributions from the Spanish . is sometimes included.

One of the most noticeable plates in El Salvador is fried plantain, usually accompanied with cream and .

The most important of the day is (almuerzo), which includes and a main of meat, chicken, or seafood with and beans. (hp://recipes.wikia.com/wiki/Salvadorian_Cuisine)

A popular dish in El Salvador is , a hand made corn dish. The corn is stuffed with Salvadoran cheese or other ingredients. Fried beans are common. One of the main forms of vegetarian photo credit: eoediary.org.uk cuisine in El Salvador is ayote, a kind of squash. Our thanks to Carolyn Mayers for providing recipes. Equee & Customs For information and recipes in addition to the ones given below go to: • Salvadoran women oen pat each other hp://recipes.wikia.com/wiki/Salvadorian_Cuisine on the right forearm or shoulder, rather hp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salvadoran_cuisine than shake hands. hp://www.salvaide.ca/salvadoranfood.html Do not give lilies or marigolds, as they are • For loads of information and an excellent selection of used at funerals. typical Salvadoran recipes, including, with 2 • Do not give scissors or knives. They versions of , casamiento and desserts, you can’t do indicate you want to sever the better than going to a Food For Thought from 2 years ago relaonship. at: http://www.diningforwomen.org/sites/default/iles/ • Never arrive on me when invited to a salvadoranenterprisesforwomen3‐08mc.PDF home. Although it may sound strange you should arrive a lile later than invited, i.e. Any questions, comments, suggestions, drop me a line at 30 ‐45 minutes late. [email protected] Now for the NEW recipes! • The host says "buen provecho" ("enjoy" or "have a good meal") as an invitaon to start eang. hp://www.kwintessenal.co.uk/resources/ global‐equee/elsalvador.html Menu Fresco de Melon (Melon Drink) Albóndigas (Salvadorian Meat Fresco de Melon (Melon Drink) Balls) Adapted from e‐book “The Beauty of Salvadoran Cuisine Bistec Encebollado (Steak Smothered with ) Fresh fruit drinks or “frescos” are extremely Salvadoran Drunken Chicken popular throughout and this can be a nice starter to offer guests as they arrive, Sopa de Frijoles (Bean Soup) spiked or not, your choice! Couldn’t be easier! Flan de Leche (Lan Caramel Really any fruit would be good, such as pineapple ) or , but you may have to adjust the amount of water a bit. Enjoy!! Serves about 10 3c fresh melon or cantaloupe, coarsely chopped 6c water, more or less ½ c sugar (or more) or 1/3 to ½ c agave nectar (a cactus syrup sweetener – no dissolving required and highly recommended!) ¼ c fresh lime juice, or more to taste Rum (if desired)

Working in batches if necessary, add the melon and a lile over half of the water to blender and puree the melon thoroughly. Strain through a sieve, if desired, into a very large or two smaller pitchers. (I skip this step – if you do strain it use a strainer that is not too fine or it will take forever to flow through) Add water to make the puree thin enough to pour if necessary. Add ½ c sugar and lime juice and sr unl sugar is dissolved or agave nectar is well distributed. Taste and adjust sugar or lime juice as needed. Serve ice cold. NOTE: Alternately you could dissolve the sugar in hot water and let it cool, and then add that to the puree, thus facilitang its incorporaon.

2 Albóndigas (Salvadorian Meat Balls) Adapted from e‐book “The Beauty of Salvadoran Cuisine”

Somewhere between a soup and “Swedish” meatballs, Salvadoran style! Salvadoran food is not generally spicy – any heat is usually in the condiments, so if you want it spicier, add a lile cayenne to the , not the meatballs. Could be a passed hot appezer served with toothpicks. Serves 6 ‐ 8, 4 if used as a main course

Meatballs 1lb ground beef ¼ c minced scallion ½ c cooked rice 1 egg, beaten 1T flour 1 clove , minced 1 2 bunch of chopped cilantro or mint 1T dried oregano Salt & ground black pepper to taste (about ½ teaspoon)

Sauce 2T olive oil 1 medium , minced 1 carrot, grated 2 cloves garlic, minced 1 heaping teaspoon flour ½ 14 oz. can diced tomatoes or puree 1T paste 3 ‐ 4c low‐sodium beef broth (more or less, depending on how thick you like your sauce) Salt and ground black pepper to taste Cayenne pepper (oponal) to taste

Mix the first set of ingredients together well. Form into 1" balls and set aside. Heat oil in a large deep skillet over medium heat. Sauté onions and carrots unl onions are translucent, about 6 minutes. Add garlic and sauté 1‐2 minutes more. Add flour and cook 1 minute more. Add tomatoes, tomato paste, broth, salt and pepper. Sr very well. Bring to a boil, srring a couple of mes. Reduce heat and cook 5 minutes. Add meatballs. Cook on a medium simmer (the liquid needs to be bubbling a bit) uncovered for 20‐25 minutes, turning the meatballs very carefully with tongs aer about 10 minutes. Serve meatballs in bowls with some of the broth, or as an appezer in a dish with toothpicks.

NOTE: Depending on the size of your pan, you may need to cook the meatballs in two batches. Just keep the first set warm in the oven then add back in at the end of cooking the second batch. Also, if the sauce ends up too thin, you can remove all of the meatballs and keep them warms in the oven. Then cook the sauce over medium high heat for a few minutes to reduce, and add the meatballs back in.

3 Bistec Encebollado (Steak Smothered with Onions) Adapted from hp://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ dweezil‐lisa/steak‐with‐smothered‐caramelized‐onion‐bistec‐ encebollado‐recipe/index.html

This is a beef version of one of the most popular dishes in El Salvador, Pollo (Chicken Encebollado). You can find a recipe for the chicken version here ‐ hp://www.whats4eats.com/ poultry/pollo‐encebollado‐recipe I did not test the chicken version but it look really good and very easy. This beef version is absolutely delicious! A word of cauon, if you use adobo seasoning from the store, it is very salty – do not add any extra salt. Also, some of them have MSG so real the label. We served this over rice, and it would be excellent as filling for torllas as well. Serves 4 NOTE: You need to allow 12 hours or so for the meat to marinate.

2lbs. beef tenderloin or NY strip steak, trimmed of fat and very thinly sliced ¼ c olive oil plus 2 tablespoons 2T minced garlic ¼ t dried oregano leaves 1½ ‐ 2t adobo seasoning (or equal parts garlic powder, onion powder, ground cumin and salt) 2 large onions, halved then sliced 2T unsalted buer 1 t cumin Ground black pepper 1T (rounded) flour 3T cider or rice vinegar 1C low‐sodium chicken stock Your favorite salsa (oponal but recommended)

In a large leakproof plasc bag, combine ¼ cup of olive oil, garlic, oregano, and 1 teaspoon of adobo. Mix ingredients together. Add sliced meat, seal bag and smoosh the meat and marinade around to distribute evenly. Refrigerate for about 12 hours. Remove from refrigerator about an hour before proceeding. Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil plus buer over medium heat in a large skillet. Add the onions and sauté, srring regularly, unl onions are so and golden, about 10 minutes. Add flour, cumin and a good grind of black pepper, sr in well and cook 1 minute. Add vinegar, chicken stock and ¼ teaspoon of adobo, sr well and simmer for 3 minutes. Reduce heat to very low and keep warm. Only add more adodo, if needed, aer it has a few minutes to blend. Heat a second large skillet over medium‐high heat. Add meat and any marinade that clings to it to the pan once it is hot. Quickly sr fry the meat, for about 3 minutes or so, srring the enre me. To serve, place the meat and onion mixture on a plaer in alternang layers. Spoon any extra broth over the top and serve as soon as possible, preferably with salsa on the side.

Salvadoran Drunken Chicken

4 Adapted from hp://www.familyoven.com/recipe/salvadoran‐drunken‐chicken‐with‐pupusitas‐de‐pollo/ 264548

The original recipes suggested serving this with mini‐pupusas. We served it over rice.

Another chili‐like concocon, based on the tradional Mexican recipe for Drunken Chicken. No alcohol in the recipe so I do not really get why it is “Drunken”. Maybe if you find out you could e‐mail me at [email protected]. In any case, a very, very good recipe.

Serves 4 ‐ 6

2T olive oil 4 oz. fully cooked sausage linksdiced, divided 1 medium onion, chopped, divided 1 ½ lbs. boneless, skinless chicken thighs ½ ‐ 1t adobo seasoning 2 – 3c low‐sodium chicken broth 3 cloves garlic, minced ½ t (rounded) cumin ½ t oregano 1T (heaping) flour ½ 14 oz. can chopped tomatoes 1 15 oz. can small pink beans or kidney beans, drained Ground black pepper to taste (you will probably not need more salt) Cayenne to taste (oponal)

Heat oil in a large heavy pot over medium‐high heat. Add half of chorizo and half of onion. Saute 5 minutes. Add chicken and sauté 5 minutes. Add ½ cup chicken broth and cook, srring, unl almost evaporated, about 8 minutes or so.

Remove chicken from pan and, when cooled, cut into 1 to 2 inch pieces. Set aside. If there is sll liquid in the pan, cook it unl it is almost gone.

Reduce heat to medium. Add other half of onion and chorizo and cook, srring occasionally, for 5 minutes. Sr in garlic, oregano, cumin and flour. Cook for 1 minute. Return chicken to pot, and add beans, tomatoes, balance of broth, a generous few grinds of black pepper and a pinch of cayenne if using. Sr well and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and cook, over medium‐low heat parally covered, srring periodically, for about 20 minutes. Serve hot with pupusas, torllas or over rice.

5 Sopa de Frijoles (Bean Soup) Adapted from hp://www.vvsupremo.com/recipes/ details.aspx?id=71

A perfect, simple winter soup! Rich and delicious and pink ( for Valenne’s Day), even those of you out there who don’t think you like beans will love this! Serves 4 – 6

8 oz. bacon, cooked unl crisp and broken into small pieces, divided 2T oil or bacon fat or a combinaon 1 large onion, diced 3 large cloves garlic, minced 1 small sweet red pepper OR jalapeno, or both, seeded and diced – your choice 2‐15 oz. cans red kidney beans, drained 2c low‐sodium beef broth ½ t ground black pepper ¾ c sour cream, preferably full‐fat Salt to taste Queso Fresco or fets cheese, crumbled Cilantro or parsley, minced

Heat oil in a large heavy pot over medium heat. Add onion and cook 10 minutes, srring occasionally. Add garlic and peppers and cook another 6 minutes, srring. Place beans, broth, half of bacon and black pepper in blender and puree. Add puree to pot, sr well and reduce heat. Simmer over low heat for 20 minutes. Add the rest of the bacon bits and the sour cream and sr well. Heat through. Add salt to taste if needed. Serve hot in soup bowls with a sprinkling of queso fresco or feta cheese and some parsley or cilantro.

Flan de Leche (Lan Caramel Custard) Adapted from hp://www.whats4eats.com/desserts/flan‐de‐leche‐ recipe Note: This recipe is in addion to Carolyn’s recipes. Flan, a caramel custard, is a popular dessert in Central America and other Lan American countries. Flan is made from just a few ingredients, including eggs, milk, and sugar. Depending on the flan recipe, addional flavorings like chocolate, coffee and might be added. The final product is a custard with a caramel top, baked unl so, but solid. Originally from the border area of France and Spain, this simple yet elegant dessert spread in popularity.

Makes 6 servings.

6 Sugar ‐‐ 1 cup Water ‐‐ 1/4 cup Eggs, beaten ‐‐ 4 Sweetened, condensed milk ‐‐ 1 (14‐ounce) can Whole milk or water ‐‐ 2 cups ‐‐ 1/2 teaspoon Sugar ‐‐ 1/2 cup

Preheat oven to 350°F. Place the 1 cup sugar and water in a heavy‐boomed saucepan and sr to dissolve the sugar. Place over medium heat and boil the sugar, without srring, unl it just starts to turn a honey brown, around 10‐15 minutes. Remove the caramelized sugar from heat and pour into a 9‐inch cake pan or in equal amounts into each of 6 individual ramekins, swirling to coat the boom. You may not need all the sugar. Place the cake pan or ramekins in a baking pan large enough to hold them without touching. In a large bowl, beat together the eggs, condensed milk, whole milk or water, vanilla and 1/2 cup sugar unl smooth. Pour into the cake pan or into each of the ramekins. Fill the baking pan with enough warm water to come about 2/3 of the way up sides of the containers. Place in the oven and cook unl a knife inserted into the center of the custard comes out clean, anywhere from 45 minutes to over an hour. Do not overcook your flan or it may curdle. Remove the custard(s) from the water bath and chill well. Run a knife around the edges of the custard, invert over a serving dish and serve.

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