Buena noches! Welcome to Ecuador, and particularly the Sierra or Highlands region of that country. Tonight's recipes come from the Egas branch of the Brooks family (my mom's family). My Aunt Angela and Uncle Diego lived in Ecuador for many years, and I am very thankful to them for sharing these with me for this tour stop.
Aunt Angela said that these dishes are traditional to the Ecuador Andis, and it's food that they still make in their home back here in the US. I've been fortunate enough to try Uncle Diego's cooking, and to say that I have a lot to learn when it comes to this kind of cuisine is a grand understatement. Still, I was excited to try my hand at these authentic recipes.
Fritada
1 pork loin, chopped into cubes
1 teaspoon cumin
5 cloves minced carlic
1 onion, chopped into large pieces
1 shallot, chopped into large pieces
3 cups of water
1 bottle of beer
Salt and pepper to taste
To start, Elizabeth was a huge help and chopped the pork loin into cubes. She seasoned them with the cumin, minced garlic, and salt and pepper, and let it rest for an hour.
I added the onion, shallots, and seasoned pork to a large skillet. I then added the water, and brought it to a boil. Once the water had mostly boiled off, I added the bottle of beer and let it reduce.
Agrio
1/2 tomato, finely diced
1/2 shallot, finely diced
2 tablespoons, finely chopped green onions
1 red hot chili pepper, seeded and chopped
1 cup orange juice
Juice of 2 limes
1 tablespoon chopped cilantro
1/2 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon olive oil
This is a sauce that I used for the pork. I mixed all of the ingredients together in a large bowl. I let it set in the refrigerator while everything else cook.
Llapingachos
3 large russet potatoes, peeled and chopped into chunks
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1 teaspoons ground achiote
1 cup mozzarella cheese
Salt and pepper to taste
First, I boiled the potatoes until they were soft. While this was going on, I heated the oil over medium heat and added the onions and achiote. I cooked until the onions until they were soft, about 5 minutes.
I then mashed the potatoes and mixed in the onions (this onion spice mix is called a refrito). I added salt and pepper to taste. I let the potato mix rest at room temperature while the pork loin cooked.
Next, I made golf ball sized balls of the potato dough. I used my thumb to make a hole in them, and I filled that hole with cheese. I formed the balls into thick patties.
I used the same pan that I had made the onion refrito in, and fried the patties until they were browned on either side.
The result...
...turned out pretty well! Both Elizabeth and I really liked the sauce for the pork loin. It was not too spicy, with just enough pepper where every once in awhile we'd both get a bite that had more kick. It was very flavorful, and I can see it being used for a variety of different dishes.
The pork was well seasoned, but I think I may have done it wrong. I think that it would have been better if I had browned the pork and skipped the part about boiling the water down. That might just be a taste preference on our part. It was still tasty, but I think I've found a way to change it up for the next time around.
The llapingachos were potato patties with onions and spices stuffed with cheese. How could you go wrong with that? They were fantastic and I'll have to make this recipe again.
Many thanks again to Aunt Angela for helping us on this stop on our trip around the food world. As always, the sharing of recipes has been the most fun part of this experience thus far, and I hope to get to try more Ecuadorian cuisine in the future!
Aunt Angela said that these dishes are traditional to the Ecuador Andis, and it's food that they still make in their home back here in the US. I've been fortunate enough to try Uncle Diego's cooking, and to say that I have a lot to learn when it comes to this kind of cuisine is a grand understatement. Still, I was excited to try my hand at these authentic recipes.
Fritada
1 pork loin, chopped into cubes
1 teaspoon cumin
5 cloves minced carlic
1 onion, chopped into large pieces
1 shallot, chopped into large pieces
3 cups of water
1 bottle of beer
Salt and pepper to taste
To start, Elizabeth was a huge help and chopped the pork loin into cubes. She seasoned them with the cumin, minced garlic, and salt and pepper, and let it rest for an hour.
I added the onion, shallots, and seasoned pork to a large skillet. I then added the water, and brought it to a boil. Once the water had mostly boiled off, I added the bottle of beer and let it reduce.
Agrio
1/2 tomato, finely diced
1/2 shallot, finely diced
2 tablespoons, finely chopped green onions
1 red hot chili pepper, seeded and chopped
1 cup orange juice
Juice of 2 limes
1 tablespoon chopped cilantro
1/2 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon olive oil
This is a sauce that I used for the pork. I mixed all of the ingredients together in a large bowl. I let it set in the refrigerator while everything else cook.
Llapingachos
3 large russet potatoes, peeled and chopped into chunks
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1 teaspoons ground achiote
1 cup mozzarella cheese
Salt and pepper to taste
First, I boiled the potatoes until they were soft. While this was going on, I heated the oil over medium heat and added the onions and achiote. I cooked until the onions until they were soft, about 5 minutes.
I then mashed the potatoes and mixed in the onions (this onion spice mix is called a refrito). I added salt and pepper to taste. I let the potato mix rest at room temperature while the pork loin cooked.
Next, I made golf ball sized balls of the potato dough. I used my thumb to make a hole in them, and I filled that hole with cheese. I formed the balls into thick patties.
I used the same pan that I had made the onion refrito in, and fried the patties until they were browned on either side.
The result...
...turned out pretty well! Both Elizabeth and I really liked the sauce for the pork loin. It was not too spicy, with just enough pepper where every once in awhile we'd both get a bite that had more kick. It was very flavorful, and I can see it being used for a variety of different dishes.
The pork was well seasoned, but I think I may have done it wrong. I think that it would have been better if I had browned the pork and skipped the part about boiling the water down. That might just be a taste preference on our part. It was still tasty, but I think I've found a way to change it up for the next time around.
The llapingachos were potato patties with onions and spices stuffed with cheese. How could you go wrong with that? They were fantastic and I'll have to make this recipe again.
Many thanks again to Aunt Angela for helping us on this stop on our trip around the food world. As always, the sharing of recipes has been the most fun part of this experience thus far, and I hope to get to try more Ecuadorian cuisine in the future!
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