Mar 8 2015

Menudito

Whenever I was helping my mom in the kitchen making a dish that contained ground beef, she would tell me, “Vas a picar bien menudito la carne.” She never bought ground beef, so we would have to make it in our own way. She said, ‘menudito,’ I knew exactly what she meant: small pieces, really small pieces. I would slice the meat thinly with the knife and then pound the meat with the stone on the batan (grinding stone) and then cut the pounded meat by hand. This process adds amazing flavor to the food.

Serves 8

Ingredients

1 lb pork (boneless prime roast)

1 lb chicken breast

1/2 lb beef ( NY sirloin steak)

2 medium size onions minced really well

3 garlic cloves minced really well

2 large tomatoes

1/2 cup aji rojo (spicy red pepper sauce) (or 1 tbsp chilli powder and 2 tbsp paprika)

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp cumin

3 tbsp olive oil

1/2 cup chopped parsley

2 tsp oregano

6 cups chicken broth (any broth)

1 can hominy (1 lb can)

For the side:

slices of baguette

slices of lemon

slices of jalapeno (or locoto)

Preparation:

Using the large sized holes of a grader. Grade the 2 onions. We want them really in small pieces but not a paste.

Chop the parsley

Use a garlic press for the garlic cloves.

Boil water and add the tomatoes. Cook them for 2 min, no more than that. The skin will get loose.

Cut the meat in tiny pieces by hand. This takes a little bit of time but it’s worth it and gives the menudito more body.

Heat the oil in large pot and add the onion and garlic. Cook for about 5 min and then add the aji rojo (spicy red pepper sauce).

Cook for another 5 min and add the cumin, parsley and oregano. Mix really well.

Add the pork and meat and salt. Cook for about 10 min or until the mix starts drying.

Add the 2 tomatoes that are peeled. When you add them crush them in your hand so it’s more like a puree. Cook for another 5 min.

Add the chicken and cook until the chicken changes color to a dark white. At this point add the 6 cups of broth.

Let it simmer for 20 min.

Add the hominy and let it boiled until the soup starts getting thick. (10 min). I used la Preferida is a 1 lb can if you have Goya used 2 cans.

Serve hot with bread, green onion and hot pepper on the side and if you like, squeeze a wedge of lemon on top.

Mar 8 2015

Empanada Picantita (Queso,Cilantro, Locoto)

Empanada Picantita (Queso,Cilantro,Locoto)

So I love-love locoto and since I moved to Maine I have been trying to grow them here without success. Jalapeno does a good job as a replacement but it’s not as great as locoto. You can cut out the spicy pepper from the recipe and the empanada is still going to taste amazing!

Serves 20 empanadas

Dough

Ingredients

3 cups flour

1/2 cup shortening

1/4 tsp salt

1 egg yolk

1 cup warm milk (or warm water)

Preparation:

In a food processor mix the flour with the salt.

Add the shortening and pulse until the flour looks like sand.

Add the egg yolk and slowly add the milk until the dough is soft. Put the dough on the table and work with your hands until dough is soft but not wet. Divide the dough in 5 portion and wrap them in plastic. Set them aside for 1 hour.

Filling

Ingredients

1 cup diced red onion (small)

1 cup finely chopped cilantro

3 cups grated monterrey jack cheese ( if you can get queso fresco used that)

3 tbsp finely chopped jalapenos without seeds ( In Bolivia I would use a locoto)

2 eggs

Preparation

Mixed all the chopped ingredients together with the cheese. Cover and reserve

Just before preparing the empanadas add one egg and mixed.

Divide each ball of dough in 4 pieces for a total of 20 little balls.

Cover them with plastic and let it rest for 5 min.

Preheat the oven to 400 F

Work one empanada at a time.

Roll one ball at a time into a flat round oval.

Put the filling on one far side of the rolled dough, around 1 tbsp.

Close the empanada by folding the empty half over the filling.

Place the empanadas on a baking sheet that is covered with parchment paper.

Whisk the other egg and, using a brush, paint each empanada with the whisked egg. Make sure you brush the entire empanada.

For decoration: Put on top of each empanada a cilantro leaf.

Bake them for 20 min or until well brown.

Serve warm by itself or if you want you can add the chimichurri sauce.

Mar 8 2015

Empanada Con Relleno De Quinoa

My husband inspired me to make this empanada. He prefers not to eat meat and he really likes quinoa, so I made this for him. I like them with chimichurri sauce or peanut sauce on it. The quinoa grains on top add a crispiness to the empanadas.

Serves 20 empanadas

Dough

Ingredients

3 cups flour

1/2 cup shortening

1/4 tsp salt

1 egg yolk

1 cup warm milk ( or warm water)

Preparation:

In a food processor mix the flour with the salt.

Add the shortening and pulse until the flour looks like sand.

Filling

Ingredients

1 1/2 cup cooked quinoa

1 cup diced onion (small)

1 cup chopped green onion

2 cups grated monterrey jack cheese ( if you can get queso fresco used that)

2 tbsp olive oil

1/4 tsp cumin

1 tbsp paprika

1 tsp garlic

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (optional if you like a little bit spicy)

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 cup broth or water

Preparation

Heat the olive oil on a pan. Add the onion and garlic. Cook them for 5 min.

Add the paprika, cumin, salt and oregano. Cook for another 3 min.

Add the broth and cook until onions are soft. Let it cool.

Add the cooked quinoa green onions and the cheese. Set aside

Divide each ball of dough in 4 pieces for a total of 20 little balls.

Cover them with plastic and let it rest for 5 min.

Preheat the oven to 400 F

Work one empanada at a time.

Roll one ball at a time into a flat round oval.

Put the filling on one far side of the rolled dough, around 1 tbsp.

Close the empanada by folding the empty half over the filling.

Place the empanadas on a baking sheet that is covered with parchment paper.

Whisk the other egg and, using a brush, paint each empanada with the whisked egg. Make sure you brush the entire empanada.

For decoration:Sprinkle some quinoa grains on top of each empanada.

Bake them for 20 min or until well brown.

Serve warm by itself or if you want you can add the chimichurri sauce or peanut sauce.

Feb 2 2014

Aji de habas secas ( Spice dried fava beans)

Aji de habas secas ( Spiced dried fava beans)

Every time I went to visit my Dad’s side family in Colomi, I was shocked by the beauty and simplicity of everything. They grow potatoes and fava beans and we would go to visit them at harvest time. The smell of freshly dug potatoes and the crunchiness and tenderness of a fresh raw fava beans made those trips the best experiences of my childhood. They would dry some of the best fava beans and potatoes for seed and the other ones would be cooked. This is a recipe with dried fava beans, it goes so well with tiny little potatoes. Enjoy it.

Serves 4

Ingredients:

2 cups dry fava beans

5 medium yellow potatoes (10 small yellow potatoes)

1/2 lb round steak

2 cups chicken broth

1 onion

1 tomato

2 tbsp vegetable oil

3 tbsp paste of red spicy pepper

1 tsp oregano

1/4 tsp pepper

1/4 tsp cumin

1 garlic clove

1/2 tsp sugar

2 tbsp chopped parsley

1 small bunch of scallion

Preparation:

A night before measure the dry fava beans into a pot. Add boiling water and cook for a minute and drain the water. Cover with cold water and let it rest overnight.

They will double the size and the skin should be easy to peel. Peel coverings and set aside

Put the ingredients together for the sauce

Cut the meat by hand in thin small sliced pieces.

Peel the potatoes and cut them in 3 pieces or keep them in a piece if they are the small.

Peel and dice the onion and dice the tomatoes into small pieces.

Heat 2 tbsp oil and add the red spicy paste, garlic and cumin. Cook for 2 min and add the onion, cook for 5 min until onion is clear.

Add the meat and mix. Cook for another min and add the tomatoes

Cook for about 3 min until meat is tender, add the oregano, salt, sugar, pepper and parsley.

Mix and add the fava beans.

Add the chicken broth and the potatoes and mix. Cover the pot and cook until potatoes are cooked. It’s so much better if you use small potatoes, they will cook faster and they are going to be bite sized.

If it dries during this process, add more chicken broth or hot water.

Serve warm with rice or just by itself. Top with scallions or green onion that are cut and washed. Enjoy!

Feb 1 2014

Pique a lo Macho (Pique Macho)

Pique a lo Macho (Pique Macho)

If you say the word Pique Macho in Bolivia everyone will tell you what is it and that the best pique macho is from Cochabamba (of course I’m being biased). And everyone might also have an amazing history related to this dish. The first day that my husband I met we went with a couple of friends to La Casa del Gordo, a restaurant very well know for its pique macho. After trying to convincing him that one dish would be enough for the 4 of us we ordered two. While we were playing cacho waiting for our food I bet Dave that there was no way we would finish the dish. When the plates arrived I remember seeing the surprised face of Dave admiring the mountains of food. We did our best and he won the bet because after 1 hour of digging and digging we finished. The amount of meat, potatoes and locotos with their juices make this plate incredible and also made me look at this boy that I just met differently there are not to many non-bolivians that will finish and eat and entire pique macho. Enjoy it!

Serves 4

Ingredients:

2 lb top round first cut steak (any soft lean beef will do great)

8 large potatoes

4 uncured beef hot dogs (you can use pork hot dog)

4 eggs

1 large tomato

1 small red onion

1 small green pepper (1/2 large pepper)

1 locoto or jalapeno (optional)

1/2 cup beer (I used Corona for this recipe but any light beer will work)

1 tsp white vinegar (for meat)

1 tbsp cider vinegar (for the salad)

1 tbsp vegetable oil (for the salad)

2 tbsp vegetable oil

3 cup vegetable oil to fry potatoes

1 tsp salt

1 tsp ground black pepper

1/8 tsp cumin (optional)

1 garlic clove peeled and mashed (optional)

On the side

Llajua

4 slices of baguette

Preparation:

Put together the ingredients

Peel the potatoes and cut in large wedges.

Peel the onion and slice in the juliana style (think strips), do the same with pepper and tomato

Slice the hot dog in thin slices. Slice the hot dog giving it an edge, we don’t want them round.

Clean the meat and cut in cubes of 2 cm each side this is very important we don’t want the pieces too small or too big we want them bite size.

Mix the vegetables together and set aside. Once all the ingredients are ready we start cooking.

Start by frying the potatoes. You might end up cooking two batches, since we want them to cook slowly so they are crispy outside but slightly soft inside. This will help the potatoes to absorb the juices.

While cooking the potatoes, hard boil the eggs and peel them and cut them in wedges or round shapes. I prefer wedges.

When the potatoes are half cooked start cooking the meat.

Heat 2 tbsp oil in a skillet and when the oil is hot add the meat. We want to seal the edges and brown them but not burn them. This takes about 5 min

Once they are brown add half of the salt and pepper. If you want, add the cumin and garlic, I like the flavor that this adds to the meat. Reduce the heat to medium high

By this point the potatoes should be cooked and in the hot oil we cook the hot dogs. This step is important. We need to cook the hot dogs for about about one minute so they are nicely browned on the edges and crispy. Take to a paper towel.

Add to the meat 1 tsp white vinegar and 1/2 cup beer and the hot dogs. If you are cooking in an electric stove you can turn off. If you are cooking in gas cook for about 1 min. We don’t want to be dry, we just want the alcohol of the beer to be reduced.

Mix the vegetables with 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar and 1 tbs vegetable oil salt and pepper.

Serve immediately after the meat is cooked it is important to serve hot.

Put one layer of potatoes, add the mix of meat and hot dog and add 4 tbsp of the juices from the pan. Top with the salad and decorate with the hard-boiled egg.

I like it as simple as this you can put mayonnaise and ketchup on top, I like putting this on the table so it’s optional for people to add. The best way to eat it is with a nice llajua and pieces of marraqueta (roll) to absorb those juices and when it gets too spicey, a good beer goes so well with it.

There are so many variations of this dish in Bolivia but I like this way for its simplicity.

Jan 24 2014

Mechado de pierna de cerdo (Bolivian Style Roast Ham)

Mechado de Pierna de Cerdo (Bolivian Style Roast Ham)

The first time I tried this recipe was when I was in my first year of college. My friends and I got together to celebrate New Year’s Eve. I had seen my mom do this recipe and I thought it would be easy to replicate. Our first mistake was to buy a 20lb ham with the skin and everything for just four people. We started cooking around 9 pm thinking we would have it ready in a couple hours but we did not realize that it would take 4 hours to cook and that we would run out of natural gas in the process. We opened champagne and we had our grapes at midnight but we did not eat until 1:30 am but by that time we were all tired and went to bed. The good thing is that we had amazing left overs for a while. This dish really doesn’t take that long to cook and is so delicious that you can use the left over pork to make the amazing Sandwich De Chola (Cochabamba style).

Serves 6

Ingredients:

4 lb ham rump half (with the skin)

1 tbsp salt

1 large onion

1 large tomato

2 large carrots

1 small green pepper

2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp ground pepper

1/2 tsp cumin

1 tsp oregano

3 garlic cloves

1/2 cup of spicy red pepper (paste)

1 tbsp vegetable oil

1/4 tsp sugar

1 tbsp vinegar

1 cup corona beer (any beer)

For the side?

3 sweet potatoes

12 small potatoes

1 head of lettuce

1/2 red onion

2 tomatoes

1 tbsp cilantro

salt and pepper

1 tsp olive oil

1 tsp vinegar

Preparation:

Put together the first ingredients

Make cuts in the ham all around big enough to put some of the cut vegetables in the holes. Rub the ham with the tbsp of salt and set aside.

Peel the onions and carrots.

Cut the carrots, tomato, and pepper in a large thick size, about 1/2 inch thick. Put them in a large bowl and mix. Set aside.

Put together all the spices.

Peel the garlic and mash with a garlic press.

Cook the red spice paste in 1 tbs oil add the garlic. Let it cool.

Add the spices, the cooked red spice pepper and the beer to the vegetables. Mix.

Insert the mix of vegetables in the cuts made in the ham. Cover it and refrigerate for 1/2 hour.

Preheat oven to 350F

Place the ham in a container and bake cover for 2.5 hours covered. Uncover the last half hour. Broil the last 4 min to crisp the skin. Remove from the oven and let cool for 15 min.

One hour before the ham is ready, roast the potatoes with their skin on and cut them in half at 375F. Prepare the salad.

Cut the ham in slices and place it in the plate. This goes so well with everything and there is usually plantain in this recipe. My husband and I had leftovers the next day with mashed potatoes and it was delicious. Enjoy with a nice cold beer.

Jan 13 2014

Empanadas Tucumanas

Empanadas Tucumanas (Fried Bolivian Empanadas)

When I was in college I discovered these amazing empanadas. I attended the University Mayor de San Simon (UMSS) and on the corner of Sucre and Oquendo every morning between 9 and 10 am, you would see 20 to 30 students constantly piling around this street cart food that sold tucumanas calientes with unless 6 different sauces to go with them. As a students I was hungry all the time and having this lunch-sized meal early in the morning gave me the energy to continue with my long day of classes. They were delicious and they were so cheap, costing only 2Bs ($.35 cents). The first time I tried them, I was surprised by the size the empanada, the combination of flavors, and the big piece of chicken inside. I couldn’t imagine how they could fit so many delicious things in a hand-sized empanada. You eat tucumanas by biting open the top and adding any sauces that you want so each bite has a different taste with a different sauce. I miss my college time and I miss this amazing street food. Enjoy!

Serves 16

Ingredients:

Filling

2 large russet potatoes

1 large carrot

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup frozen peas

1 big red onion cut it in small squares

1/2 lb short cut steak chopped into small squares

1/2 red pepper cut in thin small slices

2 tbsp parsley

1 tbsp dried oregano

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp sugar

1/4 tsp cumin

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (optional)

2 tbsp canola oil

4 hard boiled eggs

Kalamata olives without seed (optional)

2 cups canola oil

Dough:

3 cups all purpose flour

1 tbsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup canola oil

1 cup hot water (not boiling)

Preparation:

Filling

Peel and cut the potatoes into small squares.

Peel and cut the carrots in small squares the same size as the potatoes. The carrots, peas and potatoes should all be the same size. Put them in a pot with water and salt. After it boils for 2 min take them out and drain them. We don’t want to overcook the carrots or potatoes, they need to be firm. Set aside.

Peel and dice the onion in small squares. Clean the extra fat or nerve cells from the meat and cut it in small square pieces. It is very important to cut the meat by hand (cannot use ground beef), it keep the juices better when cooked.

Cut 1/2 of the red pepper in small thin strips.

Cook the onion in 2 tbsp of oil for about 3 min or until onions are clear add the meat and pepper and cook for 3 min, add the parsley, cumin and oregano. Mix. Add the salt, sugar and cayenne pepper and cook until meat is tender for about 5 min, we don’t want it to be dried. Let it cool and set aside.

Mix the potatoes, carrots, peas and meat mix in a large bowl. Cover and reserve while we do the dough.

Hard boil the eggs. Peel and cut them in four pieces.

Dough

In a large bowl mix the flour, baking powder and salt.

Add the hot water and mix with a spoon. Add the oil and mix with your hands until you have a easily manageable dough. The dough doesn’t have to be sticky, don’t over-kneed the dough. Cover with seran wrap and let it sit for 15 min.

Cut the dough in half and keep the other half covered. Cut the half in 8 pieces.

Roll each piece one at the time until they are slightly larger the size of your hand, not too thin.

Heat 2 cups of canola oil

Prepare one empanada at the time.

Put the dough in your hand add one slice of egg and 3 tbsp of the meat mix. Carefully close the two endings of the dough with your hand, making sure the filling doensn’t come out.

Cook in the hot oil until brown or golden color. Put it to on top of paper towel.

Repeat with the rest of the dough and filling. These tucumanas should ideally be eaten the same day, but they can be refrigerated and reheated at 160 for 10 mins.

Jun 12 2013

Laphin Cochabambino

Laphin meat wasn’t too expensive when I was growing up so my mom would buy a lot to cook. Usually flank steak in Bolivia comes with a layer of thick fat on one side. My mom would make perfect rhombus cuts in the fat side and then rub papaya on the meat and let it rest the entire night. The part that I liked about cooking this dish was peeling the fava beans, which are my favorite beans. The sound of opening the beans pods and eating raw beans was rewarding after peeling at least 8 lbs of them, yes we were a large family. Fava beans are only available early in the summer to late spring and they like cold weather to grow. So go out and look at your local Farmers Market for this wonderful ingredient and cook a delicious laphin!

Ingredients:

1 lb Flank Steak (laphin in Bolivia)

2 lb fava beans

1/2 papaya with the skin no seeds

1/2 lemon

salt and pepper

8 large red potatoes or 16 small red potatoes

4 ears of corn

1/2 red onion

1 large red tomato

1/2 green pepper or jalapeño

2 tbsp cilantro

1/4 cup fresh cheese (optional)

salt

oil

vinegar

pepper

Prepare the ingredients, you can find papaya at any Latin American store. The papaya needs to be ripe and not green.

For the meat, prepare 2 hours ahead, clean the meat and make slices on one of the sides in a rhombus (tilted rectangle) shape. Take the seeds out the papaya and half lemon and rub the lemon on the meat. Smash the papaya with your hands onto the meat and rub it. Cover and refrigerate until ready to cook.

If you want to prepare a night ahead to have a softer meat just use double the amount of papaya and leave out the lemon.

Fava beans are hard to find them but they’re getting more popular in the USA. I found mine at a local farmers market.

You want them to be as fresh as possible, fava beans have two layers of skin. When you are buying look for the greenish ones and for the ones don’t bend easily. Open the pod and you will find the beans inside.

For this recipe will leave the layer of skin on the bean, but if you are using fava beans in soups, you want to remove the second layer.

Boil the fava beans for 10 min don’t overcook them. You know they are ready when they turn bright green.

Prepare the salad the same way we prepared it for the Picante de pollo. I would add the jalapeño peppers to this salad and (if you can find it) definitely quesillo (fresh cheese).

Boil the potatoes with the skin on. I love the small red ones, they have a similar taste to our Bolivian papas.

Heat 4 tbs oil and fry the laphin side with the cuts first for about 5 min and then turn over and cook for 5 min. Cover the frying pan for the last 5 min and reduce the heat.

Meanwhile boil the corn.

Serve hot. I hope you enjoy making this dish as much as I did!

May 10 2013

Papas a la huancaina

Papas a la Huancaina (Rommy’s Bolivian way)

I grew all my life thinking this dish was Bolivian and not knowing our neighbor’s geography (Huancayo is in Peru). When I traveled in Peru with my husband, I was surprised to see papas a la huancaina on the menu and I ordered it. We were amazed by the delicious sauce, but I noticed it didn’t have peanuts and we could not figure out what the ingredients were. I asked the waitress and she told me that the sauce was made with soda cracker and cheese with aji amarillo and I asked why they modified the Bolivian recipe. She said, “Bolivian recipe? You know Huancayo is en Peru.” So this is how I learned geography and a new recipe. Here is the Bolivian way. Enjoy!

Serves 8

Ingredients

4 dried spicy yellow peppers

2 garlic cloves

1 cup raw peanuts (you can substitute for unsalted roasted peanuts)

2 cups water (1/2 cup more if you want it less thick)

1 tbs olive oil

1/2 tsp salt

Optional ( 1/2 cup grated queso fresco or monterrey jack)

1 head of lettuce

8 large potato boiled and peeled or 16 small potatoes

8 hard boiled eggs

black olives

Get the ingredients ready:

Llajwa de Mani (Bolivian peanut sauce)

Preheat the oven to 350F. Select 4 large yellow peppers. Bake them in the oven for 5 min, the pepper will start burning in some areas and the pepper will turn a dark red color. Don’t over roast.

Let the pepper cool. Meanwhile, put the peanuts on a baking sheet and roast the peanuts at 350F for 7 min. Remove from the oven, the peanuts will continue cooking after they are out of the oven so you don’t want to keep them inside the oven too long.

(The above photo with two piles shows the unroasted and roasted peanuts). Take the seeds out of the yellow peppers and put them in a food processor or blender, add the peanuts, garlic, salt and water. You are looking for a smooth sauce.

Heat the oil in a pan and add the peanut sauce. Cook for 15 min, if is too thick add more warm water or milk. Add the cheese after you take the sauce out of the stove.

Serve warm with potatoes or pasta or any barbecue chicken or meat.

Heat the oil in a pan and addd the peanut sauce cooked for 15 min if is to thick add more warm water or milk. Add the cheese after you take the sauce out the stove.

At this point you can add the fresh cheese make sure that the fresh cheese is well shreded since it doenst melt with heat. You dont want big chunks in you peanut sauce. Ad warm milk or water if needed to keep it more liquid that (espeso)

Peel the potatoes and eggs and slice them. You can arrange this on the plate this in different ways, I like it this way. Usually there is a layer of lettuce, a layer of potatoes, and a layer of eggs covered with peanut sauce. Top with olives. You can get very creative, my husband and I love it this way.

Apr 4 2013

Nogada de cordero

Nogada de Cordero

I love peanuts and this dish calls for raw peanuts that, combined with the other ingredients, make a delicious sauce. This is my mom’s version that she used to cook occasionally and probably is the Cochabamba style. The original dish came from another city, Sucre, and they use walnuts instead of peanuts and add some raisins. The traditional dish calls for lamb, but you must be prepared because lamb has a strong earthy aroma when cooked. So if you want to try this delicious peanut sauce you can substitute the lamb for chicken if you are not a lamb fan. Enjoy, you will be surprised with the flavors and how a 1/4 tsp of sugar enhances the flavor!

Like any Bolivian main dish we will do this one step by step.

Serves 8

Precooking the lamb

Ingredients

8 pieces of Lamb

1 onion

1 carrots

6 cups water

4 stem parsley

1 tsp salt

Put together the ingredients and clean the lamb of extra fat or nerves. Put the six cups of water in a large pot and let it get warm. Before it starts boiling add the pieces of lamb, onion, carrot and parsley. Let it simmer for an hour.

Remove the foam that forms on the top and discard.

Seasoning the cooked lamb.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup ground red pepper

3 garlic cloves

1/4 tsp ground pepper

1/4 tsp cumin

2 tbs oil plus 2 more (to fry the meat)

Heat oil in a saucepan and add the minced garlic, cumin, and pepper. Cook for a minute and add the red pepper sauce. Cook for 5 min and reserve. We are going to use this sauce to rub onto the pieces of lamb and then sear them in the frying pan with oil.

Peanut sauce

1/2 cup peanuts

1 cups hot water

1 cup water

1 large onion diced in small cubes

1 large tomato peeled and dice in small cubes

1 tsp salt

2 tbs chopped parsley

1/4 tsp ground pepper

1/4 tsp sugar

2 -3 cups of broth (you can use the lamb broth)

4 large potatoes

cooked rice (arroz graneado)

While the lamb is being cooked, prepare the peanut sauce, potatoes and rice.

Soak the peanuts in a cup of hot water and let it soak for 15 min.

Dice the onion, peel the tomatoes and leave out the seeds if you can. Chop the parsley. Set aside

In a blender (or batan) grind the peanuts finely with a cup of water.

After the lamb is cooked remove from the broth, save the broth. Cover each piece of lamb with the rubbing sauce. Heat the vegetable oil in a large sauce pan and fry the lamb slightly and set aside.

In the same saucepan that the lamb was fried in, cook the onion, tomatoes, parsley, pepper, salt and sugar for 10 min. Add the peanuts and mix. Cook for 5 min.

Add the 2 cups of lamb broth or any broth and add the pieces of lamb. Let it cook for 30 min, don’t let it dry too much. Add warm water or more broth if necessary. Optiona: add the potatoes to this mix 10 min before it’s cooked.

Rice (Arroz Graneado)

Ingredients:

2 cups rice

4 cups water

2 tbs vegetable oil

2 garlic cloves

1/4 tsp salt

In Bolivia we prepare our rice this way: sometimes we use also some slices of onion and even black sweet pepper.

Heat the oil in a frying pan. Add the sliced garlic, cook the garlic for 30 sec, add the rice and fry until the rice changes color from clear white to dark opaque white.

Boil the four cups of water. Add salt and the fried rice, let it cook for 20 min until dry.

In Bolivia the way they present this dish is with the potatoes on one side topped with the meat, sauce and parsley sprinkled on top and the rice next to it.

Enjoy it!

Bolivian Cookbook

Category Main Dishes

Menudito

Menudito

Ingredients

Preparation:

Empanada Picantita (Queso,Cilantro, Locoto)

Empanada Picantita (Queso,Cilantro,Locoto)

Dough

Ingredients

Filling

Ingredients

Preparation

Empanada Con Relleno De Quinoa

Empanada Con Relleno De Quinoa

Dough

Ingredients

Filling

Ingredients

Preparation

Aji de habas secas ( Spice dried fava beans)

Pique a lo Macho (Pique Macho)

Mechado de pierna de cerdo (Bolivian Style Roast Ham)

Empanadas Tucumanas

Laphin Cochabambino

Laphin Cochabambino

Papas a la huancaina

Papas a la Huancaina (Rommy’s Bolivian way)

Llajwa de Mani (Bolivian peanut sauce)

Nogada de cordero

Nogada de Cordero