Love Hispanic Food? Love to Bar B Que? How about a break from the norm? How about some really delicious recipes from the Hispanic Culture that you can really sink you teeth into? It is coming to the end of the official summer though for most of us we live in areas that will have fair weather for quite some time to come. So, when you spark up your Bar B Que, nest time why not add a little spice to it by considering a few recipes that I am going to give you.
There really is nothing finer than a good Hispanic meal shared with family and friends. In the warm weather, to Bar B Que and celebrate the goodness of life is truly what summer should be about. Let's enjoy in these Hispanic Recipes the fruits of our labors and remember, a good drink to go along with it.
To Start with decide how many folks you are going to have over and how generous you want to be. In the Hispanic Culture, you always plan for lots of folks, and we always feed our neighbors. Food, it's like a hug you can eat. I will give you the recipes the way I prepare them but you can scale them up or down. There is always bunches of food and extras to go around as I have a big family inside my house. True Hispanic Picnics and Bar B Ques are never small in design.
Rosado Salad
1 5lb bag of potatoes peeled, boiled and cubed
1 can of sliced beets drained and cubed
1 medium onion chopped
Olive oil
White Vinegar
Powdered Adobo (A Hispanic Seasoning mix)
Powdered Garlic
1 can of sweet peas drained
2 boiled eggs chopped
A large mixing bowl
A large serving spoon
It is easiest to assemble the salad if you prepare all of the ingredients in advance and have them ready to add as you go.
Once you have all you ingredients, place the potatoes in the bowl and add the beets and onions. Give it a quick toss.
Add Olive oil and vinegar. I do not say how much as it really depends on how you like you salad to taste. What I mean by this is that some families pref fer a more heavy olive oil taste while others prefer a more vinegary taste and in true Hispanic cooking, you don't measure. True mastery of cooking means no measuring. Scary, I know, but remember to have fun with it and you will do fine. I prefer a more vinegary taste, drizzle you olive oil and vinegar over your salad and go light as you can adjust by adding more later.
Sprinkle your adobo over your salad and then your garlic. Once again there is no measuring in Hispanic Cooking so go lightly and add more to suit your taste. True Hispanic cuisine from the islands and South America is rich and flavorful so be liberal. Use the mixing spoon and stir very well so that you seasonings, oil and vinegar are distributed through out the salad.
Once you have mixed it well, taste it to see how you like your seasonings and make your adjustments now. After you have tweaked your seasonings add your peas and eggs and gently mix them in. Chill until serving time.
Your salad should be a beautiful pink color. It is a healthy potato salad that is a delight to all the senses. It looks fresh and beautiful, the aromas are inviting and the taste will be refreshing on a hot day and will accentuate your main course.
Bar B Que Pork Ribs
I will give the portions in 2 rack of rib measurements but please feel free to make as much as you need.
2 racks of Pork ribs
1 or 2 limes
4 clove of garlic
3 stems of cilantro
garlic powder
onion powder
black pepper
1 onion sliced
Take as many racks of ribs as you need and rinse them. Set them in a deep baking dish. Squeeze the lime over the meat making sure to get lime juice on every part of the meat both front and back. The lime juice will tenderize your meat and give it a fresh and light flavor. allow to sit while you prepare the next step.
Take the garlic and cilantro and pound them in a mortal and pestle or alternately you can blend them in a food processor to make a paste. As you are about to add this paste to the meat, notice the color of the meat should have begun to change to a lighter shade. This means the limes acids are beginning their work and very important to the development of flavor in this dish. Rub the prepared paste over the meat.
Sprinkle the garlic powder, onion powder and black pepper over the meat. You are in effect layering different flavors into this dish.
Cover the meat with the sliced onion. Cover the dish and set in the fridge to marinate for at least an hour but overnight is the best. Stir the meats at least once during the marinating to ensure the onion has a chance to infuse the meat.
When you are ready to cook the meat, allow to come to room temperature before placing on the grill. Heat the grill to medium heat and place the meat on the grill. The marinating juice and the onions can be sauteed to serve with the finished meat. Cook the meat until tender and well done but not over done as this meat should fall off the bone when done.
Corn on the Cob
Take corn on the Cob, leave on the husks and silks, cook directly over the coals when you are ready to serve the meal. Once the corn is cooked the husks will impart a smokey flavor to the corn while keeping it moist and juicy and the silks once cooked come off very easy. In alternative is to remove the silks, leave the husks on pulling them back to reveal the corn. Use some simple melted butter flavored with garlic and brush the corn. Replace the husks and place on the grill right as you are getting ready to serve. Either method or both for variety, once your table is set up with just a few turns on the grill your succulent corn will be ready to join your buffet.
To Serve this all, get a couple of good loaves of Cuban bread. If you are not in an area where you can easily get Cuban bread, french bread will do fine. Serve you ribs on a platter, smothered in the onions, with the beautiful potato salad along side of that a good hunk of bread with fresh butter, fresh and delicious corn and a good cold Hispanic beer or rum and coke. A simple yet a guaranteed delicious treat that is not the norm at your family Bar B Que.
I hope you enjoy this meal with someone you love. Saludos!
To find more Hispanic meals to enjoy with those you love, please follow the link below to see a collection of books available for purchase at Amazon.com.
Hispanic Cook Books
If you love poetry check out my book at Amazon.com
Lamentations of the Caves By Rebecca Cuevas De Caissie
