There's no shortage of incredible cuisine in Latin America, but Puerto Rico in particular
produces plenty of mouthwatering delicacies. These are just some of the foods you might
find on a culinary tour of the Caribbean territory. Pernel is the boracoa version of lechon, Latin American-style roast pork. It's a staple on
Puerto Rican tables at Christmas, but you can also get it from restaurants and food
stalls throughout the year, or as an ingredient in other dishes, like sandwiches. It's traditionally
made with a whole suckling pig, but you can also roast any large chunk of skin on pork
if you want to replicate the Pernille experience at home. You roast pigs
We do. We have a big one hanging in the garage. The key to Pernille's incredible flavor is a marinade called Mojo that's made out of
minced garlic, oregano, oil, adobo seasoning, and sazon. These last two ingredients are spice mixes that are ubiquitous in Puerto Rican cooking
You can make them yourself if you have the time, but there's no shame in the store-bought
Puerto Rican seasoning blends that are used by legions of home cooks. Once the pig is roasted, the most desirable part is the crispy skin, known as cuirito
If you're serving per nil at home, make sure everybody gets a piece of the skin so you
don't offend any of your guests. Almost every culture has some kind of rice and beans dish
Whether it's South Asian pilaf, Cajun red beans, or Central American gallo pinto, this
comforting combo has won over fans across the globe. It's easy to see why
Beans and rice are cheap, shelf-stable, and nutritious, delivering all the essential amino
acids as well as fiber, iron, and other nutrients. The Puerto Rican iteration of this dependable formula uses gandoles, a type of legume originally
grown in India that's sometimes referred to as pigeon peas in English
It uses a flavor base that you'll see frequently in Puerto Rican dishes, sofrito, sazon, and
asciote oil, which combine with canned tomato to give the rice in this dish a distinctive
orange-red color and complex flavor. A rose con gandulas is often made with pork, but you can leave out the meat for a vegetarian version
Chopped green manzanilla olives add some pretty color and briny acidity to counter the dish's starchiness
Puerto Rico is a country that has endured several waves of colonization over the centuries
with each new group of people adding their own ingredients and techniques to the island's cuisine
Mofongo originated among slaves of African descent brought to Puerto Rico by the Spanish colonizers
It's descended from fufu, a West African dish made by pounding tubers like yam or cassava into a paste
Mofongo trades African ingredients for ones that were available in Puerto Rico
swapping out plantain for yam and adding pork and garlic. Although it's a starchy side dish eaten to accompany other foods
it provides a lot of flavor and richness in and of itself, combining fried plantains, pork skin or bacon, and garlic into a rich mash
Mofongo got its start in Puerto Rico, but it has spread to other countries as well
with Cubans and Dominicans making their own spins on the dish. How was lunch
I'm a sucker for plantains. Oh, me too. I gotta watch myself around those things
It seems like there's a universal human need for chicken soup. What soothes the soul better than a steaming bowl of brothy chicken
with some rice or noodles floating around in it? Puerto Rican chicken soup, a sopao de pollo
hits all those comforting notes while also packing some serious flavor. Some recipes combine bone-in chicken pieces with ham, adobo, sofrito, tomatoes, capers
and manzanilla olives for an unforgettable experience. A Sopal plays a starring role in a Puerto Rican form of partying called a paranda
It's somewhat similar to the English tradition of caroling in that groups of singers go from
door to door asking for refreshments. The difference is that paranda happens late at
night, and the group of singers, or paranderos, ritualistically kidnaps each household they visit
bringing them along to harass the next house. Traditionally, a sopao de pollo had been the food
of choice for peranda because you can prepare it ahead of time and reheat it whenever you're
rudely thrust out of bed. While the chicken variety is most popular, a sopao in general
happens to be Puerto Rico's national soup. Literally translated to rice with sweetness
a rose con dulce is the boracoa answer to rice pudding. It brings a pop of Caribbean flavor to
what can often be a bland, starchy mush, adding coconut milk, cloves, canela, and fresh ginger to
the rice as it cooks. As with many other rice dishes, soaking the grains before cooking ensures
that every grain is moist, creamy, and perfectly done. It's recommended to soak for at least three
hours, but you can go for up to a few days. Unlike many American and European rice pudding
recipes that rely on dairy for creaminess, a rose con dulce is vegan. It's also a good dessert
option for people who can't eat gluten. You can eat a rose con dulce hot and fresh from the pot
but it's more traditional to eat it chilled. It solidifies when it's cold, allowing it to be cut
into tidy squares for serving. There's just something about the winter holidays that makes
people want a thick, creamy way to drink alcohol. In English-speaking parts of the world, drinkers
suddenly develop a taste for eggnog in December. Puerto Rican cooks, however, whip up creamy coquito
around Christmas time. Although coquito is certainly very rich, it's a little lighter than
eggnog because it doesn't have eggs. The creamy component is a mixture of sweetened condensed milk
coconut cream, and coconut milk. For those who want it boozy, rum is the traditional option
A hefty dose of sweet wintry spices like cloves, nutmeg, and cinnamon are added to make it taste
like Christmas. If you're looking for something to serve at a holiday party this year, Coquito
is a real crowd pleaser. You can even make little bottles of it to give to friends
Caldo Santo is another holiday specialty, but for Good Friday instead of Christmas
Translating to holy stew, this meal is made from fish, meaning that it abides by Catholic
proscriptions against eating land animals on Good Friday. Like mofongo, this dish shows an
African influence on its flavors and ingredients. For most of its history, it was little known
outside of the region surrounding the city of Louisa. But its appearance in Emma Dupre de
Sterling's seminal 2004 cookbook, Cocina Artis Puerto Riquenna, made the soup significantly more
well-known and popular. This stew is friggin' delicious. Caldo Santo is typically made with a mix of seafood that includes shrimp, bacalao, and fresh
snapper. The fish is simmered with root vegetables and plantain balls in a broth of coconut milk
aciota oil, coriander, peppers, and garlic. The flavor of the seafood enriches the broth with a
briny flavor, and the aciota oil turns it a beautiful orange color. Tembleca is known as Puerto Rican coconut pudding, but it's not like the stuff you get
in a cup for school lunch. Instead, it's more like the mid-century Jell-O molds that your
grandma might have made, at least in texture. It's named after the Spanish word for shake
temblor, and it definitely lives up to its name when it pops out of the mold in all its jiggly
glory. Unlike Jell-O, which is thickened with animal gelatin, Tembleca uses cornstarch so
vegans and vegetarians can eat it. To make it, combine coconut milk with sugar, seasonings
and cornstarch, and cook in a saucepan until the starch gelatinizes. Then pour the hot mixture into
a pan and chill to set. Flavor-wise, Tembleca tastes festive and tropical, with the sweet
flavor of coconut harmonizing with lime, cinnamon, and vanilla. If you want to achieve a beautiful
snowy-white Tembleca, be sure to find additive-free coconut milk. The word pastel translates to pie in Spanish, but Puerto Rican pasteles aren't very pie-like
Instead, they're much more reminiscent of Mexican tamales, but with some key differences
Like with tamales in Mexico and the American Southwest, Puerto Rican families like to have
big pastel parties during the Christmas season dividing the laborious process amongst many family members Also like tamales pasteles are traditionally prepared with a slow pork filling that wrapped in masa and steamed in a leaf Other than that they pretty different from each other
Rather than the corn-based masa in Mexican tamales, the masa for pasteles is made from
green plantains and a variety of root vegetables. Pasteles are also steamed in banana leaves instead
of corn husks. While the pork filling in pasteles might look like tamale filling
Its use of sofrito, vinegar, capers, and sazon makes it taste Puerto Rican through and through
It's unclear whether He-Burritos existed under their current name until Puerto Rican
restaurants in Chicago started selling them. But whether or not they originated on the island
they're a part of the Puerto Rican food canon at this point. The distinguishing feature of a He-Burritos sandwich is the bread
which is actually a flattened, fried piece of unripe plantain. You fry it, you smash it, you fry it again, and then you have the crispy tostón
Although he didn't call them jiburritos, Puerto Rican restaurateur Jorge Munoz started serving
sandwiches on plantain bread in the early 90s. Juan Figueroa, a Puerto Rican chef in Chicago
read about Munoz's Sandwich de Platano and started making his own version
which was rechristened the jiburrito. From there, it spread to other communities with
large numbers of Puerto Ricans, like New York City and Florida. You can put almost anything
inside a jiburrito, but the original filling is a thin-sliced steak dressed with mayonnaise
garlic oil, lettuce, and tomato. If beef isn't your thing, you can swap it out with pork
chicken, or seafood. Like its cousins, the po' boy sandwich and the hoagie
the tripletta started as a portable meal for working-class men. The long roll that tripletta's are served on allows cooks to shove an entire dinner
onto one sandwich. If you like Cuban sandwiches, the tripletta's combination of roast pork and ham
will look familiar. The Puerto Rican sandwich ups the ante by adding a third meat, thinly sliced
steak. The sandwich gets its name from the combination of these three meats, which are
dressed with Swiss cheese and the standard lettuce, tomato, and onion. The classic condiment for a tripletta is mayo quechu
a mix of ketchup, mayonnaise, and other seasonings that's quite popular in Puerto Rico
The final topping, and the most fun one, is crispy canned shoestring potatoes
With all the fixings, a good tripletta can be a struggle to fit in your mouth, but it's worth the effort
Like many food names, almojabanas refers to different dishes depending on what country you're in
In Colombia, it means a kind of savory leavened roll made with a dough of corn masa flour
baking powder, and cheese that gets baked in the oven. Puerto Rican almojabanas share some features
with the Colombian variety in that they are round breads made with cheese. However, the Puerto Rican
version is deep-fried, almost like a cheesy donut. It's also made with a different kind of dough that
uses rice flour and wheat flour instead of masa. This kind of almojabanas is often served sweet
with a post-fry soak in honey and brown sugar. If savory is more to your taste
you can use the same dough and frying procedure and just sprinkle it with crumbled cheese instead
of sugar. Albon di Ghosn, which roughly translates to big meatball, is like if a classic meatloaf
and a scotch egg had a baby. Some recipes use a whopping six different types of meat — ground
beef, ground pork, chopped ham, ground chicken, bacon, and canned deviled ham. The mixture is
bound together with breadcrumbs and eggs, and then, in case there wasn't enough protein
stuffed with hard-boiled eggs. Like classic diner meatloaf, it gets a thick tomato-y glaze
but in this case, it's a step up from sticky ketchup. This is a fresh tomato sauce that's
thickened with flour, and flavored with bay leaf, oregano, and olives. Albonne de Gón is popular beyond Puerto Rico, with variants between regions and even families
For instance, other recipes for Colombian Albonne de Gón stuff the meatloaf with carrots and green beans, in addition to the boiled eggs
Fricassee is a term for a type of meat stew. You can fricassee many different types of meat, but chicken is always a popular choice
Fricasseeing is a European technique that arrived in Puerto Rico because of Spanish and French colonists
Europeans brought fricassees to many of their Caribbean colonies, and this dish is very popular in Cuba
in addition to Puerto Rico. Fricasse de pollo is somewhat similar to French cocova
slowly simmering chicken in a broth of red wine and aromatic vegetables. The seasoning for fricasse shows a distinctly boricola touch
adding tomatoes, cilantro, bell peppers, and adobo. This is a saucy dish
and it definitely needs some kind of starch, like a rose con gandulas, to soak up all the juices
Of course, as a home cooking dish, there are as many fricasse recipes as there are families
Other variations add ham, vinegar, and capers for a completely different experience
How you doing, Marchi? How's the fricassee? Pretty darn good. You want some
Picadillo is a seasoned ground beef dish that is popular in many Latin American cultures
The Puerto Rican version gets its flavor from sofrito, a mixture of cilantro leaves, garlic
and peppers cooked down into a paste. Sofrito is one of the base flavors of Puerto Rican cuisine
showing up in many of the most popular dishes. You can make it at home, but there's also the jarred variety for convenience
offered by brands like Goya. To make Picadillo, You start by sautéing sofrito together with chopped peppers and onions
Next, add tomato sauce, ground beef, and olives, and cook until the meat reaches a thick but saucy consistency
sort of like Italian meat sauce. You can serve picadillo on top of white rice
or use it as a component in other dishes, like empanadas. Pastalone is a plantain and beef casserole that's kind of like the Puerto Rican equivalent of lasagna
Rather than lasagna's layers of pasta, ragu, and cheese, pastalone stacks thin slices of fried ripe plantains and layers of picadillo
finishing off with a mixture of eggs and baking soda that holds everything together while it bakes
That's the basic template for pastelone, but the details vary depending on who you ask
In the mainland U.S., cooks tend to add mild cheese to their pastelone. In Puerto Rico
there's usually no cheese, but they do add canned French-cut green beans. Some recipes also call
for raisins. Pastelone is customizable to your tastes, so if you think raisins are gross
get icked out by green beans, or can't eat cheese, there's a pastelone for you
Alcapurrias are another dish stuffed with picadillo. In this case, the picadillo goes
inside a dough made of green plantains and yaotia root. Yaotia, also known as malanga
is a kind of tuber that can be cooked and eaten like a potato, dried and turned into starch
or pounded into dough. The dough is dyed orange gold with achiote for color. Its flavor is subtle
but it does have a certain bitter, floral character. After stuffing with picadillo
the dough gets formed into a little cigar and then deep-fried. Alcapurrias are a popular street
food on Puerto Rico's coasts, where many street stalls offer the deep-fried treats. In addition
to the beef-filled variety, you can also find versions stuffed with crab or bacalao
What's better than pie? Deep-fried pie, of course. What's better than deep-fried pie
A deep-fried pie that's filled with meat that you can eat on the go. Empanadillas, smaller versions of empanadas, are a type of savory or sweet hand pie that's popular all over
Latin America. Think of them as the original Hot Pocket, only a million times better. They're a
treat in bakeries on the island, the Puerto Rican version uses a wheat-based pie dough that gets
fried in oil, but some variations call for baking instead of frying. If you don't feel like making
your own pastry and have access to a Latin American grocery store, you can buy pre-cut
circles of dough designed for empanadillas to make your life easier. As with so many other
stuffed Puerto Rican snacks, picadillo is a popular filling, but it's by no means the only option
Vakalitos are a type of fritter or pancake made from salted fish
traditionally cod, but pollock works too. The preserved fish is inedibly salty at first
and needs to be pre-prepped before it can be used in recipes. To prepare the fish
first soak it in water for six hours changing the water at least once Then poach the fish in more fresh water mixed with a little vinegar which takes out even more salt and cooks the fish Once the fish is ready to go mix it with a thin pancake batter seasoned with chopped bell peppers herbs and sazon
The vacalitos get shallow fried in a skillet until crispy, golden brown, and delicious
If the labor-intensive process of prepping salted fish doesn't appeal, but you still want to taste vacalitos, Goya makes a powdered mix that takes a lot of the
work out of the process. In Spanish, the word chicharrones refers to crunchy pork rinds
Puerto Rican chicharrones de pollo is a special type of fried chicken so crispy that it almost
mimics the texture of chicharrones. Chicharrones de pollo are common in roadside fast food stands
in Puerto Rico, where they can be purchased with mofongo on the side. A few techniques set this
dish apart from a standard southern fried chicken. First off, the marinade incorporates vinegar
citrus juice, garlic, and oregano. Next, the bone-in chicken is cut into smaller pieces before
breading and frying. This increases the surface area-to-volume ratio of the chicken, allowing
for more crunch. Third, perhaps most importantly, the chicken is fried multiple times. This
technique — which is also seen in Korean fried chicken — makes the breading significantly
crispier than a single fry. Some recipes call for three separate stages of frying to achieve
the ultimate crunchy exterior. All right, dude, roger that. One extra crispy coming up
Bistec is a Spanish adaptation of the English beef steak, and bistec in sepollado is a thin
piece of steak cooked with rings of onion. The steak of choice for this dish is flank
preferably cut into thin strips. The steak is first marinated for at least a few hours
and up to a couple of days in a mixture of sofrito, vinegar, sazon, adobo, garlic
oregano, and cumin. After the marinade has gotten a chance to flavor the meat
the beef is briefly seared, then braised with a leftover marinade, as well as tomato sauce
onions, more sofrito, and butter. Once cooking is done, you're left with soft
slow-cooked steak in a thick, rich gravy with soft onions. One classic way to serve it is on
a bed of simple white rice, maybe with some fried plantains on the side. You can also add bell peppers
or fried eggs on top to dress it up. Abichula squisadas y viandas is Puerto Rico's version of
stewed pork and beans. The base of the dish is a broth made from country ham, tomatoes, sofrito
sazon, and adobo. Pink beans simmer slowly in this broth and become soft, stewy, and delicious
Recipes for abichula squisadas vary, but the beans, tomatoes, sofrito, and pork remain constant
no matter what else changes. Some versions use asciote oil to give the dish a more vibrant orange
hue, while others add the likes of green olives and potatoes for some variety. Regardless of how
it's dressed up, abichula squisadas is, at heart, a rustic, homey dish. It's made with inexpensive
ingredients, but the end result is nourishing and delicious. You can serve these beans as a
side dish in a more elaborate meal, or simply put them on top of plain rice for an easy weekday
dinner that's packed with flavor and nutrition. Flan is popular in many different countries
Recipes for Cuban-style flan vary in how the dessert is made and sold across Latin America
You can find multiple flavors of flan sold in Puerto Rican panaderias
including fruity flavors as well as the ultra-creamy version. The addition of cream cheese to flan de queso changes the texture of the custard
making it reminiscent of cheesecake filling. The hint of tang from the cheese also gives flan de queso a little more depth of flavor
than a plain vanilla flan. Other than the cream cheese, flan de queso is pretty much the same as any other flan
You cook a caramel, then pour an eggy custard batter over the top. The whole thing gets baked together, then carefully inverted so the liquid caramel oozes over the top
Oh, fly! Oh, boy! Come on, kids! Fly time! Fly time, you guys! Get down here! The fly's here
Soruritos de maiz, also known as cerulos or surulitos, are finger-shaped corn fritters
usually filled with cheese. You can think of them as the Puerto Rican version of mozzarella sticks
They can be eaten as a snack, a breakfast food, or a side with a larger meal. Sometimes, souritos are sweetened
but it's also common for them to have a more savory flavor profile. This dish provides a wonderful contrast
between its crispy exterior and a gooey, cheesy filling. The specific type of cheese varies depending on the recipe
Some recommend idam or gouda, though it is possible to use American or sharp cheddar as well
To make souritos, cook cornmeal with water to make cornmeal mush. Then, either mix cheese with the cooked cornmeal dough
or take small pieces of the dough and wrap them around chunks of cheese. Finally, deep fry until the outside is golden brown
and the inside is molten. Corned beef is associated with St. Patrick's Day
and Irish culture in the mainland U.S., but it's popular all over the world
Carned beef is a boracua riff on corned beef hash. It uses canned corned beef
which is a common ingredient in Puerto Rican home kitchens. According to the Seattle Times
the government of Puerto Rico actually promotes canned beef as an emergency preparedness supply
But even in good times, it's a beloved component in many recipes. Carned beef differs from other types of corned beef hash
in that it's kind of a brothy stew. It's made by cooking together canned corned beef, water, potatoes, tomato sauce, and seasonings
and often served with white rice and plantains to soak up all the juices. The specific seasonings vary from household to household, but as with so many Puerto Rican dishes
you'll likely find sofrito and sazon. You can consider adding alcaparado, a briny condiment that combines green olives, pickled peppers, and capers
In English, casitos means little cheeses. These are small, cigar-shaped baked treats made with puff pastry and filled with sweetened cream cheese
They can be found in panaderias throughout the island of Puerto Rico. After they're baked, they get brushed with a simple sugar syrup that adds sweetness
and makes the outside of the pastry extra glossy. The most basic filling is a simple mixture of sugar and cream cheese
but casitos can be found in a variety of delectable flavors. Guava paste is quite popular and pairs well with cream cheese
Dolce de leche, jam, and nuts also occasionally make their way into casitos
If you don't have access to a Puerto Rican bakery, casitos are easy to make at home with store-bought puff pastry sheets
If you can pronounce it, we can make it arroz con pollo
Arroz con pollo is a comfort food chicken dish that hits many of the same flavor notes as pollo guisado
But instead of cooking the chicken and the rice separately, in arroz con pollo, they're cooked together
So all of the flavor of the meat perfumes the rice. This dish is popular all over the Spanish-speaking world and can be found in numerous regional variants
Beyond the chicken and rice mentioned in the dish's name, the ingredients in Puerto Rican arroz con pollo can vary dramatically
You're pretty much always going to find sofrito, sazon, or adobo. but every family makes it differently. Generally, the chicken is browned, then the rice and
seasonings are sautéed in the oil from the chicken before everything is combined with a
flavorful broth and cooked until the rice is done. Medium-grain rice is perfect for this dish
as it has the correct balance between being sticky and fluffy. If desired, this dish may
be cooked in a way that makes the bottom layer of rice become flaky and brown. Puerto Ricans
call this toasted rice layer the pegau. Pollo guisado simply means chicken stew
and it's as warm and hearty a dish as you might imagine from its name. It starts with chicken pieces
Both dark and white meat may be used. Sometimes the chicken is seasoned separately
and allowed to marinate before being incorporated into the stew. And sometimes the spices are added directly to the broth
But in either case, the flavors are about the same. Sofrito, sazon packets, and adobo seasoning mix
The pre-mixed seasonings are made with spices like cumin, anato, oregano, and garlic powder
which all add savory complexity and earthiness to the broth. Canned tomato sauce gives the dish a nice red color
and some acidity, while green olives bring pops of brininess to cut through all the richness
Typically, the stew is made with sturdy root vegetables like potatoes and carrots
If you want to double down on the starch and make your pollo guisado really stick to your ribs it traditional to serve it with white rice Rellanos de papa is another fried food typically sold by vendors as a street snack These crispy balls are stuffed with mashed potatoes and a basic ground beef filling or picadillo In order to
make the mashed potatoes stick together and hold the filling without falling apart, they're mixed
with eggs and cornstarch. Some ways of cooking rellenos de papa involve seasoning the potatoes
with chicken stock and butter, but others skip this step. The mashed potatoes can also be coated
with more cornstarch to make them extra crispy. When you bite into rellenos de papa
the delicately crispy shell quickly gives way to starchy, fluffy mashed potatoes
These would be delicious potato fritters, even if they didn't have any stuffing, but the picodillo in the middle
elevates them to another level. The savory meat with hints of acidity and sweetness
makes for the perfect taste. The word pincho originates in Spain's Basque region
In that area, the term refers to any kind of snack or appetizer served on a skewer
The word can even be used more broadly to refer to any kind of Basque, tapas-style snack
In Puerto Rico, however, a pincho is specifically a skewer of grilled, marinated meat
usually served with a piece of bread and some barbecue sauce. They're a common street snack
and people also make them for family cookouts. A good option is chunks of chicken thigh
marinated in a mixture of olive oil, sazon, oregano, and white vinegar
Chicken isn't the only meat used in pinchos. Pork is another popular choice
Some cooks call for tenderloin soaked in a garlicky marinade. Whatever meat you choose
pinchos are a fun variation on barbecue that is easy to make at home for a crowd
What do we got, pinchos on the grill? Ah, before she even says hello to anyone
something's never changed. Biscocho de Novia means bride's cake, but it's more like funfetti cake
than anything you'd find at a wedding. It's an extra fluffy vanilla cake topped with an airy vanilla frosting
and a generous dusting of multicolored sprinkles. Often seen in Puerto Rican bakeries
this cake is extra fluffy because the eggs, oil, and sugar in the batter
are creamed until they hold a lot of air. One of the things that sets Biscocho de Novia
apart from a regular white vanilla cake is the textural contrast in each bite
In addition to the sprinkles on top, there's also a crunchy sugar layer on the bottom of the cake
This is made by resting the baked cake layers on a bed of granulated sugar while frosting
The frosting itself is made with a mixture of whipping cream, vegetable shortening, and powdered sugar
Pan de Mallorca was invented on the Spanish island of the same name, but it's a classic Puerto Rican sweet bread
prepared with a soft, fatty, enriched yeast dough. Pan de Mallorca is kind of like a cinnamon roll
without the cinnamon. It's even made in a swirled shape, like a cinnamon roll. The dough is extra rich because it contains a ton of egg yolks
Still, Pan de Mallorca has a hint of sweetness, both from a small amount of sugar in the dough and a dusting of powdered sugar over the top
It's popular to eat it for breakfast alongside a cup of coffee. It can also be used as a sandwich bread
as its mild sweetness is somewhat similar to a Hawaiian roll or potato bread
Biscocho de Rhone is the Puerto Rican version of rum cake. It's basically a yellow butter cake flavored with rum and sometimes nuts
Recipes for this cake vary, but the one constant is that bakers should never be shy
about using a substantial amount of rum. In fact, some may tell you that this dessert
uses as much as a half cup of spiced rum in the cake batter. If you don't feel like making the batter from scratch
a boxed cake mix is also a valid option. Some also add vanilla pudding mix to the cake mix
to allow for extra richness. The final product is hard to turn down
and perfect to enjoy for a special occasion. Hey, you want a little rum cake
I really can't. Have a little rum cake. No, no, no, I can't. Oh, come on. You know, I'm trying to lose a couple micrograms here
Where? Plantains make their way into all sorts of Puerto Rican recipes
but tostones might be the most snackable plantain dish on the island. Tostones start with green plantains, and this is a savory dish
So when making a tostone recipe, the goal is to select unripe plantains that aren't sweet at all
The plantains get cut into small pieces and double-fried, sort of like french fries, but with a twist
Between the two fryings, the plantain chunks are smashed into flat discs, which gives them a ton of crunchy surface area
Sometimes the smashed plantains are also soaked in seasoned water before the second fry
which gives them more flavor and makes them turn out crispier. The final result is sort of like a super thick chip, perfect for dipping into sauce
Sauce-wise, a blend of mayonnaise and ketchup is a classic choice. Garlic sauce and hot sauce taste great too
Plain salt is the most common seasoning for tostones, but you might find them sprinkled with adobo as well
Like tostones, maduros are made by frying plantains, but beyond that, the similarities end
While tostones are savory and crunchy, maduros are soft and sweet, This is because maduros are made with ripe rather than green plantains
The darker and sweeter, the better. They're also only fried once and aren't smashed
so you have more of the soft interior and less of the golden brown fried exterior in each piece
The seasoning of maduros is also quite distinct from Tostones. If you've picked the right plantains, they'll be quite sweet on their own
so sometimes they're served plain with no salt or any other spices. This works well when serving them as a side dish with savory foods
If you'd like to enjoy your maduros on their own as a snack, then you may want to add some extra sweetness to them in the form of granulated sugar or honey
which is also quite common. The sweetener of choice is sprinkled or drizzled onto the
plantains after they emerge from the oil to make them truly irresistible
Aranguitas means little spiders in Spanish, but don't worry. No arachnids are used to make this
savory fried treat. Aranguitas are actually fritters made with grated and fried plantain
They're called little spiders because the crispy threads of plantain look sort of like spider legs
This snack is made with plantains that are still unripe and green, which is when they're at their starchiest and least sweet
The process is very similar to the way you'd make hash browns with potatoes. First, grate green plantains, then squeeze them together into little lumps and fry them until crispy
The craggy outside, with all of its nooks and crannies, becomes very crunchy
while the inside stays starchy and soft. Aranjitas are often served as a side dish
but they can also be a standalone snack when served with a dipping sauce. You can go with a blend of mayonnaise and ketchup, or get fancy with some cilantro aioli or cocktail
sauce. This is a guava! Guava. Cosquitos de guayaba are made with halved guava fruits that
are hollowed out into a cup shape. The guava halves are boiled in a flavored sugar syrup until
they become soft and sweet. This dish is popular in other countries like Cuba as well, and the
syrup may be flavored differently depending on where you're eating. In Puerto Rico, the classic
flavoring as cinnamon. Once the guavas are done, they can be served fresh and hot, but it's more
common to let them cool down before eating. While they can be eaten on their own, the standard way
to serve them is with some kind of mild cheese. The cheese may be something a little firmer
like queso blanco, or fresh farmer's cheese, or it might be a smear of rich cream cheese
The acidity and tropical sweetness of the guava work with the tang and mild savoriness of the
cheese to make a truly unique dessert. Bariguitas de Viaja is a sweet pumpkin-flavored treat with a
slightly rude name, meaning old women's bellies. The unappetizing moniker supposedly comes from the
way these fritters are shaped, but it seems like a bit of a stretch. This dish is influenced by
African cuisine, as are many other Puerto Rican Creole recipes. Barighitas are made with cooked
pumpkin, flour, sugar, and some cinnamon and vanilla for flavor. The batter is spooned into
hot vegetable oil and fried until crispy on the outside and fluffy within. The fritters are
sometimes sprinkled with granulated sugar, powdered sugar, or cinnamon when they're fresh
from the fryer. These fried pumpkin pancakes can be served as a snack on their own or alongside a
hot drink like chocolate or coffee. And even though they taste a bit like dessert, much like Maduro's
they can also be used as a side dish with dinner