Myriad Recipes from Chile
It's summer, so nothing much is happening of note for another few weeks other than normal work days and hanging out with friends and spending far too many hours either at the pool or reading/sleeping in the awesome hammock my friends got me for my birthday. A friend just got the guide puppy she will be training today, so I'm definitely on my way over the first chance I get. Who can resist an eight week old yellow lab training to be a guide dog for the blind? I am also attending LeakyCon in Portland with my sister at the end of June, so I'm trying to read at least one book by every author who will be leading panels, as well as introduce myself to a new fandom, Doctor Who. I am assured that I am missing out on a whole lot of incredible by never having seen an episode of Doctor Who, so on my free days I'm playing major league catch-up on at least seven seasons. As the rains finally come in, I'm enjoying a little bit of Colorado summer before I fly off to the heat and humidity of El Salvador for a few years (that is, if all my paperwork goes through - I'm beginning to wonder if I will ever sign the last piece).
I finally got around to translating and typing up the recipes I learned with Mariela, a friend from Puerto Varas, Chile. The first time I visited Puerto Varas on the way back from a long dusty trip down the Carretera Austral (Southern Highway), Mariela picked us (my backpacking friend and myself) up from the airport and generously offered her house and kitchen for a few days. After taking full advantage of hot showers and a delicious lunch of lentejas con acelga y zapallo (lentils with chard and pumpkin), we visited the Saltos de Petrohue with Mariela and her nieces. They practiced English and once the topic of food came up, we kept up a steady stream of excited Spanish to match their English. The car ride home was spent planning an elaborate recipe exchange - stuffed crust pizza and cookies for dinner (our contribution), then bread the following day (a Chilean staple).
Although the meal came out of the oven well past 8 pm, it was a huge success and we all had a blast in Mariela's tiny kitchen. That dinner set the cooking precedent in the house, and every time I returned to Puerto Varas another creation was planned. Mariela is a wonderful cook and a fantastic science teacher and tutor with wonderful stories about everything from birdwatching to living in Germany to growing up in Southern Chile to studying biology and chemistry. We never are at a loss for conversation topics, nor for amazing recipes.
As a general note, things are less than precise in my head, especially when I'm watching rather than cooking myself (though I'm terribly imprecise in both cooking and baking and it hasn't backfired too often) and moreover when everything is in Spanish. Most people I met go from memory of a family recipe, eye it, and hope it turns out well (which it generally does, in my experience). So, take a leap of faith and just eye it.
Salmon
From memory, watching Mariela
Salmon
Butter
Dill, basil or oregano
Salt
Pepper
Queso mantecoso or some other soft cheese like mozzarella, emmenthal or fontina
The salmon we had was caught by a friend and frozen, so we threw it in the dutch oven for a few minutes on medium heat with a couple tablespoons of butter melting on top. When melted, add salt, pepper and herbs. Cover (or place in oven at 350ºF) and cook 10 minutes for each inch of thickness. Even frozen, the salmon was done in 20 minutes in the dutch oven. 5 minutes before the salmon is cooked through, add slices of cheese if desired and let melt. Top with fresh basil if desired. Enjoy.
Pam Amasado (Chilean Bread)
Loosely translated from Mariela's Spanish instructions as we kneaded dough.
8 cups (1 kilogram) all-purpose flour
2 packages instant yeast
3-5 cups water
1 teaspoon sugar
1/4 cup olive oil
Garlic, seeds, spices and/or herbs to taste (We made three types - merken, oregano, and garlic/flax seed)
Combine 1 cup warm water, sugar and yeast and let sit five minutes. If you don't get bubbly yeast it may be dead - try again with a different packet (and make sure the water isn't over 115ºF). Make a mound of flour on the counter with a well in the center. Pour yeast mixture and oil into the well. Slowly fold the flour into the liquids until a mass forms. Knead the dough, adding water and flour as necessary (it should be smooth, not sticky) until soft, about fifteen minutes. Knead in herbs, spices and seeds in the final few strokes.
Cover and let rise until doubled in size.
Divide dough into equal balls, about the size of a clementine. Flatten slightly and place on a cookie sheet about an inch or so apart. Poke each ball a few times with a fork.
Bake at 350ºF for about 30 minutes, until golden brown. We flipped the bread halfway through, but it's not strictly necessary unless you want two nice flat golden sides.
Make some ceylon tea and serve warm with a full spread of cheese, sliced meat, butter, jam, avocado and pebre (below) for a full Chilean once (dinner).
Pebre
Just ask Dale for instructions, or better yet, let him make it. It was delicious.
garlic
onion
olive oil
aji peppers
tomato
cilantro
salt and pepper to taste
lemon or lime juice
Chop everything up small and mix it together like salsa. Serve on bread.
Stuffed Peppers
Alli's creation
1 red bell pepper
1 green bell pepper
2 tablespoons butter or olive oil
1 packet pesto rice or 1 cup rice (any rice works, but we found this awesome packet of pesto rice in Chile and it made for some fantastic flavors. Couscous is awesome too)
2 cups water
2-3 carrots
1 zucchini and/or squash
1 tomato
1 onion (chopped)
A few mushrooms
2-3 cloves garlic
4-5 slices cheese (we used gauda, and I have no idea what the equivalent would be. You could always just put some feta crumbs in the mix)
1-2 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
merken
Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Cut the peppers in half lengthwise and remove the stem and seeds. Boil water, add rice, cover and reduce heat to a simmer. Cook covered for 20 minutes. If you want soft peppers, put your peppers in the oven for 20 minutes as well, until they become a little soft. While the rice is cooking, add butter, onion and garlic to a frying pan on medium heat. Chop up carrots, zucchini, squash and mushrooms and add to onions. Add some salt, pepper and spices (oregano at least, though if you can get your hands on merken you should add that too). Cook 5-10 minutes then add chopped tomatoes. Cook a few minutes longer, until the vegetables are soft, then add your prepared rice. Shovel the mix into your pepper halves and top with a slice of cheese. Any extra stuffing can go around your peppers in the pan. Bake at 350ºF for 15 minutes until the cheese is melted and the peppers are a little soft. (Note: this is completely a judgement call, since all your ingredients are cooked before they go in the oven. If you like a little crunch to your peppers, don't pre-bake them.) Serve immediately.
Blackberry Sauce
My response to a tub of vanilla ice cream and blackberries growing on the side of the road
2 cups fresh-picked blackberries
2 teaspoons honey
In a saucepan, mix together honey and berries over medium heat, stirring until the berries reduce into a sauce. Serve slightly cooled over ice cream. Find more ice cream you didn't know you had (no one, to my knowledge, has ice cream in the house unbeknownst to them, but hey, you never know) and repeat. If you're into coffee (hopefully not the god-awful instant nescafé that's all over Chile), brew up a pot to go with your ice cream-berry deliciousness.
Chicken and mushrooms (pollo con champiñones)
Translated from Mariela
chicken breast
2 teaspoons olive oil
soy sauce
mushrooms
salt
merken (or any other herbs or spices - maybe cumin, oregano or rosemary)
This is a recipe Mariela made for me, and despite my usual aversion to cooked mushrooms, it was absolutely scrumptious and delightfully simple. She has a dutch oven, so that's the pan she used to cook the chicken breast.
In a dutch oven, add olive oil on medium heat. When hot, cook the chicken breast for three minutes, then flip, adding salt and merken to the newly exposed side. Repeat after three more minutes. After ten minutes, add chopped mushrooms and let cook five minutes. Generously add soy sauce and cook fully (no pink!), flipping the chicken breast occasionally.
Variation: Instead of soy sauce, try 2 spoonfuls honey and 1/2 spoonful mustard mixed together and brushed on the chicken after the first 6 minutes.
Cheesecake brownies
Cookies
Suffice it to say we spent a lot of time in the kitchen at Mariela's. I could talk endlessly about food, so the chance to share some recipes and learn new ones with some very Chilean ingredients was a blast.
I finally got around to translating and typing up the recipes I learned with Mariela, a friend from Puerto Varas, Chile. The first time I visited Puerto Varas on the way back from a long dusty trip down the Carretera Austral (Southern Highway), Mariela picked us (my backpacking friend and myself) up from the airport and generously offered her house and kitchen for a few days. After taking full advantage of hot showers and a delicious lunch of lentejas con acelga y zapallo (lentils with chard and pumpkin), we visited the Saltos de Petrohue with Mariela and her nieces. They practiced English and once the topic of food came up, we kept up a steady stream of excited Spanish to match their English. The car ride home was spent planning an elaborate recipe exchange - stuffed crust pizza and cookies for dinner (our contribution), then bread the following day (a Chilean staple).
As a general note, things are less than precise in my head, especially when I'm watching rather than cooking myself (though I'm terribly imprecise in both cooking and baking and it hasn't backfired too often) and moreover when everything is in Spanish. Most people I met go from memory of a family recipe, eye it, and hope it turns out well (which it generally does, in my experience). So, take a leap of faith and just eye it.
Salmon
From memory, watching Mariela
Salmon
Butter
Dill, basil or oregano
Salt
Pepper
Queso mantecoso or some other soft cheese like mozzarella, emmenthal or fontina
The salmon we had was caught by a friend and frozen, so we threw it in the dutch oven for a few minutes on medium heat with a couple tablespoons of butter melting on top. When melted, add salt, pepper and herbs. Cover (or place in oven at 350ºF) and cook 10 minutes for each inch of thickness. Even frozen, the salmon was done in 20 minutes in the dutch oven. 5 minutes before the salmon is cooked through, add slices of cheese if desired and let melt. Top with fresh basil if desired. Enjoy.
Pam Amasado (Chilean Bread)
Loosely translated from Mariela's Spanish instructions as we kneaded dough.
8 cups (1 kilogram) all-purpose flour
2 packages instant yeast
3-5 cups water
1 teaspoon sugar
1/4 cup olive oil
Garlic, seeds, spices and/or herbs to taste (We made three types - merken, oregano, and garlic/flax seed)
Combine 1 cup warm water, sugar and yeast and let sit five minutes. If you don't get bubbly yeast it may be dead - try again with a different packet (and make sure the water isn't over 115ºF). Make a mound of flour on the counter with a well in the center. Pour yeast mixture and oil into the well. Slowly fold the flour into the liquids until a mass forms. Knead the dough, adding water and flour as necessary (it should be smooth, not sticky) until soft, about fifteen minutes. Knead in herbs, spices and seeds in the final few strokes.
Cover and let rise until doubled in size.
Divide dough into equal balls, about the size of a clementine. Flatten slightly and place on a cookie sheet about an inch or so apart. Poke each ball a few times with a fork.
Bake at 350ºF for about 30 minutes, until golden brown. We flipped the bread halfway through, but it's not strictly necessary unless you want two nice flat golden sides.
Make some ceylon tea and serve warm with a full spread of cheese, sliced meat, butter, jam, avocado and pebre (below) for a full Chilean once (dinner).
Pebre
Just ask Dale for instructions, or better yet, let him make it. It was delicious.
garlic
onion
olive oil
aji peppers
tomato
cilantro
salt and pepper to taste
lemon or lime juice
Chop everything up small and mix it together like salsa. Serve on bread.
Stuffed Peppers
Alli's creation
1 red bell pepper
1 green bell pepper
2 tablespoons butter or olive oil
1 packet pesto rice or 1 cup rice (any rice works, but we found this awesome packet of pesto rice in Chile and it made for some fantastic flavors. Couscous is awesome too)
2 cups water
2-3 carrots
1 zucchini and/or squash
1 tomato
1 onion (chopped)
A few mushrooms
2-3 cloves garlic
4-5 slices cheese (we used gauda, and I have no idea what the equivalent would be. You could always just put some feta crumbs in the mix)
1-2 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
merken
Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Cut the peppers in half lengthwise and remove the stem and seeds. Boil water, add rice, cover and reduce heat to a simmer. Cook covered for 20 minutes. If you want soft peppers, put your peppers in the oven for 20 minutes as well, until they become a little soft. While the rice is cooking, add butter, onion and garlic to a frying pan on medium heat. Chop up carrots, zucchini, squash and mushrooms and add to onions. Add some salt, pepper and spices (oregano at least, though if you can get your hands on merken you should add that too). Cook 5-10 minutes then add chopped tomatoes. Cook a few minutes longer, until the vegetables are soft, then add your prepared rice. Shovel the mix into your pepper halves and top with a slice of cheese. Any extra stuffing can go around your peppers in the pan. Bake at 350ºF for 15 minutes until the cheese is melted and the peppers are a little soft. (Note: this is completely a judgement call, since all your ingredients are cooked before they go in the oven. If you like a little crunch to your peppers, don't pre-bake them.) Serve immediately.
Blackberry SauceMy response to a tub of vanilla ice cream and blackberries growing on the side of the road
2 cups fresh-picked blackberries
2 teaspoons honey
In a saucepan, mix together honey and berries over medium heat, stirring until the berries reduce into a sauce. Serve slightly cooled over ice cream. Find more ice cream you didn't know you had (no one, to my knowledge, has ice cream in the house unbeknownst to them, but hey, you never know) and repeat. If you're into coffee (hopefully not the god-awful instant nescafé that's all over Chile), brew up a pot to go with your ice cream-berry deliciousness.
Chicken and mushrooms (pollo con champiñones)
Translated from Mariela
chicken breast
2 teaspoons olive oil
soy sauce
mushrooms
salt
merken (or any other herbs or spices - maybe cumin, oregano or rosemary)
This is a recipe Mariela made for me, and despite my usual aversion to cooked mushrooms, it was absolutely scrumptious and delightfully simple. She has a dutch oven, so that's the pan she used to cook the chicken breast.
In a dutch oven, add olive oil on medium heat. When hot, cook the chicken breast for three minutes, then flip, adding salt and merken to the newly exposed side. Repeat after three more minutes. After ten minutes, add chopped mushrooms and let cook five minutes. Generously add soy sauce and cook fully (no pink!), flipping the chicken breast occasionally.
Variation: Instead of soy sauce, try 2 spoonfuls honey and 1/2 spoonful mustard mixed together and brushed on the chicken after the first 6 minutes.
Cheesecake brownies
Suffice it to say we spent a lot of time in the kitchen at Mariela's. I could talk endlessly about food, so the chance to share some recipes and learn new ones with some very Chilean ingredients was a blast.
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