colombian herb fail + MacGyver skills

As we move into part dos of our Colombian adventure, it should be noted that our second dish, ajiaco, is a popular staple in Bogotá—but there are versions of ajiaco in Cuba and Peru as well. They are very different. But in general, we’re talking chicken! Potatoes! Yum! OH MY!

And if it’s popular in Bogotá, there is probably something to it: that’s like 7 million people!

thanks, wikipedia!

That’s a lot of ajiaco. And I’m not complaining. Seriously, one of the best things so far. And simple. You should definitely make some and shove it into your face.
 

the stuff

~2lbs worth of chicken breasts (heehee)
12 cups chicken stock (if you’re in a pinch, water will do + another bouillon cube)
3 ears fresh corn, cut in half–or, you can strip it off the cob first, which we did
½ tsp salt (+ to taste)
¼ – ½ tsp black pepper (I mean… or a bunch more if you’re like me and absolutely cannot help yourself)
1 chicken bouillon cube (GO MAGGI, GO!)
3 scallions, chopped into big pieces
2 cloves of garlic, minced
3 tbsp cilantro, chopped
3 white potatoes, peeled & sliced*
3 medium red potatoes, peeled & sliced*
1/3 cup guascas***

***This was a problem. We. Looked. Everywhere. And unfortunately, multiple sources stressed the importance of this particular herb. The best we could come up with was a substitute blend of oregano, parsley, bay leaf, and red pepper flakes. It was awesome and clearly I don’t know the difference, but sadly not authentic, as they say.

*To add to the lack of authenticity, technically this is supposed to be made with three kinds of potatoes. We also had trouble finding the exact specifications. We lived.

accoutrement!
(the internet tells me a potential Spanish translation might be Avío!)
crema or sour cream—we used this delight:

 

 

 

capers
avocado, sliced
pico

 

the moves

1. Large pot. Maybe quickly brown off the chicken. In the pot over medium-high heat, create this happy family: garlic, then the chicken, corn, scallions.
2. After a minute, add the stock, bouillon, cilantro, salt & pepper.
3. Turn up to high and bring to a boil, then reduce to medium and cook for about 35 minute, or until the chicken is all tender and juicy-like. Remove the chicken when done.
4. If you kept the corn on the cob (as you should have!), keep cooking the corn for about 20 more minutes. If not move right along and add the potatoes and guacas [substitute, in our case]. Cook for about 30 minutes more, or until the potatoes are tender.
5. Taste, add some salt & pepper if you need. Cut the chicken into pieces and throw it back in. Simmer for another 5 minutes.
6. Gather the following supplies and set on the table: crema, capers, avocado, pico, and maybe some other fresh things you have hanging around. Serve the ajiaco in bowls and load it up to your whim with any/all of these toppings. Marvel in its insane tastiness.

yes, i realize that my photographs are horrific in every way, from staging to lighting to… everything. but damn if it wasn’t delicious.

No, really, so good! And not difficult. But it blew my mind. I have to say, of all the topping-stuff, I find the crema and the capers absolutely essential to make this dish the best possible. The other stuff is nice, too, but c’mon: crema. Capers. I mean.

Thanks, Colombia. It’s been delicious.

thanks, nationalgeographic.com!

your life (and Bulgarian meal) needs a Balkan salad. trust me.

‘nuf said. But of course I’ll say more.

First, let’s take a look at the Bulgarian countryside:

thanks, gowhere.bg!

Ahhh. Apparently, much of Bulgaria is sparsely populated and rural. Almost everyone of the 7.4 million live in just a few urban areas. So this is more typical across the whole country than the pictures of Sofia.

ANYWAY. Let’s talk about how when preparing a meal from the region that is often full of meat and potato-type-stuff, it can be really nice and refreshing (and deviously simple/low-impact) to make a nice little side salad. Really, any combination of the tomato-cucumber-pepper-onion thing with some oil & vinegar is a winner. It’s kinda hard to mess up. SO LET’S MAKE A BALKAN SALAD.

the stuff

1 tomato, chopped
½ cucumber, chopped (we don’t bother to peel)
½ red pepper, chopped
½ green pepper, chopped
5-6 scallions, chopped
2 tbsp Italian herb combo—basil, oregano, parsley (fresh parsley is better if you have some on-hand)
½ cup sunflower oil
¼ cup red wine vinegar
salt & pepper
½ cup Bulgarian feta (crumbled)

the moves

1. Here’s a cooking hack for you: when you want to make some kind of dressing involving oil & vinegar, you could carefully and vigorously whisk the oil slowly into the vinegar… OR you can put the oil, vinegar, salt, pepper, and dried herbs into a jar with a lid and shake shake shake! Voila!
2. Put all your veg in a big bowl with the feta (and any fresh herb, if you’ve got). Pour on the dressing, toss… and, uh… you’re basically done.

Note: Whenever you’ve got this fresh veg + vinegar thing going on, it will truly benefit from a few hours of just hanging out to get delicious, first.

thanks, worldatlas.com!

sorry, we barbados up in here. you’ll have to leave your bados outside, please.

Rihanna would have laughed at my joke.

thanks, wikipedia.com!

Interesting thing (well, to me) about Barbados (and unrelated to Rihanna): apparently, when the Portuguese cruised through in the 16^th century, after the Spanish had already “discovered” it and been like, “yo, we got this!”, they didn’t try to snatch it from Spain or anything. They just… left a bunch of pigs.

“Oh, no, no thanks—we don’t want to actually STAY here. We just needed a place to store our pigs ‘til we’re good and ready to eat ‘em.”

So it goes. Nowadays, the island still has pigs. And fish. And Rihanna. Two out of three of those are often there and eaten, and almost always after being seasoned with a Bajan spice blend that is seriously UH-mazing. Since it’s just a staple in Bajan cuisine, we’re gonna start with that before we move on to Part 2: The Fishening.

the stuff

This recipe makes a lot. Which is cool, because it’s supposed to stay for months in the fridge if store properly! And it’s delicious! On everything! Like EGGS! Or FISH! Or whatever!

1 lb onions, peeled and coarsely chopped
handful of green onion, coarsely chopped
8 garlic cloves, peeled
4 habaneros, stems & seeds removed
A fair amount—like 2-3oz—of each:
*fresh thyme leaves
*fresh basil leaves
*fresh parsley leaves
*fresh marjoram leaves
1 cup vinegar
2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp ground cloves
¼ tsp black pepper
¼ tsp nutmeg
¼ tsp ground clove
3 tbsp salt

 the moves

note: THIS IS EXCITING. I received a food processor over the holidays, and even though it’s now several months later this is the first time I get to write about using a food processor! For real![this also doesn’t impact anything. at all.]

1. Combine onion, green onion, garlic, & habaneros & process into a pastey-like substance.
2. Add the fresh herbs & vinegar—process away.
3. Combine that bunch of deliciousness with the rest of the ingredients, and VOILA: YOU HAVE LOTS OF YUM.
4. Oh yeah—you’re supposed to let it sit for a couple days in the fridge, covered, before using so it gets extra delicious. Try to wait.

You can keep this stuff hanging in the fridge for a few months and it should stay yummy. And potent. Yumpotent? WHATEVER.

#1 recommendation, of course, would be to check out Barbados Part 2: The Fishening for a super tasty use.

thanks, naturalhistoryonthenet.com!

azerbaijan is difficult to pun, so instead let’s just make yogurt soup? i guess?

My brain may not have a lot going for it at the moment, but I assure you Azerbaijan actually has a lot going for it food-wise. Also folk-dancing wise, which I find fascinating. The traditional stuff is amazing, complete with outstanding costumes and mustaches!! But even plain-clothed folks get into it. Because I’m easily distracted, check out how Azerbaijani get down:

thanks, natgeo.com!

Fun Fact: I posted this picture on Social Media™ because I enjoyed it so much when we were actually making this dish and I was finding out neat stuff about Azerbaijan, and my Good Friend was all like, “nbd but I have stood in that exact spot before because I’m truly the coolest and hang out in eastern Europe all the time, and also you miss me because I’m a loser (not at all) who lives in DC instead of near you,” and sent me photographic evidence:

thanks, WBS!

Jerk. (Not at all.)

But seriously: Azerbaijan is unique in that it has just about everything food wise, because this ONE country contains 9 out of 11 climate zones. IMAGINE THE PRODUCE. (Imagine it!)  So to honor that, we decided to make dovga, which is a yogurt soup (new territory for my cooking, yay!) freaking jam-packed with herbs and greens. I mean, you don’t HAVE to be crazy-go-nuts and use every herb ever, but… why wouldn’t you?!? Granted, the labor in preparing all the herbs is a little obnoxo, but if you throw on some tunes, make really bad puns (“I dill believe we’ll finish soon! HYUK!”), maybe dance a little… it’ll be done in no time. But you can whittle down the list and still have a yummy soup.

This can easily kick it as a veg dish suitable for your strange friends that don’t eat meat, but naturally it just didn’t feel quite right ‘til we threw some balls of meat in. The choice, of course, is up to you (GO WITH THE BALLS OF MEAT).

the stuff

le soup
1 qt (32 oz!) plain yogurt
1 qt (32 oz!) water
½ cup short grain rice
1 egg, beaten [insert poor joke about being mean to the egg here]
1 bunch scallions, chopped
1 bunch cilantro, chopped
1 bunch dill, chopped
1 bunch parsley, chopped
1 bunch arugula, roughly chopped
1 bunch spinach, roughly chopped
½ bunch mint, chopped
pepper
salt

le balls of meat
½ lb ground lamb
1 onion, chopped pretty finely
2 cloves garlic, minced
pepper
salt
smidge-o-oil

the moves

le soup

1. Put the yogurt in a large pot. Add beaten egg and water and mix well.
2. Add rice.
3. Over med-high heat, bring it all to a boil. Here’s the thing with this part: you simply have to stand over it, stirring, basically the entire time you’re waiting for it to boil. You don’t want it to get a separated and blobby and gross.
4. As soon as a coupla bubbles fight their way to the surface, throw in ALL the herby deliciousness, and pepper to taste.
5. Simmer for about 15 minutes, uncovered, stirring super super frequently. Seriously, just give in and camp out next to the stove. Maybe get some tunes going, do a little dancing… that’s what I did.
6. When the rice is done cooking, SO ARE YOU. Throw in a little salt, to taste, and DONEZO. (Unless you want to add meatballs, in which case look right below for some magic!)

Two quick things:
Thing 1 – This can be served warm OR cold. So get crazy & do what feels good.
Thing 2 – Don’t salt during the cooking process as it can make the yogurt funky (aka curdle) and that’s no fun for anyone.

le balls of meat

1. In a bowl, combine the lamb with onion, garlic, salt & pepper and mix well. Just get in there with your hands, savory meat between fingers… YUM, right?!?
2. Form small balls—I recommend the small size so each easily fits on a spoon with some soup. Thinkin’ ahead.
3. In a pan, heat up a smidge-o-oil med-high and quickly sear your little balls (teehee)—this worked better for me in terms of keeping them formed.
4. Finish cooking your little balls (teehee) by adding some water or broth, ‘til just cooked through.
5. Throw ‘em in your dovga and SHOVE IT ALL IN YOUR FACE.

thanks, caspianttc.com!

argentina: herby deliciousness edition

Back to Argentina: land of waterfalls and rainbows and BEEF! 2 out of 3 of these things can be found in this stunning picture from Iguazu National Park in Argentina:

thanks, fuzzywaffle.com!

You guys. It’s time for chimichurri!! This stuff is magical. It smells like heaven and tastes even better. Chimichurri isn’t difficult, but it is soooooo good, and fresh, and makes me want to spoon it onto everything, ever. Chimichurri with eggs? Don’t mind if I do! Chimichurri on ice cream? I wouldn’t rule it out (because yes, I’m sick).

But what we really did (that I’m willing to document, anyway), is serve this lovesauce over matambre, which we discussed at length in argentina part 1.

You can put it on whatever you want; I won’t judge.

the stuff

1 bunch flat leaf parsley (the WHOLE bunch—I know, picking leaves off ain’t the funnest, but it’s worth it)
8 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
lemon juice – thorough squeeze of a wedge should do
1/2 small red onion, diced
1 tsp dried oregano (optional)
1 tsp black pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt

the moves

this is the best part:

1. Throw parsley into your food processor or blender and chop.
2. Throw everything else in, take a moment to appreciate the awesome you’ve assembled, and blend.
3. When fully blended, inhale the amazing, fresh aroma as deeply as possible, and pour over everything, ever.

Like we did over our matambre, poorly photographed here:

what my food photography skills lack is made up for in taste, guys!

Oh man. I mean. That’s all I can really say. Thank you so very much, Argentina.

thanks, nationalgeographic.com!