Habichuelas: The ULTIMATE Puerto Rican Comfort Food

When my parents first married and then brought me into their lives, they lived in what had been my mother's townhouse in Burlington City, NJ on St. Mary's Street.  If you're unfamiliar with the East Coast, town homes or row homes are quite common.  Usually, they are at least three floors, but can be quite skinny houses that are connected to many others on the same street.  Therefore, there is no side yard or much of a front or back yard for that matter either, especially my mother's.  I am told it was very small and the three of us had quite a time living there.  Therefore, soon after, my parents purchased a plot of land on a newly bought larger space of land that a church had recently gained and was in the process of selling individual lots for families to build a home on.  My parents were one of the first and the house they would build there would be the house I called home for the next sixteen years of my life, and truly the house I will always think of as "home."

There was a beautiful family that lived near my mother on St. Mary's Street in Burlington City who shortly after "followed" her to Fountain Boulevard in Burlington Township.   This family bought the plot next door to us and built a home around the same time.  I grew up calling the parents of this Italian-Puerto Rican family Uncle John and Aunt Judy.  Their daughter, Trisha, a few years older than I was, babysat me numerous times and thankfully was one of the first to teach me what to do with my seemingly rebellious, frizzy curls.  As a child and teenager, there was nothing finer than going over to the Miragliuolo's home for dinner, especially around the holidays.  Uncle John, the Italian of the family, with his dark olive skin, raven black arm hair and shiny hair and mustache would sing Frank Sinatra tunes as he made what seemed like the entire neighborhood smell like Italian Roast Pork.  His petite wife, Judy, the Puerto Rican from New York, would bring out her fresh salads with avocado, Arroz con Gandules, and the superior Puerto Rican specialty--Pasteles.  The dinners I enjoyed there were followed by lots of laughter, extra time around their upstairs kitchen, then the walk downstairs to watch sporting events on TV with the neighborhood kids.  I know every kid that grew up on our block enjoyed the cooking of these two ethnic foodies who stuck to the basics of what made their nationality's food great.  John and Judy always welcomed anybody in, especially the kids, and lavished upon us the best kind of love--the one that comes in fresh Italian rolls or needs a little hot sauce.  Once I entered high school and all the thoughts of my future and a knowledge that I would not forever live next to these amazing people started to dawn on me, I started asking if they would teach me how to cook something--anything so that I could have a piece of my childhood and tradition to take with me no matter where I landed one day.  The simple dish I am bringing you today is the first dish they taught me.  I have tweaked it over time and don't use measuring cups or spoons at all while making it, but I will do my best to tell you how to re-create the meal for yourself.  I should warn you that I've never met a Puerto Rican who makes any national dish the same way as any other Puerto Rican--there is always at least a little difference between chefs.

Arroz con Habichuelas y Chuletas

You will need

*Serves four*

• 1 TBS Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 2 TBS Sofrito (look below for explanation)
• 2 - 8oz tins Tomato Sauce
• Water - fill 1/2 of an empty tomato sauce tin
• 2 - 14.5 oz tins Pink Beans
• 2 - pkg Sazon
• Spanish Olives - about 1/3 - 1/2 cup (depending on your taste; also be sure that you pour some of the liquid from the olive jar in as well)
• 2-3 Russet Potatoes - diced

• 2 cups white rice
• 3 1/2 cups water

• 1lb Pork Chops - boneless, thin cut
• 1/4 cup White Wine Vinegar
• 2 TBS Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 2 TBS Sofrito
• 2 - pkg Sazon
• 2 TBS (Goya) Adobo Seasoning
• Oil for cooking

Step 1:  Season the Meat

Take chops (chuletas) out of the packaging and put into a very large ziplock bag.  Pour the White Wine Vinegar in and close the bag.  Move around the meat with the Vinegar (many Hispanics do this to "clean" the meat).  You can then pour most of the vinegar into the sink.  Keeping the chuletas in the bag, add the EVOO, Sofrito, Sazon, and Adobo.  Seal the bag securely and place in the fridge to marinate for 1/2 an hour or so.

Step 2:  Arroz

Because the Habichuelas are the star of this meal, the rice is simply prepared as White rice.  Using a rice cooker or regular pot, follow your rice bag's instructions on making.  You could add a package of sazon for every 2 cups of rice you put in the pot, but it's really not needed in this dish.  Make sure to get the rice going so that everything will be done at once.

Step 3:  Habichuelas

Once your rice has started, using a medium size pot, add the TBS EVOO and the 2 TBS Sofrito.  Turn the burner to Med-High  Allow that to cook until fragrant, then add both tins of Tomato Sauce + 1/2 a tin of water.  Allow the sauce to come to a simmer so that the Sofrito totally incorporates into the sauce.  Next, add both packages of Sazon and mix well.  After draining and rinsing the beans, add them to the sauce mixture.  Next add the olives + the liquid from the jar.  If you do not think you see "enough" olives in the pot, you can add some more.  Don't worry, I'm not a big Spanish Olive fan, but in this dish--they are part of what gives it its overall taste.  Now that all necessary flavor items are in, add the diced potatoes.  You want the potatoes to soak up all the flavor of the sauce while they're cooking.  They should be orange-y by the time the Habichuelas are finished.  Bring the pot to a light simmer, put on the lid, and let it cook until the potatoes are cooked through (they can retain a bit of a bite; you don't want mush).  You can now see that this has a very stew-like quality...I said it was comfort food :)

Step 4:  Chuletas

While your Habichuelas are simmering, add a very small layer of oil to a large pan.  You can use more oil if you intend to "fry" your chops, but a lot of times, I just cook with a little oil.  Turn the heat onto Med-High and wait for it to heat up.  Once your pan is hot, you can add the chops that you have been marinating one at a time.  Make sure to lay the meat "away from you" when you put each one in the pan so that you are not burned by sizzling oil.  Add as many as will fit in your pot neatly in a single layer.  (Feel free to stir the Habichuelas while the chops are cooking).  Cook about 4 minutes on each side.  If you have more chops than will fit into a pan at one time, heat your oven to 220 F in order to keep your finished chops hot while others are cooking.  Continue cooking in the same oil until all are finished.

Hopefully, by this time the rice and beans are just about done.  The beans can be served on top of the rice or put to the side so that each person can decide how to mix it in.  My boyfriend is a big fan of chopping up his chuletas and mixing them in with the rice and beans.

There you have it, Puerto Rican Comfort Food at its best!  Salud!

**Note about Sofrito**

Do NOT buy the Goya brand "Sofrito" in the store for this recipe.  That product is not very authentic and will NOT produce the same taste.  If you are unfamiliar with Sofrito and do not know any PR who would have their own stash, then buy the Goya Recaito instead.  Goya Sofrito is reddish, orange, while Goya Recaito is a definite green.  Go for the green, much closer to the actual taste you should achieve.  I am working on my own Sofrito recipe that should be up soon.  But hey, if you're in the Tulsa area and are feeling like you just need to make Habichuelas for yourself, email me and I'll give you a few cubes (I freezed mine that my friend made me in ice cube trays and then threw the frozen cubes in a bag.  Great way to store).

Puerto Rico, My Heart's Devotion

Growing up in Jersey had lots of perks.  One being that both of my parents came from what I like to think of as that "good, old school, East Coast" breed.  Both love jazz music, black and white movies, and musicals.  Though there may not have been much else that my parents agreed on, I can't deny that both instilled in me and my brother a real love of the classics.  It's no wonder that I prefer to watch Danny Kaye, Jerry Lewis, and Humphrey Bogart when I'm homesick or that Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong, and Duke Ellington can just make a bad day feel "right" again--even from the first note of one of their pieces.

Having said that, as a little girl, my mother told me the plot of the film, West Side Story, years before I would ever watch it.  This version of forbidden love a lá Romeo and Juliet really rocked my world when I first watched it.  Though it has definite variations from the Shakespearean tragedy that it draws heavily from, it still speaks of young passion, the sacrifice that love demands, and people struggling for their place in the world.  Even though the female protagonist of the film (Natalie Wood) is not a true Boricua, I still loved that movie a lot when I first watched it.  Living on the East Coast (I make these comparisons because living in Tulsa, OK for any amount of time will teach you that not everyone's experiences are the same, though they may be from the same country), taught me a great respect for all cultures, a fascination with traditions, and a desire to celebrate in various ways.  A certain pride is still quietly present in me at times that there is definite Puerto Rican blood (even if only visible in my dark curls) within me.

My friend, Joya, performed what she (and I) know as a "real labor of love" for me yesterday.  Any Puerto Rican reading this post will know exactly what I mean when I tell you what she did; she made Sofrito for me...

What is Sofrito?  Well, if any of you readers have ever had the pleasure of eating authentic Puerto Rican food before, you know then of the amazing flavors that are introduced to your palette with every bite and that inevitable question that is formed on your lips to ask, "What is this incredible taste?" Sofrito is the base for all Puerto Rican dishes, usually the first thing that goes in the pot to simmer with the olive oil to get things started before any other ingredient is added.  Without Sofrito, many Puerto Rican dishes would lack their almost Caribbean sabor.  

I have not yet worked out my own tweaked version of Sofrito, but I am working on it.  As soon as I find one that I am confident in, I will post it for all of you foodies to try, especially if you've never attempted Puerto Rican food yourself.  Let me inform you, it is not a cousin to Mexican, or any other "Hispanic" food you may be accustomed to.  Puerto Rican food is much more akin to most Caribbean cuisine.  So, now that I am fully stocked with a massive amount of Sofrito (you usually only need a tablespoon or two), I am ready to share my first very, very personal Puerto Rican recipe, one that I've been making for 10 years that was passed down to me.

Tomorrow, I will be cooking Arroz con Habichuelas y Chuletas.  Please check again in the evening for pictures, ingredients, and the full recipe.  In my opinion, this dish is the ultimate Puerto Rican comfort food.

Until then, Salud :)

Mi Abuelo dancing...

Creamy Tomato Basil Soup

Thinking of my childhood, I have fond memories of my mom making tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches.  I loved dunking my bread oozing with cheese into the tomato soup and having those flavors blend in my mouth.  Often, I would only eat enough of the soup for my sandwich to be dipped several times and not want to consume the rest.  Why not?  Well, the reason is simple:  my mother* made canned tomato soup.  I know that there are some moments when canned is OK (perhaps beans, crushed tomatoes, corn, etc.).  However, I have come to the conclusion that soup is not one of those food items that should be canned.  Think back to the momets that you've enjoyed a really good soup (or stew).  Maybe you've relished it while you were sitting in a café with a couple of friends, or when it was the first course in a delicious meal at a great restaurant, or perhaps when you were feeling under the weather and a friend or relative dropped by with chicken soup made from a "family recipe."  On those ocassions, it wasn't a canned soup that warmed your heart, but something that took someone time to make.  Over the course of the last year, I've attempted making many soups from scratch and have decided it can be a real labor of love.  From the moment you start simmering your vegetables or preparing a broth, to the moment you ladle your concoction in the bowls, a smell fillls your home and your senses prepare to be warmed.

One of my favorite soups, prior to learning how easy it is to make myself, to order in a café is Cream of Tomato Basil, or Tomato Basil Bisque.  This soup takes me back to those childhood day of sitting on my livingroom floor (we didn't use the kitchen/dining table much), watching a 90's sitcom and dunking hopefully endlessly my cheesy sandwich into the bowl.  However, even without dipping material, this soup is delicious.  This is one I can eat without any added substance and it can fill and warm me up.

The ingredients and directions are so simple, if you've never tried this soup before and have great memories of tomato soup like me, it is a must!

You will need:
*serves four*

• 4 cups Tomato Juice (Any brand will do; I'm partial to Campbell's - which usually has 8 cups total, so often  I double the recipe to use up the bottle at once)
• 6 Tomatoes (You can mix and match.  I usually use 2 on the vine and 4 Roma)
• 15 Basil Leaves (Do not skimp on the basil; this is crucial)
• 1 cup Heavy Cream (Again, a usual small container of cream has 2 cups, so double the recipe if you have a bigger family)
• 1/2 cup Butter (1 stick) (Sometimes I do less if I've trying to watch the fat, but honestly, this is an indulgingly rich soup, so go for it if you can!)
• Salt and Pepper to taste (I always use garlic salt)

Steps:

1.  Peel/Seed the Tomatoes

• To Peel:  Make a cross pattern in the bottom of a tomato.  Using tongs, submerge the tomato into boiling water for 1 minute.  Take out and the skin will come off where you made the slits. (I did not do this the first few times I made the soup, not a huge difference if you want to skip)
• To Seed:  Cut the Tomato in half horizontally.  Then you can just use your paring knife to cut the seeds from the "ribs" of the tomato and  "scoop" them out.

2.  Place the tomatoes (you don't have to cut them any more if you don't want to) into a medium stock pot. 

3.  Pour in all 4 cups of your juice and turn the stove on to Medium. 



4.  Allow the stock to come to a slight boil and let the tomatoes simmer for at least 30 minutes (the longer you let it simmer the more pronouced the tomato flavor.  Make sure to stir occasionally so that pulp doesn't cake around the sides of your pot.

5.  Once the stock has simmered long enough, you can start blending with the basil leaves.  This can be done by using an immersion blender (If you're luckier than I am) or using a regular blender in batches. 

• *Special Note:  If you are unfamiliar with blending hot liquids, there are precautions that MUST be taken:  Use a clean dish towel to cover the "drop" hole at the top of your blender.  This allows steam to escape.  Otherwise, if you close the hole w/ the plastic insert, the entire lid will blow off from the steam trying to get out and your kitchen will be a tomato pulp mess, or worse, you will get burned! (This note may or may not be due to personal experience)*
  
  

You can blend all of your basil leaves at once, or if you are using a regular blender, add them in segments with your soup.  Using a slotted spoon to grab larger tomato pieces is helpful.

6.  Once the soup has reached your desired consistency through out, return the pot to the burner.

7.  Bring the soup back to a slight simmer.

8.  Add the butter and cream.

9.  Once the butter has completely melted and the cream has totally incorporated, add salt and pepper to your liking.







10.  Enjoy this creamy soup with texture so rich, you'll be asking yourself, "Is that velvet?" (Maybe someone will get the reference?)


I have also used left over Creamy Tomato Basil Soup for the cream base of Vodka Sauce when making pasta.

*My Mother:  I want to make sure that everyone knows my Puerto Rican-(who knows what else) mother, Mary, is an amazing baker and cook.  Hopefully, eventually, one or two great recipes I grew up enjoying will make it to the site, though I have my doubts since my family's very secretive, especially about cookies :)  She is an amazingly hard-working single mom who has given up more than anyone else I know to give my brother and me a future and hopeful outlook.  Though soups may not have been her "thing,"  her other dishes and desserts more than make up for our experience with canned tomato soups :)

Preview of Tomorrow's Recipe...

Sadly, the post that I'd intended to cook/write today must wait until tomorrow.  

The store I went to after work today was all out of basil :/  

However, all my other necessary items are here, 

waiting on my stovetop to become something delicious tomorrow.  

Can anyone guess what I'll be making tomorrow night?

1st Post:: Chicken Tikka Masala

Perhaps I should begin with an introduction. My name is Celesté and I'm an English teacher. I am from South Jersey, but currently reside and teach in Tulsa, Oklahoma. After living in China and teaching during the 08-09 school year, I moved back to the states and wound up (somehow) back in OK (I'd gone to university here). Shortly after moving back to the US, I found myself craving the kind of food I was used to eating inQingHuangDao, where I had gorged myself on street food, such as jaozi, fresh fried rice, and fried mantou. These cravings led me to figure out if I could recreate, or perhaps create at all, food that I and those around me could enjoy. I started out with very simple dishes the fall of '09 and now a year and a half later feel very comfortable in my little, cute kitchen.

I hope to give little anecdotes and revelations along the way, but don't want to make this into necessarily a journal--just my novice experiences with food, utensils, and spices.

Thus, I shall jump right into my first entry: Chicken Tikka Masala.

Since this is one of my favorite Indian dishes, I figured I needed to learn how to satisfy the craving on my own without trying to convince my boyfriend that we needed to order take-out from an OK Indo-Asian spot in town. After scouring the internet for recipes, I settled on this one that I found on foodgawker.com. I made some alterations after viewing this guy on youtube (he's actually pretty hilarious if you can make it all the way through).

I marinated the chicken overnight (I bought on sale thin cut breast pieces from Walmart and cut into one inch pieces)

To make the Marinade:

• 1 cup plain yogurt (I bought two 6 oz containers of Greek yogurt because their packaging was so cute and because I used a bit more chicken than called for)
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice, from 1 lemon (I probably used almost 2 TBSP)
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin(maybe a bit more, I am on a real cumin kick these days)
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper (used chili powder)
• 2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger (had to use ground ginger)
• 1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
• 3 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces (as I said before, I used a bit more)

After cutting the chicken to the desired size, I just whisked all the above ingredients and then added the chicken. I covered it with tin foil and placed in the fridge. (I then proceeded to make Chicken with Raspberry Balsamic Reduction sauce and Garlic Roasted Golden Potatoes for dinner that night, since the Chicken Tikka wouldn't be ready until the next night).

The next evening, after a long day of classes and a side tutoring session, I picked up some Naan on the way home. After being unsuccessful in my search for skewers (I'm sure I stared right at them and just didn't see them), I decided to bake the chicken on a thin disposable cookie sheet (I didn't want to dirty my nice one that my mom bought me on her visit last year). I baked the pieces at 450 degrees for 20 minutes. I was so surprised and delighted that the yogurt had really thickened around each piece and started to form a nice crust on the chicken, similar to what the traditional grilling may have done.

While the chicken was baking, I started making the sauce.

To make the Sauce/Gravy:

• 1 tablespoon butter (used 2TBSP)
• 1/2 - 1 whole white onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 jalapeno pepper, finely chopped
• 2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 2 teaspoons paprika (I ended up using Tumeric instead because my little paprika shaker was hiding in the bottom of my pantry)
• 1 teaspoons salt, or to taste
• 1 teaspoon garam masala (used 2tsp)
• 3 pods cardamom
• 1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
• 1 (14.5 ounce) tin chopped tomato
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• (any alterations, I put in italics)

First, put 2 tbsp of unsalted butter into a large, deep skillet on Med/High. As it begins to melt add the onions. Let those soften about 5 minutes. Next, add the garlic and 1/2 jalepeno. Once all three of those are soft, but not really browning yet, begin to add all of your spices: cumin, tumeric (paprika), salt, garam masala, and cardamom. Mix them into the butter/veg mixture, a paste-like consistency should be achieved (These are similar steps to take when making Indian curries as well I have found). Add the tomato sauce and tin of tomatoes as well. Bring the mixture to a boil and then lower the temperature to a simmer. Continue to simmer the mixture as it will bring out more flavors. Once the chicken is done (either from the grill or oven), add them to the sauce/gravy. (Before adding the chicken, I was a little nervous, I wasn't sure that the sauce had the distinguishable flavors I had been used to from Tikka Masala; however, after adding the chicken with its yogurt crust all this changed).

Allow the chicken to simmer in this sauce for at least fifteen minutes. Then add the cream to your desired taste. I used a little less than the cup called for.

Then plate your chicken with plenty of gravy for the rice (I made long grain (out of basmati) in the rice cooker with 2 tsp extra virgin olive oil + 1tsp cumin + torn cilantro) and naan (Don't forget to add torn cilantro on top).

Hope you enjoy trying this surprisingly simple recipe that is jam-packed with flavor :)