More Cuba

I am inspired by our dinner party to make more Cuban food.  The recipes for the next few days are from The Cuban Kitchen.  These recipes are a good start, but I like a little more pizzazz from my food.

Black Bean Soup at Victor's Cafe:

Wash and soak 1 pound dried black beans with 1 green bell pepper, seeded and halved in 10 cups of water overnight.  Cook the beans in the same water (remove pepper) for 45 minutes.  ( I pressure cooked them for 3 minutes).  In a different pan heat 1/4 cup olive oil.  Fry 4 minced garlic cloves, 1 med chopped onion, the bell pepper, chopped and one bay leaf.  Add the cooked black beans with the liquid to the onion.  Add salt to taste (it took a lot), 1 tbsp sugar and 2 tbsp dry white wine.  Simmer for another 30 minutes.  ( I let it go for about an hour to help develop some flavor)

Red Beans

Wash and soak 1 pound of dried red beans with 1 green pepper, halved and seeded in 10 cups water overnight.  Cook beans in same water for 45 minutes.  Add  2 cups peeled and diced potatoes and 1/2 cup chopped butternut squash in the last 20 minutes.  (I put it all in the pressure cooker at the same time and cooked for 3 minutes.)  Chop the green pepper.  In a large pot, heat 1/4 cup olive oil.  Saute 4 minced garlic cloves, 1 med onion, chopped, 1 chorizo sausage, peeled and sliced and a bay leaf.  Cook for about 7 minutes.  Add the beans.  Stir.  Add salt (again quite a bit) to taste, 1 tbsp sugar, and 2 tbsp white wine.  Simmer until done.  (I let it simmer for about 1 hour)

Beans and Rice

This recipe is supposed to be traditional, but when I make it again I will use more of the soup. The recipe is the same whether you use the red or black beans.   It was a little dry.  Tonight with leftovers I will pour some of Tracy's mojo sauce on it (from yesterday's blog).  I made a different recipe for the mojo.  Hers was much better.

Strain 2 cups of either of the above soups.  Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in pan.  Put in 2 whole garlic cloves.  Cook them until golden, then remove the garlic.  (I might just mince the garlic the next time and leave it in).  Add 2 cups of rice.  Stir 30 seconds.  Add 2 cups water and the liquid from the soup to the rice along with salt to taste.  Stir.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat and cover for 20 minutes.  Add the reserved beans from the soup and stir.  Cover and cook another 10 minutes.  Garnish with lemon.

Roast Pork

Cut an 8 pound pork shoulder roast into 2 pieces.  Make slits into the roast all over.  Make a marinade with 8 garic cloves, salt, pepper, 2 tsp dried oregano, 2 tsp ground cumin, 1 tbsp olive oil.  Rub into roast.  Pour 2 cups juice from sour oranges and marinate 2 hours or overnight.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Drain the pork, reserving the marinade.  Put roasts in roasting pan.  Cook for 1 hour, turning.  Reduce oven to 300 degrees.  Put 1 thinly sliced onion on top of the roast.  Pour reserved marinade over the top.  Cover with foil and bake another 1 1/2 hours.  Remove foil and cook another 30 minutes.  Let stand 15 minutes.