And to maintain the vitality of culinary cultures, we must adapt. In the last 15 years, the Puerto Rican diaspora has outnumbered the island’s population, and many of us have been forced to recreate our favorite dishes using very different ingredients and tools. You may have to use a bell pepper instead of sweet pepper, or paprika instead of achiote. But as I say in the introduction of Coconuts and Collards, my first book, “It’s Puerto Rican because I did it.” These micro-adjustments ensure that the flavors of my land can continue to be in your mouth.
Perhaps many of my fellow Puerto Ricans see this list and exclaim: “And the cod?” “And the tostones? ”. Oh go ripe bananas, or the coquito. There are many things. I humbly offer these recipes in the spirit of sharing what for me is like mother’s milk, the flavors from which my palate was born: fried in the belly, a lifeline to the island.
As you explore and prepare these recipes, I invite you to consider the flavor mixes. That combination of yautía and green banana with the sofrito and the crab in the alcapurrias it is indisputably sober and robust, as the crunchy and salty texture is offset by the delicate seafood. The intense flavor of Chicken Fricassee —The thighs stewed in white wine with sour tomatoes and brackish olives— many Puerto Ricans are immediately transported to Mommy’s kitchen, just as the roast leg reminds us of all the Christmases and Thanksgiving of our childhood.
You may notice that there are not many vegetables in this collection. That does not reflect the diet of the majority of Puerto Ricans today. On my last trip to the island, just as the COVID-19 pandemic began, I ate sweet chili peppers, fried tempura style, at chef Natalia Vallejo’s restaurant, Cocina al Fondo, which will soon reopen. At Vianda, I tried locally produced radishes with grapefruit and XO sauce. At Bacoa Finca + Fogón, I fell in love with a local beet spread.
But during my childhood, and in the Puerto Rican cafeteria-like places that I have frequented here on the mainland, the most common vegetable accompaniment to our food is a simple salad. It is often unremarkable: a musty iceberg lettuce with tomatoes, canned green beans or peas, dressed with olive oil and vinegar. However, salads are the perfect pairing for Puerto Rican dishes, as they harmonize smoothness with roughness, so I often accompany these recipes with a simple salad of mixed greens, avocado, tomatoes, and palm hearts garnished with a cilantro vinaigrette.
The dishes I present here were central to my understanding of flavor, and everything I cook comes from them. In my conversations with other Puerto Ricans of different ages and social conditions, both here and on the island, they all mentioned these preparations. But most of all, I love each of these dishes, and I hope you enjoy cooking them too.
Von’s essential recipes
Yuca with mojo
–
