Cuban Cooking Made Easy
What Is Cuban Picadillo con Papas? Cuban picadillo (pronounced “peekah-dee-ohz”) means minced meat or ground beef. Picadillo is a very popular Latin dish that is unique to each region that it comes from. Cuban picadillo con papas is ground beef with potatoes. Picadillo starts with a base of sofrito, tomatoes or tomato sauce and spices. If …
What is Cuban Picadillo? Cuban picadillo (pronounced “peekah-dill-ohz”) means minced meat or ground beef. It is cooked with sofrito, tomatoes or tomato sauce and spices. Many Latin countries and even the Phillipines all have their own versions. Even people from different parts of Cuba have their own versions. My Cuban mother in law taught me …
The other day I was watching an old episode of Will and Grace. Will was telling Grace how he was preparing a meal of appetizers for his father. This got me thinking, if I did that I would definitely have these savory picadillo (ground beef) puff pastries (pastelitos de carne) on my menu. How to …
What Are Maduros? Maduros are fried sweet plantain bananas that are mature and overripe. Maduros is such a popular side dish in Cuba that it can probably be found on every dinner table. If you are not familiar with plantain bananas they can be a bit deceiving. Most people might think when they see a …
Over the past few decades, the Hudson County area has grown to become one of the largest Cuban communities in the greater New York area. Many of those who came to the area were seeking their own personal concept of the American dream. And, along with that dream, they also brought with them, some of …
What Is Papa Rellena? Papa Rellena literally means filled potato. So what are we filling potatoes with? We are filling mashed potatoes with picadillo (ground beef). Sounds delish right? Just wait for the second part. First, we take the picadillo and stuff it inside a mashed potato ball. Then, we roll these balls around in some …
What is a Frita Cubana? A frita (free-tah) cubana is the Cuban hamburger. The patty consists of ground beef and pork and sometimes chorizo. It is topped with shoestring potatoes stuffed into a soft bun. The frita cubana dates back to the early 1900’s. They were sold out of carts on the streets of Havana …
What are Albondigas? The Spanish word for meatballs is albondigas. Albondigas are small meatballs made of ground meat and rice. Traditionally, they are served in soup. A broth-based soup loaded with vegetables. Some recipes have potatoes some do not. Most of the recipes found online are also traditionally Mexican. It is really hard to find …
What is a guava? No other fruit says Cuba like guava (guayaba). I had never even heard of guava until I met my Cuban family and ate my first Cuban guava pastry or pastelitos de guayaba. Instant love at first bite! If you don’t know what a guava is either then let me explain. Guavas …
