fallen behind - here are a few from the last week:
BLAT salad with cukes, heirloom tomatoes, non-cured bacon, and a mayo/lemon dressing, and croutons made of bread sauteed in the bacon fat. corn on the cob on the side
Korean pork burgers - ground pork marinated in bulgogi marinade overnight. lots of gochugaru added, too. Burgers were super juicy! with cheddar cheese, very ripe kimchi on mine, and a totally unrelated caprese salad with fresh mozz. went well anyway.
pesto spaghetti and a reverse-seared rib eye, and broiled tomato with parm.
and dinner last night was out - pop-up, sort of, from a Bolivian family’s home/restaurant that is trying to start up again. the father had an actual Bolivian restaurant for years and then they couldn’t afford to keep it going. they still sold salteñas …
…to order - you could call them up and the dad would meet me on a street corner and do the hand off - like a delicious drug deal. i just learned from the son that he died last year. the family is trying to get the restaurant going again, in the son’s house, until they can afford a restaurant space again. so hard in this city. Salteñas are Bolvia’s answer to empanadas and I have to say i find them superior. they’re filled with a juicy stew, such that i find most empanadas too dry.
the BF had a couple salteñas, i had one, and we split the chicharrones - deep fried hunks of pork - which came with mote (hominy), potato, and chuño - an Andean potato that has been freeze dried and then reconstituted.
An acquired taste, but i’ve been eating them since i was a kid. slathered everything with Bolivian hot sauce, llajwa (“lyah-huah”).
so good, so homey.
for tonight i made this guisado de pollo (a foodie friend’s inspiration) - chicken seasoned with achiote, cilantro, paprika, cumin, s&p, browned, then added onions, garlic, yellow bell pepper, sliced carrots, cilantro, sliced up corn, fire-roasted diced tomatoes, and water/chicken bouillon. Shredded the meat and added it back to the broth. i’ll serve it with homemade (not mine) tortillas and white rice.
From the freezer, onto a small roasting pan and baked in my convection oven (but not using convection heat - although I should try that next time!).
