SalviKitchen

A new generation of Salvi food…

La Margarita

Salvadorians have definitely made their mark in the gastronomic history of the world. Food is comforting and brings people together, no matter what your background is. Sharing a plate of food made with love transcends international barriers and heals broken hearts.

Pupuserias have been popping up all over the U.S. ever since Salvadorians started migrating here. Pupusas (and curtido) are to Salvadorians what tacos are to Mexicans, or Kimchi to Koreans, and … you get the picture. 

My mom did most of the work for the first draft of this post because my youngest was 3 months old at the time and our four year old was equal to three kids so life was busy at the time. But I did collaborate with my mom to come up with some new flavors. In pupuserias in El Salvador cooks have started to really experiment with some new ingredients in the past few years. Anything goes as long as you mix it with some cheese or beans. Those two components meld everything together so the ingredients will stay in the dough. If you can put it on a pizza then it can also go in a pupusa. We made la Margarita, filled with Asiago cheese, fresh basil, and tomatoes. This, my friends, was even better than pizza. The cheese was perfectly melted and some of it oozed out of the pupusa and toasted on the pan during cooking. Just get out of the box and do something nontraditional and unconventional. I’m sure there’s plenty of other blogs out there with pupusas revueltas. Why not try something different? Unless you do this every now and then, you will never know what you’re missing out on.  

A few years after the first draft…

Ingredients for the masa dough: 

Masa:

• 2 lb package white corn meal or corn masa flour
• Cool water, approximately 1 cup of water to 1 cup of cornmeal

Mix the water and flour. Knead until smooth. Add more water as needed. The dough should be soft and not too sticky. If it cracks when you form the pupusas you will need to add a little more water and oil your hands.  

Curtido and Salsa 

Filling Ingredients for Pupusa Margarita: 

• Asiago cheese, grated and slightly softened (in the microwave)
• Thinly sliced fresh basil (chiffonade)
• Finely chopped roma tomatoes, deseeded 

Mix the cheese, basil, and tomatoes. The mixture should be a bit warm and compacted so it’s easier to form a ball that will go in the middle of the pupusa. 

Filling Ingredients for Revueltas: 

• About 2 cups refried beans, cooked slowly to a thick pasty consistency
• 1 1/2 cups chicharrón (pork butt that has been cooked in its own fat, can also use Mexican carnitas) 
• Chopped onion, tomato, and bell pepper
• 2 cups mozzarella cheese, grated and slightly softened (in the microwave)
• Salt and pepper to taste 

Lighty fry the pork meat with onion, tomato and bell pepper. Process together until it is finely minced. Add the beans and cheese and combine. Any filling for pupusas should be processed or ground to a pasty consistency otherwise the filling ingredients will poke through the dough. If the filling is too runny it will leak and become a little sticky. 

• Other filling ideas: Cheese and loroco (an edible flower), cheese and spinach, cheese and mushrooms, ground chicken and cheese, plain cheese, cheese and grated bell peppers, beans and cheese, shrimp, zucchini flowers and cheese, anchovies, etc. 

To form the pupusas: 

Take a little bit of dough and roll it a little bigger than a golf-sized ball. Pat it and flatten it like a tortilla and make a dent in the middle with your fingertips. It is totally fine to use a tortilla press or place the dough in between two pieces of plactic wrap and flatten with your hands. Making pupusas requires a little bit of practice. Stuff with your filling ingredients (you can use an ice scream scoop), and pinch the dough together to seal. Pat and flatten it again with hands moistened in oil and water. Cook on an oiled griddle or pan on both sides until golden and crispy.

Tip: Keep two little bowls with water and oil on the side to moisten your hands.

EN ESPAÑOL

Los Salvadoreños sin duda hemos dejado nuestra huella en la historia gastronómica del mundo. La comida une a las personas, no importando su pasado. Compartir un plato de comida hecha con amor trasciende las barreras internacionales y cura los corazones rotos. 

Las pupuserías han venido apareciendo en todo los EE.UU. desde que comenzó la migración de los salvadoreños aquí. Pupusas (y curtido) son para los salvadoreños como lo son los tacos para los mexicanos, o Kimchi para los coreanos, y pues… agarras la onda.

Mi mamá hizo la mayor parte del trabajo para el primer boceto de este post porque mi niña mas pequeña tenía 3 meses de edad y nuestra hija de cuatro años era igual a tres niños. Estabamos ocupadísimos en esos primeros años. Pero sí tuve tiempo de inventarme unas nuevas ideas para colaborar con mi mamá. En las pupuserias de El Salvador han comenzado a experimentar con algunas ideas nuevas en los últimos años. La idea es que todo vale, de verdad! Si se puede poner en una pizza, entonces también puede ir en una pupusa. Hicimos la Margarita, rellena con queso Asiago, albahaca fresca, y tomates. Esto, mis amigos, fue incluso mejor que una pizza. El queso se derritió a la perfección y un poquito queda tostadito en el comal. Muy rico. Estoy segura de que hay un montón de otros blogs por ahí con pupusas revueltas. ¿Por qué no probar algo diferente? A menos que hagas esto de vez en cuando, nunca sabrás de lo que te estás perdiendo. 

Ingredientes para la masa: 

• 1 paquete de 2 libras de harina de maíz blanco o harina de masa de maíz
• Agua fría, aproximadamente 1 taza de agua por cada taza de harina

Mezclar el agua y la harina. Amasar hasta que quede suave. Añadir más agua si es necesario. La masa debe quedar suave y no demasiado pegajosa. Si se raja cuando se forman las pupusas tendrá que añadir un poco más de agua y aceitar sus manos.  

Curtido y Salsa 

Relleno para la pupusa Margarita: 

• Queso Asiago, rallado y un poco suavizado (en el microondas) 
• Albahaca fresca en tiras finas (chiffonade)
• Tomates roma finamente picados, sin semillas

Mezclar el queso, albahaca y tomates. La mezcla debe estar un poco calientita y compacta por lo que es más fácil para formar la pupusa. 

Relleno para las famosas Revueltas: 

• Alrededor de 2 tazas de frijoles refritos, cocidos lentamente hasta obtener una consistencia pastosa (lo que conocemos como frijoles colochos) 
• 1 1/2 tazas de chicharrón (lomo de cerdo que se ha cocido en su propia grasa, también puede utilizar carnitas mexicanas) 
• Cebolla, tomate y chile verde picados
• 2 tazas de queso mozzarella rallado y un poco suavizado (en el microondas)
• Sal y pimienta al gusto 

Sofreír el chicharrón junto con la cebolla, el tomate y chiles. Procesar o moler finamente. Añada los frijoles y queso. Cualquier relleno para pupusas debe ser molido hasta obtener una consistencia pastosa de lo contrario los ingredientes del relleno se salen de la pupusa. Si el relleno está demasiado aguado se pone todo pegajoso y no se puede formar la pupusa. 

Otras ideas para rellenos: queso y loroco, queso y espinacas, queso y champiñones, carne picada de pollo, solo con queso, queso y chile verde, frijoles y queso, camarón, flores de calabacín y queso, anchoas, etc. 

Para formar las pupusas:  

Tomar un poco de masa y hacer una bola, un poco más grande que una pelota de golf. Palmear y aplanar como una tortilla y ahuecar en el centro con los dedos. Está totalmente bien utilizar una prensa para tortillas o colocar la masa entre dos pedazos de plástico y utilizar su mano o un plato para aplanar. Hacer pupusas requiere un poco de práctica.

Rellenar con sus ingredientes de relleno (puede usar una cuchara para servir helado) y unir las orillas de la masa para sellar. Palmear y aplanar de nuevo con las manos humedecidas en aceite y agua. Cocinar las pupusas en una plancha o comal engrasado hasta que estén doradas y crujientes por ambos lados.

Recomendación: Mantener dos recipientes pequeños con agua y aceite a un lado para humedecer las manos.

Authentic Salvadorian quesadilla is warm afternoon treat traditionally paired with a good cup of coffee. It should have a subtle cheesy/creamy taste and the texture is sort of like cornbread, slightly grainy from the rice flour and sweetened with sugar, but not like a cake. The cheese used in my recipe is queso fresco which is mild as opposed to hard cheeses. I have tasted quesadillas made with hard cheese and I find that for my taste, parmesan sweet bread is just too strong.

When visiting El Salvador we often drop by a roadside restaurant called La Posada in La Libertad, where quesadillas are made in a wood-fired oven. It’s a very artisanal way of making them. It’s similar to the difference between pizza made in a commercial oven vs pizza made in a wood-fired brick oven. Artisanal quesadillas have a slightly darker color all around from the heat of the terra-cotta ovens. It’s the kind of flavor that you want to capture and replicate.

The ingredients in El Salvador are natural and fresh and I tried to mimic those flavors the best I could, opting for crème fraîche instead of “Salvadorian” sour cream from the Latino market. Unfortunately, most brands of Salvadorian cream I have found contain additives and it’s just not the real deal. Real Salvadorian cream is the naturally cultured cream top of freshly milked milk. That’s it. So the cream that is the closest thing to Salvadorian cream is actually crème fraîche. I also used high fat 6% A2/A2 whole milk which you can find at specialty stores like Wholefoods.

Ingredients:

• 1 10 oz queso fresco, crumbled or grated
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 cup (8 oz tub) crème fraîche (or crema)
• 1 egg (you may add 2 eggs that can be whipped and gently folded into the mixture for a more cake-y, airy consistency)
• 1 lb (2 cups) rice flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 12 oz bottle (1 1/2 cups) 6% milk (extra cream top) or whole milk
• Sesame seeds to garnish

Preparation:

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
2. Crumble the cheese using your hands or use your mixed with the paddle attachment.
3. Add the sugar, cream, and egg. Mix until well combined.
4. Add the flour and mix on the lowest speed. Slowly add the milk until you end up with batter similar to pancake batter.
5. Pour the batter in greased baking pans or tins and sprinkle with sesame seeds. I used three 7″ pans plus one 6″ pan because that’s what I had on hand. However, you may use any size pan or baking dish as long as you spread out the batter thinly and evenly. Quesadillas are supposed to be roughly 1 inch thin more or less.
6. Bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown. I baked my quesadillas for roughly 35-40 minutes.

I was recently contemplating the idea of having some chickens in our small backyard to get some fresh eggs, and after some research, I came to the conclusion that our yard is too small and that it is easier just to buy them. It seemed like a worthwhile endeavor at first because I love eggs so much. I especially like the fresh organic eggs from the farmer’s market because they reminds me of the quality of eggs you get in Europe with almost orageish yolks.

Eggs are versatile and can be cooked in so many different ways for any kind of meal, not just breakfast. In this recipe, the eggs crêpes have a turkey filling, but you could add other ingredients as well. So whatever you have on hand like maybe some ham, cheese, or even left over beef stew would all work here.

Ingredients:

For the crêpes:

• 6 eggs (for 12 crêpes)
• 1/3 heavy cream (optional)
• salt and pepper
• Olive oil cooking spray or butter (your choice)

Preparation:

1. Whisk the eggs, cream (if using), salt, and pepper in a large measuring cup or bowl. *I like using a measuring cup because it easier to pour the egg.
2. Heat a small (6 inch) nonstick skillet over medium-low heat and spray with cooking spray or melt a dab of butter.
3. Pour close to 3 tablespoons of egg mixture into the center of the skillet, swirling to coat the bottom of the skillet evenly just like a regular crêpe. Once the egg is set, carefully flip the crêpe and cook the other side for about 30 seconds. Transfer the cooked crêpe to a plate and repeat the process. You get about 2 crêpes per egg.

For the ground turkey filling:

• 1 lb ground turkey
• onion, chopped
• bell pepper, chopped
• Worcestershire sauce
• 1 8oz can tomato sauce (regular or spicy)
• 1 cup water or stock
• 2 cups fresh spinach leaves
• Olive oil cooking spray (or choice of fat to cook with)
• Any kind of cheese that melts like pepper jack or mozzarella

Preparation:

1. Heat a medium skillet over medium-low heat and spray with cooking spray (or use a little bit of oil) and brown the ground turkey. Season with salt and pepper.
2. Add the chopped onion and bell pepper. Stir and continue cooking for about 5 minutes.
3. Sprinkle Worshcestire sauce, stir.
4. Add canned tomato sauce and water. Cover and simmer for 10 min.
5. Add spinach, stir and turn off the heat.
6. Fill each crêpe with the turkey mixture and some cheese. Roll like a taco and serve.

I love soups. Right now it’s early spring in California, but it feels a bit wintery with some rainy days here and there and 60 degree weather. I know what you’re thinking if you live in some frigid state somewhere up north. But here, 60s means it’s soup weather.

Here’s a soup that is easy and versatile. You can make different variations of it every time. This time I added some sausage, carrot and spinach because that’s what I happened to have in my fridge. You can make it with just broth or add any veggies you like. It’s really up to you and super easy to make for a quick weeknight meal .

Ingredients:

• 4 Italian chicken sausage links, sliced
• 1 diced carrot
• 1/2 diced onion
• 1 diced celery stick
• 1 8 oz can tomato sauce
• 1 carton chicken broth
• Chopped fresh herbs (ex. parsley, basil, thyme, etc) or Italian seasoning
• 1 lb cheese tortellini
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Fresh spinach leaves, desired amount

Preparation:

1. Heat a soup pot and spray with some cooking spray or add a tiny bit of olive oil. Brown the sausage.
2. Add carrots, onion, and celery stick and cook for a few minutes until the onion is translucent.
3. Add the tomato sauce and broth. Season with salt and pepper to taste. *Sometimes the sausage is bit a salty so you may not need much salt.
4. Add the chopped fresh herbs. Bring the soup to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer. Cook until the carrots are tender.
5. Add the tortellini and spinach and cook for 4-5 minutes on medium heat.
6. Serve and enjoy.

Growing your own cooking herbs is no easy feat depending on what types of herbs you use. We are not gardening pros and we are still trying to acquire a green thumb. Cilantro is by far the most delicate of all herbs I have ever tried to cultivate so I still rely on store-bought bundles which, fortunately, are pretty cheap. Here at home we enjoy growing the heartier types like mint, rosemary, thyme and lavender. Sometimes we have basil, parsley and even some romaine lettuce which you see pictured here.

Fresh herbs are great for cooking just about anything. I like the extra freshness they bring to chicken dishes, pot roasts, soups and in this case oven-roasted pork chops. A few sprigs of mint are great for making tea and for Salvadorian meatball soup.

Ingredients:

• 4-6 bone-in loin pork chops
• 1-2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 1-2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• fresh herb bundle of your choice, chopped
• or 2 teaspoons of dried herb mix like herbes de Provence or Italian seasoning
• salt and pepper

Preparation:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 F.
2. Prepare a roasting pan by spraying with cooking spray or oil.
3. Rub the pork chops with olive oil and balsamic vinegar and then sprinkle all over with garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, chopped herbs, salt and pepper.
4. Arrange all the pork chops in the roasting pan. Transfer the roasting pan with the pork chops into the oven and bake for approximately 30 minutes, depending on the thickness of the pork chops.
5. Feel free to add some carrots and/or potatoes to roast right along with the pork chops.
6. Serve and enjoy with your favorite sides.