Does anyone have a trusted recipe for Sofrito?

restrangled

There are hundreds on the internet, each one seems to be different. I am going to make Ropa Vieja with it so if you have a recipe for that too it would be much appreciated!

r

I buy mine in the supermarket. The Goya brand. It is just easier that way. But you can try the going to www.goya.com to see if they have one. I've found some great recipes on there to cook for my Puerto Rican hubby. Lilly

restrangled

Thanks LL....thats where I got the idea to make it. In the latest Gourmet magazine Goya had an ad for making Ropa Vieja. I looked up Sofrito and seems it is easy enough to make and it was strongly suggested to make your own instead of buying it. The problem, there are so many versions, I don't know what one to choose!

r.

lovelylil

Doesn't the goya website have a recipe for sofrito?

restrangled

LL...No because they sell it!

r.

BurnTheShips

Here is how I do it (taught by a Cuban mother):

In a Spanish olive oil (dont be stingy) sautee:

Chop up a whole garlic and add to the hot oil.

Add a chopped up medium sized tomato and bell pepper. Add cumin, a bay leaf and fresh Cuban oregano (regular italian oregano will do but I grow my own from a cutting my grandmother brought back from Cuba in 1993). You can skip the tomato if you like and use tomato paste in the Ropa Vieja (I use it anyway). Half a can (the little ones) will probably do you fine. Anyways, brown this mix up.

As for the Ropa Vieja (skirt steak), boil it for a couple of hours or until tender.

Pour off the broth (good to save for a future soup).

Shred up the skirt steak (falda.)

Mix with the sofrito and add some tomato paste, onion and garlic powder, a bit of black pepper and salt to taste. A bit of cumin too if you like, but a little goes a long way. Also, I sometimes add some capers and olives, especially if I am not using skirt steak as the meat, but ground beef instead (this is called Picadillo). If I am making Picadillo, I always add some raisins.

Cook up the meat with the sofrito for about an hour.

Oh and dont forget to hit it with some sherry, that is the magic touch! Sherry makes everything taste better. And its good to drink while you are cooking too. ;-)

BTS

snowbird

I knew Burn would be along to help out.

Sylvia

Octarine Prince

Contraband Cuban oregano?

Un-American!!!

betterdaze

(Sofrito recipe follows)

Daisy Cooks ROPA VIEJA, DAISY’S WAY

KNIGHT RIDDER PHOTO/TIM CHAPMAN
After she had helped her physician husband establish his practice, Daisy Martinez got a surprise gift from her spouse: Enrollment in a famed culinary school. Six years later, she is one of the few Latinas with her own TV cooking show.

ROPA VIEJA, DAISY’S WAY
‘‘If you’re Cuban, please don’t come after me for using chuck steak instead of the more traditional flank steak,’’ Daisy Martinez said. ‘‘Both are delicious, but I prefer the texture of the shredded chuck to that of flank.’’ The celery, carrots and peas - for sweetness, she said - are also a departure from the norm.

One 2-1/4 to 2- 1/2 pound chuck roast

Fine sea or kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

Onion powder

3 tablespoons canola oil

1/2 cup sofrito (see recipe)

1/4 teaspoon ground cumin

2 (8-ounce) cans Spanish-style tomato sauce

3 tablespoons alcaparrado or coarsely chopped pimiento-stuffed olives

2 bay leaves

4 celery stalks, with leaves, cut into 1/4-inch dice

3 medium carrots, trimmed and cut into 1/4-inch dice

1 cup fresh or frozen green peas

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Pound the meat out with a heavy meat mallet until about 1/2-inch thick. Season both sides of the beef generously with salt, pepper and onion powder.

Heat the oil in a large, oven-proof, heavy skillet over high heat until rippling. Add the beef and cook it until well-browned on both sides, about 10 minutes.

Drain or spoon off most of the fat from the pan. Stir in the sofrito, 2 teaspoons salt and the cumin and bring to a boil. Depending on how much oil was left in the pan, you may have to add a little to give the mix a nice, creamy texture.

Stir in the tomato sauce, 1 1/2 cups water, the alcaparrado and bay leaves. Bring to a boil, cover the pan and bake until the meat pulls apart easily with a fork, about 2 1/2 hours.

Let the meat stand in the sauce until cool enough to handle. Shred coarsely by hand or using two forks. Return it to the sauce and add the celery and carrots. Bring to a simmer over low heat and cook until the vegetables are tender, about 10 minutes. Stir in the peas and cook a few minutes more. Watch the liquid as it cooks, and add more broth or water as needed. Makes 6 servings.

Source: Adapted from daisycooks.com.

DAISY’S SOFRITO SEASONING

‘‘What sofrito does is add freshness, herbal notes and zing to dishes,’’ Martinez writes. ‘‘In my house, sofrito makes its way into everything from yellow rice, black bean soup, sauce for spaghetti and meatballs to braised chicken and sauteed shrimp. Not only that, it freezes beautifully, so in about 10 minutes you can make enough sofrito to flavor a dozen dishes.’’

2 medium Spanish onions, cut into large chunks

3 to 4 cubanelle or Italian frying peppers

16 to 20 garlic cloves, peeled

1 large bunch cilantro, washed

7 to 10 ajices dulces (see notes)

4 culantro leaves or another handful of cilantro (see notes)

3 to 4 ripe plum tomatoes, cored and cut into chunks

1 large red bell pepper, cored, seeded and cut into large chunks

Coarsely chop the onion and cubanelle peppers in a food processor, with motor running, add the remaining ingredients one at a time and process until smooth. The sofrito will keep in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Freeze 1/2-cup portions in sealable plastic bags. Makes about 4 cups.

Notes: Ajices dulces, also called cachuchas or ajicitos, are tiny sweet peppers with a hint of heat. Do not mistake them for Scotch bonnet or habanero chiles (which they look like). If you cannot find ajicitos, up the cilantro and add a pinch of cayenne.

Culantro has long leaves with tapered tips and serrated edges. When it comes to flavor, it is like cilantro times 10. It is a nice, but not essential, addition to sofrito.

Source: Adapted from daisycooks.com.

Tuning in

‘‘Daisy Cooks!’’ airs on PBS stations. The show’s bilingual Web site is www.daisycooks.com .

restrangled

Thanks Burns! I was confused as to whether the Sofrito should be cooked or not and you answered that question. I saw recipes calling for Sherry, and I agree the flavor is great. I am planning on adding the olives to the final dish. By a "Whole Garlic" are you referring to an entire head or one clove? You didn't mention onions in the Sofrito but in the final dish is that correct?...!

Thanks again.

r.

Does anyone have a trusted recipe for Sofrito?

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