1,000 Foods To Eat Before You Die: A Food Lover's Life List (171 page)

It takes some time for chicken to get that good. First, the whole, cleaned bird, trimmed of all visible fat, is marinated for twenty-four hours in a fragrant blend of lime juice, white wine, chiles, cilantro, garlic, ginger, cumin, and oregano. After a final slathering of the marinade and sprinklings of pepper and paprika, it begins its slow, closely watched spin on the grill. Cut into serving pieces, it is ready to be dipped into the fiery
ají verde
sauce, which combines cilantro, hot green ají chiles, garlic, and judicious zaps of cumin and pepper. Sour cream and fresh white cheese are whipped together to make the milder
ají amarillo
, flavored with ginger, the milder yellow ají pepper, and garlic and dosed with annatto powder to impart the sunny hue. Mashed or fried potatoes and crisp disks of softly sweet, fried plantain are the right foils, as is some ice-cold beer.

Peruvian rotisserie makes for excellent, way-above-average takeout. Fortunately, ambitious home cooks can achieve almost the same results without a rotisserie by simply roasting a similarly marinated chicken in the oven. For a memorable special-occasion dinner, the marinade can be applied to small, individual birds, such as cornish hens, each as a complete portion. Just don’t forget the salsa—and the beer.

Where:
In NY, FL, and NC
, Pio Pio at multiple locations,
mypiopio.com
;
in Chicago
, D’Candela, tel 773-478-0819,
dcandela.com
;
in Centennial, CO
, La Polleria, tel 720-583-1051,
lapolleria.com
;
in CA and Miami
, El Pollo Inka at multiple locations,
elpolloinka.com
;
in Houston
, Andes Café, tel 832-659-0063,
andescafe.com
.
Further information and recipes:
The Everything Peruvian Cookbook
by Morena Cuadra and Morena Escardo (2013);
A Taste of Peru
, by Daniel McKay (2012);
epicurious.com
(search peruvian grilled chicken);
southamericanfood.about.com
(search pollo a la brasa).
See also:
Salt-Roasted Chicken
.

Quinoa is a superfood with nine essential amino acids and a lot of protein.

Quinoa (pronounced KEEN-wha) is an ancient plant with tremendously healthful properties. Although prepared like a grain,
Chenopodium quinoa
, grown in the Andes, is actually a relative of spinach and chard that produces great quantities of edible seeds, which have been a staple food since the days of the Aztecs and the Incas. In fact, quinoa was a major commodity crop for the Incas, who referred to it as “the mother grain.”

Like rice, the tiny, pearl-like seeds expand in volume when cooked, but they have an engagingly nutty flavor all their own. Though they are no longer hand harvested, their processing has remained relatively unchanged: threshing the seed heads to remove the seeds, winnowing the seeds to remove the husks, and washing them to remove the bitter compounds that coat the seed.

Quinoa used to be a hugely important ingredient only in South American cuisine, but it’s now riding a wave of popularity in the United States, whole and ground into flour for gluten-free breads and pastas; typically served as a side dish or salad, quinoa can replace rice or couscous in almost any preparation. Nutritionists approve, as the seeds are loaded with protein and essential amino acids, and are also richer in nutrients, lower in carbohydrates, and higher in fiber than most grains.

Where:
In Houston
, Andes Café, tel 832-659-0063,
andescafe.com
;
in New York
, Forager’s City Table, tel 212-243-8888,
foragerscitygrocer.com
;
in San Francisco
, Piqueo’s, tel 415-282-8812,
piqueos.com
.
Retail and mail order:
In New York and Brooklyn
, Foragers City Grocer, tel 212-243-8888,
foragerscitygrocer.com
.
Further information and recipes:
The Art of South American Cooking
by Felipe Rojas-Lombardi (1991);
Ancient Grains for Modern Meals
by Maria Speck (2011);
Quinoa 365
by Patricia Green and Carolyn Hemming (2010);
epicurious.com
(search coconut quinoa; quinoa stuffing; quinoa salad);
foodandwine.com
(search herbed quinoa pilaf; quinoa oatmeal baked apples).

The Caribbean calabaza (
Cucurbita moschata
), also known as the West Indian pumpkin, is unique among squashes. Its amber-and-olive-green exterior embodies a perfect autumn palette and its bright, burnt-orange flesh is smooth, unlike the stringy meat of most North American pumpkins, with a rich, nutty sweetness akin to that of butternut squash. The only hardship in preparing calabaza is common to almost all pumpkinlike squashes: It’s a beast to peel and chop. The hefty calabaza, which can grow as large as a watermelon, is perhaps the most difficult of all, sometimes requiring both cleaver and hammer. No wonder, then, that in many markets, it is often sold precut, in ready-to-cook pieces. Popular in the Caribbean and Central and South America, where it is native, the calabaza is a staple in stews and soups (it’s a marvelous thickener), but is also good simply roasted, fried, or baked. Like all pumpkins, its salted, toasted seeds (called
pepitas
in Spanish) are ideal for nibbling. A superb substitute in any pumpkin recipe, the calabaza is wholly worthy of a place at the holiday table—whether cooked or used as a lovely autumnal centerpiece.

Mail order:
Melissa’s Produce, tel 800-588-0151,
melissas.com
.
Further information and recipes:
Vegetables from Amaranth to Zucchini
by Elizabeth Schneider (2001);
The Sugar Reef Caribbean Cookbook
by Devra Dedeaux (1991);
New World Kitchen
by Norman Van Aken (2003);
Nuevo Latino
by Douglas Rodriguez (2002);
nytimes.com
(search jamaican pumpkin soup).
Tip:
If buying a whole calabaza, look for one with the stem intact and with the fewest bruises and blemishes. If purchasing it precut, avoid pale pieces with blemishes or wet spots.

Callaloo is a bright-green stew with a complex mix of flavors.

Honored in a classic calypso tune, this ubiquitous Caribbean stew came to the islands in the seventeenth century from Africa. According to the song, the spicy dish of stewed greens has the power to induce any man who eats it to propose to the woman who prepared it. Small wonder its appeal has been so enduring.

On the ground, callaloo is also often used as the name of the plants whose leaves provide the base for the dish; these differ from region to region, but are most often either of the spinach-like taro or amaranth variety. Cooked, they have a bright emerald color, a pleasingly silky texture, and a warm, sunny flavor reminiscent of collard greens, though more complex.

When used in the famously flavor-packed stew, the gently simmered greens are added to the pot at the last minute, so that they won’t overcook and lose their deep-green color. An array of traditional ingredients and spices precedes them, most notably onion, okra, and garlic, as well as coconut milk, chiles, and yams or green bananas; depending on the region, these will be joined by a little salt pork, salt cod, beef, or crabmeat. Although it is usually served alongside meat dishes, callaloo served as a main course might be bolstered with sweet and sticky dumplings and served piping hot with rice and slices of avocado—and it might well be followed by an offer of marriage.

Where:
In New York
, Miss Lily’s at two locations,
misslilysnyc.com
;
in Miami
, Jamaica Kitchen, tel 305-596-2585,
jamaicakitchen.com
.
Further information and recipes:
Lucinda’s Authentic Jamaican Cookbook
by Lucinda Scala Quinn and Quentin Bacon (2006);
The Sugar Reef Caribbean Cookbook
by Devra Dedeaux (1991);
New World Kitchen
by Norman Van Aken (2003);
Nuevo Latino
by Douglas Rodriguez (2002);
Authentic Recipes from Jamaica
by John DeMers and Eduardo Fuss (2005);
epicurious.com
(search callaloo stew);
cookstr.com
(search callaloo).

A fisherman diving for conch.

Besides being the delight of shell collectors, who like to hold it to an ear to hear the sea—most likely the result of the concentration of ambient sounds in its echo chamber—the oversized, pearly-pink conch (pronounced conk) holds within its shell a savory seafood morsel simmered by Caribbean cooks into a rich chowder. Once extracted from that swirled, horn-shaped shell, the conch, a variety of sea snail, must first be tenderized by being pounded or steamed, or both. Its intense, deep-sea, clamlike flavor, with a savory, meaty edge, is well worth the effort.

Delicious marinated as the prime ingredient in cold salads, or fried in crunchy fritters, it also appears in the chowder that is so beloved throughout the Caribbean; famously, in Key West, Florida, it is combined with aromatic vegetables, potatoes, and minced ham or salt pork, then simmered to supple softness with a blush of tomato and a sting or two of hot sauce or minced Scotch bonnet peppers. In the Bahamas, a shot of rum might provide the finishing touch. In other island kitchens, sliced green plantains
may be added to the mix for their sweet and starchy richness, as might coconut milk, grated fresh coconut, a shot of sherry and allspice, plus a final sprinkling of chopped scallions. If you come across a completely stingless version of conch chowder, reach for the hot sauce. The fiery zest of chiles adds drama and lift, and is a must for this otherwise mild soup.