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Latin-American Cuisine

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Re: Latin-American Cuisine

Postby Stokey Sue » Wed Jan 13, 2021 11:53 pm

Ah, maybe I'll keep trying then, thanks WolfGirl

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Re: Latin-American Cuisine

Postby Badger's Mate » Thu Jan 14, 2021 11:31 am

A mate of mine had a very hot one in a serving perhaps a year ago, having complained that they're not hot anymore.

I've just taken the trouble to check the email he sent and it was October 2016! :roll: He was in Spain at the time.

In reply I said I'd had one hot one recently but the plant was growing next to and amongst some serranos - the spicy individual might have been picked from the wrong plant in error.

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Re: Latin-American Cuisine

Postby karadekoolaid » Thu Jan 14, 2021 4:20 pm

Chile plants can cross-pollinate. Apparently the insects which pollinate are unable to distinguish between a habanero and a sweet, mild chile, so it´s possible for the sweet chile to be spicy.
Been there, done that. My "sweet" chiles came out remarkably spicy.

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Re: Latin-American Cuisine

Postby Lusciouslush » Thu Jan 14, 2021 6:00 pm

Just can't get the trained insects these days.............. ;)

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Re: Latin-American Cuisine

Postby karadekoolaid » Fri Jan 15, 2021 2:07 am

:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: Lush!!

I´ve been trying to get the local bugs to pollinate my chile plants and all they do is eat the leaves :? :lol:

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Re: Latin-American Cuisine

Postby PatsyMFagan » Fri Jan 15, 2021 2:41 pm

My dad used to pollinate his plants using the dog's tail .. Fred was a Whippet and his tail fur tapered down to just a couple of hairs ... just right for the job :thumbsup

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Re: Latin-American Cuisine

Postby Lusciouslush » Fri Jan 15, 2021 6:20 pm

Was the tail still attached to Fred then Patsy.............?! :stfu

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Re: Latin-American Cuisine

Postby scullion » Sat Jan 16, 2021 1:37 am

i go round my tomato and chilli flowers (and beans etc) with my sonic screwdriver toothbrush (with an old brush head). it mimics the vibrations of a bee.

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Re: Latin-American Cuisine

Postby Pampy » Sat Jan 16, 2021 2:47 am

I just use a soft, thin paintbrush.

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Re: Latin-American Cuisine

Postby Suffs » Sat Jan 16, 2021 9:33 am

Surely cross-pollination is only going to affect the next generation of plants... not the flavour of the fruit of the flowers pollinated? :?

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Re: Latin-American Cuisine

Postby scullion » Sat Jan 16, 2021 10:03 am

True. I made it fit by thinking that he meant the fruit from plants grown with saved seed.

Ps. There’s a very high proportion of self fertile-ness in the nightshade (and leguminous) plant families so there’s a slight possibility that way.

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Re: Latin-American Cuisine

Postby PatsyMFagan » Sun Jan 17, 2021 10:44 am

Lusciouslush wrote:Was the tail still attached to Fred then Patsy.............?! :stfu


Yes - he would follow my dad round the garden ;) :thumbsup

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Re: Latin-American Cuisine

Postby karadekoolaid » Tue Jan 19, 2021 2:04 am

Empanadas can be found all over South America. An empanada is basically a pastry, made with wheat flour or maize flour, filled with meat, chicken, cheese or fish, and either baked or fried. A pasty - or a turnover.
the empanada is the ultimate fast food. You can make them at home, you can find them in local restaurants, on the beach or for sale in the streets.
In the northern countries of S America ( Ecuador, Colombia, Venezuela), empanadas are usually made with maize flour - and fried. In Ecuador, the favourite is a cheese empanada, with sugar sprinkled on top. In Colombia, the filling is meat (beef)and potatoes. In Venezuela, minced meat, or chicken, or cheese or dogfish.
However, down south ( Argentina, Chile, Uruguay and Paraguay), the pastry is made with wheat flour and the empanada is baked, not fried. In Perú, they love chicken empanadas, to which they add abundant hot chiles. In Chile, they add a spice powder called "merken" - a variety of dried chile. in Paraguay, they add red and green bell peppers.
Here´s a recipe for a delicious baked empanada from Argentina.

Empanadas Argentinas
For the pastry:
250gms all purpose flour
1 tbsp lard or butter
125 mls ( aprox) milk
1/2 tsp sugaring:
1 egg yolk
For the Filling:
250 gms minced beef
2 large onions, diced
1 tsp paprika powder
1 tsp cumin powder
1 tsp salt
50 gms chopped green ( or stuffed) olives
3-4 tbsps beef stock
2 hard-boiled eggs, sliced

Sieve the flour into a bowl and add the lard, Mix together until the lard is well-incorporated. Now add the other ingredients and mix until you have a smooth dough. Roll out thin and cut into 12 cm ( about 5 in) circles. set aside.
To make the filling, fry the meat and the onions together in a little oil until gently browned. Add the salt and spices and cook on medium-low heat for about 10 minutes. Add the chopped olives and the raisins and cook for another 2-3 minutes. Taste to adjust the flavour if necessary and add a little more stock if the mixture begins to dry out. Allow the mixture to cool .
To assemble the empanadas, place a circle on the work surface and put some of the filling on one side. Place a slice or two of egg on top. Fold the other side of the circle over the top to form a half-moon, and seal with a little beaten egg. Fold the edges of the half-moon over decoratively - or simply seal with the prongs of a fork.
Bake for about 25-30 minutes at 180C, or until browned on the outside.
NOTE: you can prepare the empanadas and freeze them if you want to make a lot.

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Re: Latin-American Cuisine

Postby scullion » Tue Jan 19, 2021 3:20 am

i'm pretty sure an empanada won one of the classes at the world pasty championships a few years ago.
do you count the pasty as a latin american (mexican) food, too?

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Re: Latin-American Cuisine

Postby karadekoolaid » Tue Jan 19, 2021 4:36 am

First of all: Latin-American does not simply mean Mexican food. That´s like saying "European" food depends on beef, pork and chicken, and Asian cuisine is all curry and noodles.
Latin America comprises all of South America, Central America and México,plus Cuba, the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico, a huge area of land and culture which , despite the fact that they all speak Spanish, covers dozens of different cuisines.
Mexican food is unique - and very indigenous. The tortillas, tacos, gorditas, chilaquiles, moles, barbacoas and enchiladas are authentically Mexican, not Spanish influenced. While the Mexicans do make empanadas, I´ve never eaten one there.
Colombian and Venezuelan cuisine have different roots. They have a huge coastline along the southern part of the Caribbean, (Venezuela alone has more than 1,000 kms of coast) and were influenced by the slaves from Africa, by the Indians and Chinese who migrated to Trinidad, by the British, by the Corsican French who came looking for chocolate in the 18th century. Further south, the Peruvians have a large population of Chinese and Japanese - yet the Incas play a huge role. In Argentina, although the people are heavily influenced by France and Italy, the cuisine is heavy on beef. No vegetarian could survive very long in Buenos Aires.
So to answer your question, in part:
No, I would not consider an empanada to be typically Mexican. I would consider it to be typical of South America, however.

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Re: Latin-American Cuisine

Postby scullion » Tue Jan 19, 2021 1:24 pm

my question was badly worded. i shouldn't have put just 'mexican' in brackets, it was meant to be 'particularly mexican'. the pasty went to mexico along with the cousin jacks.

i am aware of the different influences in that area of the world - i've been to a couple of them.
- and i didn't say that the empanada was mexican - i said it had won a category in the world pasty championships a few years ago.

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Re: Latin-American Cuisine

Postby Badger's Mate » Wed Jan 20, 2021 4:01 pm

the pasty went to mexico along with the cousin jacks.


Thanks to you I've stopped whistling Ian Dury's 'Sweet Gene Vincent' all day and started singing 'Where there's a mine or a hole in the ground' instead... :D

I've had some memorable food in Latin America. On the banks of the Colombian Amazon it was catfish & carbs all the way, plus hot chocolate made with chicken stock. We got to eat the chicken eventually. There was a drink that seemed to me to be the equivalent of Irn-Bru and another that was an infusion of sugar cane, served with cubes of soft cheese in it. In Bogotá we spent a night at the hotel Tequendama (where Bobby Moore was alleged to have nicked the bracelet in 1970, for those with long memories) and I was struck by the loveliness of the bacon for breakfast.

The Southern Cone is much more European. Argentina is very much a meat-and-potatoes country as KK has suggested. Steak, sausages and Patagonian lamb especially. They claim ruibarbo as their own too. I didn't appreciate there was a Yorkshire diaspora there too...

Down South we also had some lovely seafood in Punta Arenas in Chile, beautiful scallops and crab. Great beer from a local brewery too. They were founded around 75 years ago and brew in the German style! :shock: Wonder if they're organic... :D

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Re: Latin-American Cuisine

Postby karadekoolaid » Wed Jan 20, 2021 6:35 pm

Just out of curiosity, I looked up the menu for the Rincón Argentino, in Mexico City, a restaurant my son used to take us to when he lived there.
For starters, SIX different types of sausage, sweetbreads and tripe - plus octopus or ceviche. There´s a plate or two of cheese - served with chorizo/salami. Oh, and some empanadas.
There are SIX different rib-eyes, 5 different tenderloins, 3 beef skirt offerings and 5 beef ribs.
For the fish eaters; tuna, salmon, red snapper.
For the vegetarians (!!!!) - pasta and salad!!
The Argentinians LOVE their meat, and it´s usually grilled.

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Re: Latin-American Cuisine

Postby jeral » Wed Jan 20, 2021 7:54 pm

I'm curious. Like an egg is an egg, although there are six ways of serving eggs, I'd never have known there were six ways of serving a rib-eye steak.

Giz a hint, or should we guess? Back to you karadekoolaid... Please include whether Argentinians who love their meat have a fondness for chillis or other strong flavours that arguably obscure the taste of the meat. Many thanks.

PS Should be Chatterbox: Do Venezuelans have a view on Biden as the new US president, or on the departure of Trump for that matter?

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Re: Latin-American Cuisine

Postby karadekoolaid » Wed Jan 20, 2021 8:53 pm

Argentinians eat their meat in huge slabs - the spiciest they do is chimichurri. Chiles are prevalent in Perú, Bolivia, Ecuador, Guatemala and Mexico.

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