5 recipes to make at home for Hispanic Heritage Month

Puerto Rican oxtail sancocho recipe

Sancocho is pure comfort food and the perfect recipe for the start of chilly fall nights. There are multiple versions of this hearty stew across Latin America and the Caribbean, but this oxtail sancocho recipe comes from my Puerto Rican cookbook, “Spanglish: Recipes & Stories.”

I build the broth with the foundational Puerto Rican flavors of recaíto, adobo and sazón. While the stars of the show are the unctuous oxtails, the backbone of the soup is made up of root vegetables like yuca, pumpkin and potatoes, along with starchy corn and green plantain. It takes about 3½ hours to come together, but most of that time is hands-off. As the root vegetables soften, they thicken the cilantro-scented broth until it turns almost velvety.

Credit: Aaliyah Man for the AJC/Food styling by Kate Williams

Credit: Aaliyah Man for the AJC/Food styling by Kate Williams

Easy carne asada tacos recipe

Kate Williams created these easy carne asada tacos for the AJC’s 5:30 Challenge, our series devoted to short ingredient lists and fast dinners.

In the United States, carne asada generally refers to grilled steak seasoned with Mexican-inspired flavors. Williams uses flank steak and prepared taco seasoning to get it on the table in 30 minutes or less. Her smartest move has nothing to do with the seasoning: She flips the steak every minute so it cooks evenly without losing its rosy center.

While the meat rests, warm the tortillas on the same grill or grill pan. Char them first, then wrap them in a kitchen towel to steam. That extra step keeps them warm and pliable.

Credit: Courtesy of Tio Lucho's

Credit: Courtesy of Tio Lucho's

Peruvian ceviche recipe from Chef Arnaldo Castillo

Chef Arnaldo Castillo grew up making ceviche beside his father, Luis, the Peruvian cook and caterer who inspired Castillo’s Poncey-Highland restaurant, Tio Lucho’s. In many Peruvian families, recipes are not written down. They pass from one generation to the next through repetition, loads of tasting and the kind of instructions that sound more like “you’ll know when it’s ready” than a timer going off.

Castillo put that inherited knowledge into his guide to making Peruvian ceviche at home. His red snapper ceviche is dressed with a bright aji limo leche de tigre and served with traditional Peruvian garnishes such as boiled sweet potato and cancha corn. In a nod to his hometown of Piura and his life in the South, he adds Sea Island red peas.

The fish marinates for only two to five minutes. Castillo says the most important work happens before the lime juice ever touches it: Buy the freshest fish you can find, cut it into consistent half-inch cubes and taste the leche de tigre before adding the fish. Once it goes in, the clock is running.

Credit: Handout

Credit: Handout

Spanish tortilla (tortilla española) recipe

Tortilla española is one of those dishes that inspires fierce debate with very few ingredients. Potatoes and eggs are nonnegotiable. Whether onions belong depends on the person you’re asking and how long you have to argue.

Yann de Rochefort, founder of Spanish tapas restaurant Boqueria, shared the restaurant’s tortilla española recipe with the AJC. Boqueria is firmly on team onion and cooks the eggs just to the edge of set.

First, soften the potatoes and sweet onions in a little olive oil, then fold them into beaten eggs. After a brief turn in the skillet, flip the tortilla onto a plate and let it rest while the trapped heat finishes the center. Serve it warm or at room temperature for breakfast, lunch or dinner.

Credit: Eric Wolfinger

Credit: Eric Wolfinger

Pan con tomate recipe

Pan con tomate is Spanish for bread with tomato, which tells you pretty much everything you need to know about this easy recipe. It also proves that a short ingredient list can still deliver a great result.

This pan con tomate recipe comes from Andrew Zimmern and Barton Seaver’s “The Blue Food Cookbook.” Their version starts with toasted baguette rubbed with raw garlic and topped with grated tomato sharpened with sherry vinegar. Boquerones, the mild vinegar-marinated anchovies served throughout Spain, add a briny finish. Use the best tomatoes you can find, and you’ll be knocked out by the results.