Sancocho
Sancocho is a hearty soup or stew popular throughout Latin America and the Caribbean featuring a mix of meat and starchy vegetables. The distinctive flavor profile is built on a foundation of sofrito and sazón, creating a deeply savory and wonderfully aromatic broth. Every family has their own take on the dish, but a Puerto Rican version like this one typically contains corn on the cob, a variety of tubers, squash, green bananas, meat and recaíto (Puerto Rican sofrito). This sancocho is one of the first recipes my grandmother taught me to cook, a dish she made during the winter months and especially when anyone was under the weather. Her version always featured dumplings made with green bananas or plantains similar to those in this recipe.
Pasteles
The beloved Puerto Rican dish of pasteles consists of a unique masa (dough) of root vegetables and green banana filled with seasoned meat, then wrapped in banana leaves and boiled. They’re a beloved family tradition that blends indigenous Taíno, African and Spanish culinary influences. This recipe is adapted from the one that’s been used by my family for generations. Every year before the Christmas holiday, Puerto Rican families like mine gather for a day of pasteles making. Some peel the vegetables needed for the masa, someone cooks the pork stew filling, and another grinds the vegetables and bananas into a masa. A table is prepared for forming the pasteles and the group gets down to assembling, wrapping and tying the treats. It’s a labor of love and a hallmark of Puerto Rican hospitality shared with family and friends. Our recipe calls for making all the elements from scratch, but you can also use store-bought recaíto (Puerto Rican sofrito), sazón and achiote oil to streamline the prep.
