high on cooking, takin me back

this week we were graced with a special house guest:  her mom.  for those of you who know us, it will be no surprise that this means we got our puerto rican on all week long.  today she left, but the supply of sofrito she left us in the freezer will keep the sweet smells of pr fresh in the air.  

on her last night we made some delicious ribs from pork chop hill.  i simmered them in fresh pork and chicken stock, herbs from the patio, and various vegetables for about three hours (falling off the bone) before rubbing them down in sofrito, grain mustard, garlic, paprika, local raw honey, crushed red pepper, and sea salt.  the rubbed down ribs chilled in the fridge until dinner time, and they were warmed on the grill. 

¡que delicioso!

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sofrito puerto riqueño:  the essence of the island

this is the recipe her mamita made this week, and it’s enough to last a couple weeks (some fresh, most frozen for later).  adjust quantities as you see fit.  you should all go make some.

two heads garlic

one green pepper

one red pepper

a couple banana peppers

one red onion

about half a bunch cilantro

one bunch scallions

-sea salt and olive oil to taste

we used a food processor, which takes this to a supremely easy level, but clearly a knife and two hands will work just fine.  dice and combine everything (save salt and oil).  once combined salt to taste and add a bit of oil (to prevent it from oxidizing).

how to use: sofrito goes in and on anything and everything.  the most common use is to add it to hot oil before adding whatever else you are planning to cook.  the sofrito sizzles for only a minute—you just want to release the flavors, not cook it.   

this week alone i added it to eggs, a sandwhich, a salad dressing, and a grilled lobster tail forher—not to mention las costillas de cerdo pictured above.