Tacu Tacu
Source of Recipe
cooking class
Recipe Introduction
Tacu Tacu means "half and half" in the Quechua language. Aji (AH-kee) hot pepper paste -- ubiquitous in Peruvian cuisine -- can be purchased at La Feria restaurant or through the Internet. According to executive chef Jeff Bubin, in Peru, this stick-to-your-ribs meatloaf-style dish is traditionally topped with a fried egg and drizzled with extra-virgin olive oil. At La Feria, a tossed salad with a light vinaigrette dressing, lengthwise-cut bananas fried in butter and a baguette slice complete the plate.
List of Ingredients
Vegetable cooking spray
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 large onion, finely diced
2 teaspoons aji (Peruvian hot pepper paste), plus more for serving
1 tablespoon salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon chopped fresh garlic
2 medium-size ripe tomatoes, coarsely diced
2 cups cooked white rice
2 (15 1/2 ounces each) cans black beans, drained, liquid reserved
2 large eggs, beaten
1/4 cup fine dry bread crumbs
1 banana, sliced crosswise, then lengthwise
2 eggs, cooked sunny side up or over easy
Recipe
Assemble all ingredients. Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Coat a 13- by 9-inch baking pan with vegetable cooking spray.
Heat the oil in a large skillet. Add the onion, aji, salt, black pepper and chopped garlic. Saute until the onion is lightly browned, making sure not to brown or burn the garlic, and the aji paste is aromatic.
Gently stir in the tomatoes and rice. Fold in the black beans. Remove from the heat. In batches, transfer the mixture to a food processor or blender. Process until the mixture is pureed, adding some of the reserved bean liquid to thin, if necessary.
Return the pureed mixture to the skillet. With the pan still off the heat, mix in the beaten eggs and bread crumbs until combined. Turn into the prepared baking pan and bake for 30 minutes. While still hot, cut into squares. Pass the aji at the table for diners to add more heat, if desired.
Makes 6 to 8 servings.
|
|
member logon
