Picante de Pollo (Spicy chicken)

http://www.boliviaweb.com/recipes/english/picante.htm

Ingredients:

3 pounds chicken, divided into parts
¼ cup ground cayenne pepper
2 cups of white onion, cut into small strips
1 cup tomato, peeled and finely chopped
½ cup fresh locoto or chili pepper, finely chopped
1 cup green peas, peeled
½ cup parsley, finely chopped
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon crumbled oregano
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
1 tablespoon salt
3 garlic cloves, peeled, chopped and roasted
3 cups broth or water
2 spoonfuls oil

Preparation:

1. In a large casserole put the chicken pieces with all the other ingredients. Pour the broth or water until covering the ingredients completely.

2. Set to cook over high heat until it boils, and later over low heat for at least an hour and a half or until the chicken is soft. Stir occasionally.

3. If while cooking the broth diminished much, add a little bit more of broth or water so that when serving there is enough liquid.

4. In a deep plate serve one piece of spicy chicken with one boiled potato, cooked aside, chuño phuti and uncooked sauce on top.

5. Finally, sprinkle the chopped parsley on top of the spicy chicken.

Lechón al Horno (Roasted Pig)

http://www.boliviaweb.com/recipes/english/lechon.htm

Serves 8

Ingredients:

1 baby pig (6 1/2 pounds more or less)
1 lemon
1 cup ground cayenne pepper
1/4 cup parsley, finely minced
1 spoonful thyme, finely minced
1 spoonful garlic (8 cloves), peeled, minced, and roasted
11/2 spoonfuls ground salt
11/2 teaspoons ground cumin
11/2 teaspoons crumbled oregano
1 teaspoons ground black pepper
3/4 cup vinegar
1/4 cup oil or butter

Preparation:

1. Clean the pig scraping with a knife's edge the hair that might still be on the skin.

2. Rub the inside and outside of the pig with the lemon juice.

3. In a separate bowl mix all the ingredients, so that a sauce forms. Rub the pig with the mixture. Let it stand for one night.

4. Before putting the pig into the oven, sprinkle it with the juice that had dripped during the night. Make small cuts in the joints of the shoulders and legs, separating the nerves of these limbs. This is made to avoid shrinking when cooking.

5. Place the pig in a deep baking sheet to receive the juice that drips when cooking, with the skin downwards so that, in contact with the juice, it cooks first. One hour later, turn the pig over so that the skin already cooked turns golden and crunchy. Let it cook for about three hours over medium heat (American oven: 350 Fahrenheit degrees; European oven: 176 Celsius degrees).

6. Remove baking sheet from oven. Cut the meat into medium size pieces (about 3 to 4 inches). Serve with baked potatoes and lettuce salad.

Fricasé (Spicy pork meat stew)

http://www.boliviaweb.com/recipes/english/fricase.htm

Serves 8

Ingredients:

2 spoonfuls oil
2.2 pounds pork meat, preferable ribs, cut into 16 pieces
1 cup white onion, cut into thin strips
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon crumbled oregano
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup ground cayenne pepper (1/2 kilo in cases)
1 spoonful salt
1/2 cup green onion, cut into thin strips
8 cups boiling water
1/2 cup plain bread crumbs, to thicken

To serve:

4 cups cooked white corn
8 peeled potatoes (cooked separately)

Preparation:

1. In a large pot heat the two spoonfuls of oil over medium heat. Add the pork and fry until golden.

2. Add onion, cumin, pepper, oregano, garlic, cayenne pepper, salt and green onion.

3. Stir and add the eight cups of boiling water.

4. Let cook until the meat comes off a little of the bones, at least two hours. Try to maintain the initial amount of broth, adding a little of water if necessary.

5. Shortly before serving, add bread crumbs to thicken. Serve in a deep plate with sufficient broth. Garnish with one cooked potato and cooked white corn.

Carbonado Bolivia

http://www.cooks.com/

Ingredients:

1 1/2 lbs. freshly broiled beef, cut in cubes
3 c. water
1 tsp. cider vinegar
1/2 tsp. salt
1 bay leaf
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
6 peppercorns
1 clove crushed garlic
4 ribs celery, sliced
1/2 c. peeled, cubed carrots
1 oz. chopped onion
1/2 tsp. oregano
4 med. apricots, halved and pitted
4 med. plums, quartered and pitted

Method:

Place meat in saucepan with water, vinegar, salt, bay leaf, cumin, peppercorns and garlic. Cover and simmer slowly for about 1 hour. Add celery, tomato, carrots, onion and oregano. Stir to combine. Add fruit, cover and cook until fruits are tender.

Serves 4.

Chairo Paceño (Vegetable and meat stew)

http://www.boliviaweb.com/

Serve: 8

Ingredients:

8 cups of water
1/4 kilo of cow meat (with bone) cut into 8 pieces
1/4 kilo chalona (dry and salty lamb meat) cut into 8 pieces
1 tablespoon salt
1/2 cup of peeled Lima beans
1/2 cup of peeled green peas
1/2 cup of peeled carrots, cut into thin strips
4 cups of peeled potato, cut into thin strips
1 soaked, peeled cup of chuño (frozen potato), washed
1 cup peeled and cooked white corn
1 cup peeled and cooked wheat grains
2 spoonfuls oil
1 cup white onion, cut into thin strips (without washing)
2 spoonfuls ground cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon crumbled oregano
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 cup green onion, cut into strips
1 teaspoon minced parsley (to serve)
1/2 teaspoon crumbled oregano (to serve)
1 teaspoon of minced mint (to serve)

Note: So that chairo is not bitter, chuño must soak in water one night before, then it should be peeled, crushed and washed.

Directions:

1. Pour the water in the pot in which chairo is to be prepared. Place the pot over medium heat. As soon it is warm, add the meat and chalona. Before it begins to boil, stir and add salt. Let it cook for at least one hour. To this broth, add green beans, peas, carrots and potato. Let it boil for fifteen minutes. Then add chuño and let it boil for another five minutes. Add white corn and wheat. Let it boil until potato is cooked.
2. In a small pan put oil and heat it at a medium temperature. Sauté the onion. Then add the cayenne pepper, cumin, oregano and black pepper; let it cook for ten minutes. Finally, add these spices to the chairo stew so that all the mixture cooks for ten more minutes.
3. Remove the pot from the heat and add the green onion, parsley, oregano and mint.

Serve one piece of meat and one piece of chalona in each serving plate. Try to maintain the initial amount of broth. if necessary, add boiling water so that the stew does not get very thick.

Ají de Lengua (Spicy tongue)

http://www.boliviaweb.com/

Serve: 8

Ingredients:

1 tongue of cow (2 lbs. more or less)
water sufficient to cook the tongue
½ cup oil
2 cups white onion, cut into thin strips
1 cup tomato, peeled and finely chopped
½ cup ground spicy red pepper
½ cup parsley, finely chopped
½ teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon crumbled oregano
½ teaspoon ground pepper
1 cup green peas, peeled
4 cups broth or water
1 spoonful salt

Directions:

1. Before cooking the tongue, soften it by beating it with a cooking hammer so that later it is easy to peel. Pour water in a large casserole and set it to boil over high heat. Once the water is boiling add the tongue. Let it cook for two hours until it is soft.
2. Remove the tongue from the pot, let it cool and peel the skin that covers it. Then cut the tongue into thin slices.
3. In a separate casserole add the oil and set to cook over high heat. Once the oil is hot add the onion. Sauté the onion. Then add the tomato, spicy red pepper, parsley, cumin, oregano, ground pepper, peas, broth and finally the salt. Mix well and let it cook for one hour more or less. The mixture must be thick.
4. To the previous preparation add the tongue slices, mix well and let it cook a little until the tongue takes the flavor from the sauce.
5. Serve hot with one potato per person, chuño phuti and steamed rice. Garnish with the uncooked sauce on top.

To Serve:

8 whole cooked potatoes
chuño phuti
uncooked sauce
2 spoonfuls parsley, finely chopped