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Romazava
Romazava
This is the first recipe from the East African island of Madagascar! Romazava happens to be the island nation’s national dish. This one pot meal consists of a variety of meats stewed with a bunch of greens. Traditionally, romazava is made with zebu. You are obviously going to have a hard time acquiring zebu meat, so a combination of beef, pork, and chicken is substituted. The greens used are mustard and 2 other greens that aren’t accessible, ananamy and paracress greens. Spinach and arugula are suitable replacements.
Ingredients
- 1 lb chuck roast cut into small cubes
- 1 lb pork sirloin cut into small cubes
- 1 lb chicken breast cut into small cubes
- 2 roma tomatoes diced
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 cups beef stock
- 1 small onion diced
- 6 garlic cloves minced
- 2” ginger peeled and minced
- 3 serrano peppers seeded and chopped
- 1 bunch mustard greens chopped
- 1 bunch spinach
- 1 bunch arugula
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Heat up olive oil in a large pot over medium high heat. Add in the beef and brown for 8 minutes.
- Stir in the tomatoes.
- Add in the onions, garlic, ginger, and serrano peppers.
- Pour in the stock. Bring to a boil. Cover. Reduce the heat to medium low and simmer for 30 minutes.
- Add in the pork and chicken. Bring to a boil. Simmer for 15 minutes.
- Place the mustard greens on top of the stew; followed by the spinach, then arugula. Cover. Simmer on medium low heat for 10 minutes without stirring.
- The greens will wilt and reduce by half. Season with salt and pepper.
- Stir the greens into the stew.
Thai-Style Cast Iron Butter Steak
Thai-Style Cast Iron Butter Steak
Everybody has had a steak cooked in butter, but this Thai-style butter steak takes it to another level. The steak has garlic pressed into it, then marinated in fish sauce, oyster sauce, and thinly sliced shallots. I recommend using a ribeye, strip, or top sirloin; at least 1 1/2” thick. This recipe will not work with a thin steak. The goal is to create a char from the garlic and shallots on both sides of the steak while achieving a medium rare center. I prefer using a cast iron skillet to cook the steak in. They tend to hold and maintain the heat better than other pans.
Equipment
- cast iron pan
Ingredients
- 1 ribeye, NY strip, or top sirloin 1 1/2” – 2” thick
- 8 garlic cloves thinly sliced
- 2 shallots thinly sliced
- 2 tbsp fish sauce
- 4 tbsp oyster sauce
- 4 tbsp butter
Instructions
- Press the garlic into the steak. Season with fish sauce. Pour over oyster sauce and shallots. Carefully flip over and repeat the steps. Allow to marinate at room temp for 15 minutes.
- Melt half of the butter in a cast iron skillet over high heat.
- Slide the steak onto the butter with a spatula, making sure to leave all of the garlic and shallots on the steak.
- Cook for 6 minutes. Add in the rest of the butter and flip the steak. A nice charred crust from the garlic and shallots will be on top. Cook for another 6 minutes, continuously basting the steak with the butter in the pan. This will achieve a medium rare center. Allow to rest for 10 minutes before serving.
Papelon con Limon
Papelon con Limon
I’m a huge fan of homemade lemonade and limeade. This recipe is probably the best sugary citrus drink that I’ve ever had. Papelon con limon is a popular and refreshing drink in Venezuela. There are only 3 ingredients needed to make: water, lime juice, and piloncillo. Piloncillo is unrefined sugarcane that is sold in 8 oz cones. You can find piloncillo at just about every grocery store in the Latin section, sometimes labeled as panela.
Ingredients
- 1 piloncillo cone
- 4 cups water
- 4 cups ice water
- 3 limes juiced
Instructions
- Bring 4 cups of water to a boil in a pot. Add in the piloncillo cone.
- Simmer until the cone is completely dissolved.
- Pour the sugary syrup into a glass picture. Stir in the lime juice and cold water.
