Dominican Arañitas

Shredded Tostones Baskets 

Ingredients:

Plantain (green)                                 2 

Limes                                                2

Olive oil                                          3 cups

Salt                                                  3 tbp

Prep:

- Lets get a small pot and put the 3 cups of olive oil or veggie oil. You need the oil to be 2 1/2 inches deep to fry these’s guys properly. Temp should be around 4-6 on your range depending on the appliance you have in your home.

-Next peel the plantain and start to shred with a cheese grater or peeler. After you have shredded it all add the juice of 1 lime, 2 tbp salt and a splash of water. Mix but try not to break the long shreds into little pieces.

-Time to fry! We must test the oil temp first, put one little strand into the oil to make sure it’s hot enough. Grab a golf ball size amount of the shredded plantains and lightly mold it into a ball but do not apply too much pressure! After the first few you will get the hang of it. After making them crispy and crunchy put them on a paper towel to let the oil drain. Sprinkle salt on the arañitas and plate up. Bamm! You just made this and made it look good.                                                  

The first time I traveled to the Dominican Republic I ran smack into these amazing little treats.

These crunch, salty, limey fried plantains can be a great appetizer or side dish. All I want is a handful of these, a sunny beach and a beer.  

Skirt Steak w/ Fresh Herb Purée

 Ingredients:

Skirt Steak                         1/2 pound

Cilantro                                  4oz

Parsley(flat leaf)                     6oz

Olive oil                             1/2 cup

Parmesan(grated)                   2oz

Sea salt                                 1tsp

Blak peppar                          1/2tsp

Cayenne peppar                    1 pinch

Wild Long Grain Rice              1 cup

Prep:

- Take the steak and let it sit until it gets to room temperature. While your waiting lets make the herb purée.

-Put the cilantro, parsley, parmesan, salt(pinch), pepper, and cayenne pepper in a food processor and blend. While the processor is doing it’s magic pour in the olive oil slowly.

-Now that you just made the sauce put some water to boil.Throw your rice in to cook and  put a large/medium sauce pan on high heat. Once the pan is hot, add olive or veggie oil. Before the oil starts to smoke and burn salt the steak drop it in the pan with the hot oil.

-Sear the steak on both sides but make sure not to overcook. After you sear the steak the way you want to eat it let the meat rest on a cutting board.

-Remove the rice after its cooked. Add salt, pepper and butter(optional).

-Cut the steak in two piece. They should look like two rectangles, have the short end of rectangle facing you on the cutting board then slice away from you.

-Plate the rice and now its time to call on your inner artist. Paint the plate with the herb purée and add the spliced meat. Voila!! In less than a hour you have an amazing meal

Not only is she a looker but the simple flavors of the herbs and steak are a perfect combination. Add any side that suits your pallet, to switch it up I make this with roasted garlic mashed potatoes or steamed veggies. 

Spicy Tuna over Crunchy rice

Ingredients:

Sushi grade Tuna                                6oz

Masago                                              1 tsp

Green Onion (chopped)                    1/4 cup

Sesame Seed                                      garnish

Soy sauce                                           2 tbsp

Sesame oil                                          1 tsp    

Japanese mayo                                  1/4 cup

Sriracha hot sauce                               1 tbsp

Sushi rice (cooked)                          1 1/2 cup

Veggie oil                                          1 cup

Prep:

-Mince tuna and combine with Japanese mayo, masago, sriracha,soy sauce, sesame oil in a mixing bowl.

-Heat up a sauce pan with 1’’ of veggie oil to proper      temp (med heat).

- Using the same amount of rice needed for a piece of nigiri flatten out the rice into a patty and then pan fry until desired crispiness(a few minutes on each side).

-After the crispy rice patties have cooled down on a paper towel put a spoon full of the tuna mixture on each rice patty.

-Garnish with green onions and sesame seeds and you just made this.                                                                

This fun easy to eat food screams EAT ME! Every time I make this it’s better than the last. This is a  trendy dish that is in the now circa 2k13. Make this and tell me what you think. -AR