Captivating Cuba

Hello all!

As I'm feeling particularly hungry today I thought I'd tell you a little something about Cuban food. I thought about letting Hector, our man in Havana, do this for me, but he'd just tell you it's all fantastic without question!

The fact is I'm going to tell you it's all fantastic too, but that's beside the point.

The secret of this fantastic-ness lies in the diversity of the influences. In every mouthful of Cuban food you'll taste Spanish, African, Caribbean and even Chinese influences. And if anyone questions whether diversity of flavour makes for good cooking I'd like to remind them what British food was like before the influx of French, Italian, Greek and Pan-Asian chefs began to make a difference.

The basic ingredients of Cuban cooking are: rice, beans (the two together, as pictured above, is known as Moros y Cristianos, or 'Moor and Christians'), eggs, tomatoes, lettuce, chicken, beef and pork. You'll also come across the rather more unusual Yucca, or cassava, and Malanga, a delicious root vegetable.

A real highlight is Ajiaco, a sumptuous stew made with meat, plenty of garlic and a slew of fresh vegetables.

There's a lot of love in Cuban cooking and you'll find yourself glowing with satisfaction after a typical meal, especially if you've topped it off with some strong, ultra-sweet Cuban coffee. Mmmmm?..

Hope that informs and delights a little. See you all soon!

Jasna

posted at: 17:04 | path: /jasna | permanent link to this entry | 0 comments