There are all kinds of conclusions about the black roast. It is such a refined dish, that many claim to have very old family recipes. However, it is a relatively new dish, which appropriates our stoves just over a century ago.
It is a national dish, as well as the pavilion, the mondongo, the boiled, the hallacas, to name a few, that took that nuance when we elaborated a national cookbook, as a consequence of the notion of a unified country.
Meat is the motto
"Salted meat, fried meat, parboiled meat, three times a day, that's how the Venezuelan menu is read", a reference made by Lovera about a text by the German explorer Karl Appun who visited us in 1849. But the presence of the elaboration of roasts does not appear anywhere, and this can have several explanations.
Although the presence of red meat on the menu has always been paramount in Venezuela, Lovera demonstrates the decrease in per capita consumption as a consequence of the wars of Independence and the Federal War. Even with the oil boom, it did not really reach a significant increase. The black roast requires two very specific conditions for its preparation: a lean cut, called "child" that can be round or square and a long cooking process.
All recipes agree that a well-prepared asado has three conditions: sweet taste, dark color and sliced presentation. Some recipes suggest macerating it from one day to the next, two days before preparing it to season the round boy. Store in your marinade in the refrigerator until you are ready to cook.
The dark color is given by the caramelisation of the sugar or papelón, there the meat will be sealed, to which later the adobo that takes the red wine and a touch of English sauce will be incorporated, but this varies from one formula to another. However, there is no lack of those who "cheat" using tails, malts and English sauce in excess to achieve the desired tone.
The black roast is a dish that enjoys great popularity - despite the high costs involved and the relative difficulty to acquire some of its ingredients - any Creole chef who wants to show his skills in the local cuisine, has to know how to prepare it, it is a type of fire test.
Ingredients
A round boy of 1 ½ Kg. Approx.
1 ½ cup of corn oil
1 cup of chopped paper
1 large onion cut into small cubes
3 heads of crushed garlic
1 Kg of ripe tomatoes without skin or seeds
Red wine
Salt and black pepper freshly ground to taste
Preparation
The night before the preparation, take the child and clean it leaving part of the layer of fat that covers it. Crush well with the chopped garlic, salt and pepper to your liking, bathe it with red wine, cover it and let it sleep that night in the fridge. Heat the oil very well in a cauldron and add the aluminum foil (it can be replaced with sugar, but the taste given by the aluminum foil is unique).
When it is dark, seal the meat in this mixture until it is practically black, give it time, so that it is really dark. Apart cut the onions in small cubes, pass the tomatoes through hot water to remove the skin, remove the seeds and leave them in pieces.
Add the onions to the cauldron, let the light and add the tomatoes, a little water, salt and pepper, let cook until tender. You must add water if necessary, so it does not dry out. When it is ready, let it rest before cutting it, serve it with pride accompanied by a very white rice and fried plantains.
