Brief Overview of Sofrito
The origins of sofrito, are steeped deep in not only many recipes and dishes, but its flavor marinates throughout so many cultures and has the ability to take taste buds on a short trip. Cooking bases have been used for ages, but one cooking base in particular, which is popular among Latin dishes is sofrito.
There are several takes on this popular cooking base:
Cuban
Puerto Rican
Brazilian
Italian
Now you can take the easy route if you’re pressed for time and use Goya’s take on sofrito, which comes in a tomato based version and is widely known as sofrito and a cilantro based version known as recaito.
If you’re a food lover and love spending time in the kitchen then, it’s worth getting the quality ingredients to make your sofrito cooking base.
Some versions of sofrito, call for the ingredients to briefly cook over low heat. In some cases sofrito is similar to pesto, because the most of the ingredients are added to the food processor or blender without any cooking.
My Father’s Receta (Recipe)
Ingredients:
4 Bell Peppers
1 Bag of Sweet Baby Peppers
2 Heads of Garlic
2 Packets of Sazon con Achoite (mix of herbs and spices)
1 Vidalia onion
1 Can of Tomato Paste
1 Bunch of Cilantro
Extra Virgin olive (desired consistency)
Adobo (desired taste) Herbs and Spices
Recipe:
Clean all vegetables thoroughly.
Roughly chop all vegetables.
Add all vegetables to the blender or food processor.
Next start the blender or food processor by pulsing once.
As you pulse the second time add a small amount of extra virgin olive oil. Repeat until desired consistency is reached. Less oil will give a thicker consistency. More will thin out the consistency.
Add herbs and spices gradually and go tasting the cooking base as you gradually add the ingredients. Same thing with tomato paste. Gradually add just like pesto.
To My Father
My dad wasn’t your average dad. Every other word, that came out his mouth were the pillars of conversations. He’d let us stay up late all week, jump on the bed and practically kill each other in front of the T.V., but he would remain calm with his Budweiser in hand and even tilt his head to get a better view, while the outline of my sister’s hands were temporarily sewn to my hair. Then there was the time he had to get me and my sister ready for school. My sister was lucky, me not so much. My other pigtail never existed and my dad channeled Punky Brewster, whenever he needed to get me ready for school. Okay, so no one’s perfect, but everyone in my family and friends could agree, that my father was the chef. If we lived in an apartment building and my dad cooked the neighbors would fill the hallways. You could have a real shitty day, but as soon as you opened the door, the smell of food would comfort me and I knew I was home. Everything my family did was grounded around food. Food can unite families, bring the worst of enemies together, and create the most beautiful bonds. This is a food blog dedicated to my father. So, pull up a seat and come and join me at my father’s table.
