Elementary Chef

For centuries, rice has been a staple food of Latin Americans since its arrival on the continent. People in the continent have developed numerous recipes depending on culture and country. Whether eaten as a main or side dish, rice is a must-have in Latin kitchens. Arroz con Camarones is a popular dish all over South America, especially in Mexico and Peru. It is made up of rice that is cooked in a savory shrimp broth with peppers, shrimp, onions, and tomatoes. You can season the dish with garlic, cumin, achiote, and use finely chopped parsley for garnishing. Here is everything you need to know about Arroz con Camarones.

Arroz Dishes in South American Region

Since rice is a staple food in South America, there are numerous Arroz dishes prepared in the area. The most popular ones include:

Arroz Carreteiro

If you ever visit Brazil, you should try out Arroz Carreteiro from any restaurant. Arroz Carreteiro is also known as wagoner’s rice, which is a dish prepared with meat and rice. It originates from the southern part of Brazil. Originally it was cooked by gauchos, who were looking for a healthy and nutritious meal while traveling.

Back then, they made the dish with dried beef. However, today, you can prepare this dish with either leftover barbecues or dried beef. You can also use fresh meat. However, if you do so, ensure that your meat is completely cooked before using it in your recipe. Do this in a separate pot, in which you should fry it in oil with onions and bell peppers.

The great thing about this dish is that you end the cooking process by topping off your rice with eggs and fresh parsley for a combination of flavors that will explode your taste buds. If you love bold flavors, add some spiciness to your Arroz Carreterio by adding hot sauce, hot peppers, or cayenne pepper. You can also add your spices of choice for a personalized touch.

Arroz Chaufa

This is a popular rice dish in Peru, where it has a great Chinese cuisine influence as it was influenced by Chinese immigrants to Peru. Arroz Chaufa consists of fried rice, vegetables, meats, and fruits. To prepare the dish, people fry the rice with shredded chicken, garlic, salami, ginger, eggs, slivered almonds, soy sauce, chicken stock, pineapple juice, and pineapple chunks.

However, there are numerous variations of preparing Arroz Chaufa, including adding beef, fish, alligator meat, and jerky. Preparing Arroz Chaufa is fast as long as your vegetables and minces are diced and ready to go.

Most people prefer using chicken thighs as they are flavorful and make this dish taste amazing. However, if you only have chicken breasts, you can use those too. To save up on time, you can use prepackaged and predicted garlic, bell peppers, and onion.

To prepare the dish, you just need to mix these ingredients in a bowl and add cumin, sesame oil, soy sauce, ground ginger, and a pinch or two of sugar. If you prefer using fresh ginger, avoid adding it to your soy sauce mixture if you prefer to use fresh

Also, remember to use leftover cold rice as the hot one ends up getting gloopy and mushy. In case you don’t have any leftover rice, you can cook some and pour it out onto a baking sheet. Put the sheet in a freezer for around 20minutes for the rice to cool completely.

Arroz con Huevo

Arroz con Huevo is a lazy lunch popular across South America.it consists of rice that is topped with a fried egg. In the past, this simple dish was referred to as Comida de Pobre (poor people’s food). However, the dish is enjoyed by everyone regardless of their social-economic classes today.

There are many variations of this dish. In the Caribbean, they prepare it with plantains as the accompaniments, while in Spain, it is paired with a savory sofrito. To make this humble meal even tastier, you can top it with freshly chopped parsley and some grated cheese for that authentic taste and look. Also, consider serving it with avocado slices and tomato onion curtido salsa.

Arroz con Camarones Mexicano

Arroz con Camarones Mexicano is a fiesta bowl that combines rice with seafood, specifically shrimp. What sets it apart is the combination of Mexican flavors used in this dish. Also, it includes black beans and vegetables, and garnished with jalapeno, avocado, lime wedges, and a lot of cilantro, making it an authentic Mexican dish. It is the perfect one-pot healthy flavorful dish for any time of the day.

To give this dish an authentic feel, you need to first marinate the shrimp with garlic, salt, and pepper before cooking it with shells to preserve its flavor. This is a cooking trick passed on from one generation to the other: boiling the shrimp with the shells on to retain the flavor. You then use that broth to cook the rice and mix it with sofrito or refrito made from pepper, onions, tomatoes, garlic, and white wine.

To make the dish complete, serve it with avocado slices, lime wedges, hot sauce, and a Mexican onion and tomato salsa.

Arroz con Camarones Colombiano

Colombians adore rice, and you can hardly see any of their meal without a hint of some type of rice dish in it. Their way of preparing Arroz con Camarones is different in various ways. Firstly, to make their dish more flavorful, they blend the shrimp shells into the stock and later use the stock to prepare the rice. To do so, you boil the shrimps in their shells and once you remove the seafood, you put the shells in a blender, blend them and sieve to get a thick broth. Boiling the rice in this thick flavorful broth allows the rice to absorb the taste of the shrimps making it extremely delicious.

Also, they have another way of making this dish special, which involves adding green beans, butter, and green peas to it. They use paprika to add some nice color to the food. To make the dish more nutritious, Colombians add chicken broth, which is healthy, full of vitamins, and low in calories. The dish is fresh, simple, and great for any time of the day.

Arroz con Camarones Recipe (Mexican Version)

If you want to surprise your family or visitors with a delicious Latin American dish, consider preparing them Arroz con Camarones Mexicano. Here is a simple recipe that you can follow to have everyone singing your praises all year long.

Ingredients

• 2lbs raw deveined shrimps with shells on
• 4 cloves of crushed garlic
• 2tsp. cumin
• 2 cups of uncooked rice
• 2cloves of minced garlic
• 2tbsp. sunflower or avocado oil
• 3 tbsp. butter
• 1 diced bell pepper
• 1 diced red onion
• 2 peeled, diced, and seeded tomatoes
• 1 tsp. ground annatto or achiote
• 3 tbsp. finely chopped parsley and more for garnishing
• Pepper and salt
• ½ cup of white wine

Cooking Instructions

1. Start by marinating the shrimp using the crushed garlic, pepper, salt, and one teaspoon of cumin. Put the shrimp in the refrigerator for at least an hour to marinate well before cooking.
2. Boil water in a big pot and add the deveined shrimps. Let them boil for around two minutes.
3. Once the shrimp is cooked, remove it from the water and put 21/2 cups of the water you cooked in to boil your rice.
4. Remove the shells from your shrimps and leave some tails on some of the shrimp to use as garnish. Take half of the shrimp and chop them in halves and leave the other half whole.
5. In a big pot or saucepan, heat oil and add the minced garlic. Cook it for around three minutes on medium heat.
6. Add the rice to the oil and garlic and mix well until the rice is well coated with oil.
7. Add the water you used to boil your shrimps to the rice and bring to boil. Reduce the heat to low.
8. As your rice continues to boil, melt the butter in a big saute pan over medium heat. Add the peppers, onions, parsley, tomatoes, ground achiote, salt, and the rest of the cumin. Cook these ingredients for around ten minutes while stirring them frequently.
9. To your vegetable mix, add the white wine and continue cooking for five more minutes or until the peppers and onions turn tender.
10. Mix in your chopped shrimp and sautéed vegetables with the rice, which should still be cooking. Continue to cook on low heat until the rice gets tender and well-cooked.
11. During the last few minutes, add in the rest of the shrimps and mix everything well.
12. Taste and add pepper and salt to taste as desired.

Sides

On the side, you can serve your Arroz con Camarones with:

• Aji criollo hot sauce
• Onion and tomato curtido salsa
• Fried ripe plantains

For Garnishing

To garnish your Arroz con Camarones dish:

• Serve with lime wedges and avocado slices
• Sprinkle some finely chopped parsley and the shrimp with their tails on

After serving this delicious Arroz con Camarones, disfrute de su comida!

Are you interested about amateur blogging? Read my article and discover how to do it. 

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Although Mexico is famous worldwide for foods like quesadillas, tacos, and tostadas, soups are popular throughout the year. The most famous Mexican soups are made with seafood, including crabs and shrimps. One such famous Mexican stew is the Caldo de Camaron, a Mexican comfort and earthy shrimp stew.

You will find this stew in most coastal states, where fresh seafood is in plenty. This article talks about the origin and curiosities of Mexican Caldo de Camaron, different varieties, recipes, and the calories and nutritional value of this dish.

Mexican Caldo De Camaron (Origin and Curiosities)

Fresh shrimp and seafood are locally accessible throughout Mexico, and it is the main ingredient in most regional cuisines, including Caldo de Camaron. The recipe is specific to the ancient Nayarit state, where it originates from. The Nayarit state borders the Pacific Ocean, making it easy to access shrimps and other seafood.

The Nayarit natives would prepare Caldo de camaron as a spicy chili-based soup that contained shrimps. Although the stew has become common throughout Mexico, Caldo de Camarones was well-known in the pre-Colombian era when the indigenous would prepare Tlaxtihuilli. This was a complicated spicy shrimp soup that had a lot of hot chilies.

In the modern culinary industry, Mexicans use both ancient methods with modern ingredients to prepare a similar dish, Caldo de Camarones, which is common today. Chefs recommend that you garnish this stew with some lime juice and chopped avocado. If you wish to achieve an ancient feel of this stew, you should add more salsa to it until you reach your preferred spiciness and thick consistency.

Caldo Different Varieties

There are numerous Caldo varieties prepared in Mexico. Some of the most popular ones include:

Caldo Tlalpeño

Caldo Tlalpeño is a Mexican soup made with onions, chicken stock, garlic, shredded chicken, spicy chipotle, chickpeas, and vegetables, including green beans, carrots, and zucchini. The soup originated from Tlalpan, Mexico City, in the early 1900s. Traditionally, chefs serve the soup with limes, avocados, cheese, and onions to allow everyone a chance to decorate and season their soup according to taste and preference.

Caldo de Pollo

The traditional Mexican chicken soup is the Caldo de Pollo, with a twist. You use typical Mexican spices to prepare this soup, including cilantro and chili powder and other ingredients such as potatoes, chicken pieces, rice, and chopped vegetables.

Caldo de Pollo is believed to be an excellent hangover remedy, which people garnish with avocado wedges or guacamole. Some people prefer adding hot sauce or lemon juice to this soup, while others eat it with corn tortillas.

Caldo De Camaron Recipe

To prepare Caldo de Camaron, follow this simple recipe.

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp. Olive oil
• 1 large onion chopped
• ½ pound carrots cut into half-moons
• 5 peeled and smashed garlic cloves
• 3 seeded and stemmed pasilla chiles
• 1-pound raw medium peeled and deveined shrimp
• 1 can fire-roasted tomatoes (diced)
• 1-pound tilapia fillets
• 1-pound potatoes
• 3-quarts vegetable or seafood stock (or a mix)
• Black pepper (freshly ground)
• Sea salt
• 12-ounces salad shrimp

Garnish

Caldo de Camaron tastes better with a Mexican-themed garnish. Here are some ingredients to prepare an irresistible garnish.

Ingredients

• Diced onion
• Cilantro (finely chopped)
• Lime wedges
• Jalapenos (thinly sliced)
• Diced avocado

Preparation

1. Roast your shrimp shells as opposed to what many people believe, most lobster and shrimp stews don’t get the flavor from the meat. Instead, they get the rich flavor from the crustacean shells. Roasting the crustacean shells gives your stew a rich flavor and color. Buy shrimps with their shells and roast them on your stovetop.
2. To do so, put some water and olive oil in a heavy-bottomed pot and throw in the shells. Let them roast over medium heat with the lid on. The toasty environment within the pot helps bring out all the flavor in the shrimp shells. To get out more flavor and moisture from the shells, add some coarse salt. After around 45 minutes, the process is done, and you should remove the pot from the fire and start cooking your stew.
3. The best way to cook the shrimp the trick is not to overcook your shrimp soup. You need to extract as much flavor from the seafood shells as you can. Since you only put the shrimp in the stew around the last five minutes, you get the minimal flavor from them. However, the shells will compensate for the rich flavor needed to make this stew delicious.
4. Seasoning you can never go wrong with Mexican seasoning when making Caldo de Camaron. Proper seasoning gives your stew a significant savory component to make it stand out.

Cooking Instructions

1. Put a big Dutch Oven on fire over medium heat and add one tablespoon of olive oil. Add garlic and onion and saute until the edges are caramelized, which should take at least seven minutes. Add the chiles and cook for a minute while stirring to avoid burning. Remove from fire.
2. Remove the garlic, onions, and chiles mixture and put in a blender; avoid scooping the oil. Add the tomatoes to the blender with their juices and blend the mixture to make a smooth puree.
3. Put the pot back on fire under medium heat and add some olive oil to the one still in the pot. Put a strainer over the pot and pour your puree through it into the oil. Cook the puree while stirring it frequently until it thickens to have the same consistency as tomato paste. The process should take up to 10 minutes.
4. Add your stock to the pot and let it boil before reducing the heat to let it simmer for around 15 minutes. As your broth is simmering, chop the potatoes lengthwise into quarters and then into quarter-inch slices. Cut the carrots into ¼ cubes too.
5. After 15 minutes, add the vegetables and carrots to the pot and increase the heat to let the soup bubble. Reduce the heat and let it simmer for up to 10 minutes.
6. Add the shrimp, tilapia fillets, and the salad shrimp to the pot. After a few minutes, the pot will start to bubble again. By this time, your fillet and shrimp are cooked through. Run a spoon through the broth to check whether it is cooked. Stirring the soup will have your tilapia breaking into good-sized chunks. Taste the stew to determine whether it needs more seasoning and add it at this point.
7. Serve your stew in big bowls and garnish with diced avocado, chopped cilantro, and lime wedges.

Notes

This Caldo de Camaron is not spicy as the dried chiles are not hot. However, they add an incredible flavor depth to your broth. If you prefer your stew spicier, consider adding more chiles to your recipe. Alternatively, you can serve with hot sauce for your guests to add to their bowls.

What to Serve with Caldo de Camaron

You can serve Caldo de Camaron with most Mexican snacks, including tacos and enchiladas. Also, remember to pour some chilled margaritas as they go well with this spicy dish.

Caldo De Camaron Calories and Nutrition

Caldo de Camaron is not just a simple Mexican stew as it comes full of nutrition. It has 205 calories in one serving. Shrimp, one of its ingredients is low in calories and high in nutrients. It only provides 84 calories in a 3-ounce serving with no carbohydrates.

The same shrimp serving has 20 different minerals and vitamins, including 50% of a human’s daily needs for selenium, a mineral that reduces inflammation and enhances cardiac health.

Shrimp is also high in iodine, a vital mineral that many people have a deficiency of. Iodine helps with brain health and thyroid function. You will also get omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids and antioxidants from shrimp, which makes Caldo de Camaron highly nutritious.

However, shrimp is believed to be high in cholesterol, with a 3-ounce piece having 166 mg of cholesterol. For anyone trying to avoid dietary cholesterol, you should keep this in mind.

You will get enough carbohydrates from the potatoes and vitamins from the vegetables. All these make Caldo de Camaron a balanced diet low in calories and high in protein and fat. Also, remember that shrimp is among the top eight food allergies and anyone allergic to shellfish should avoid Caldo Camaron.

From the nutrition facts, it is easy to see why Caldo de Camaron is a must-have stew either at home or whenever you visit a Mexican restaurant. It comes full of health benefits, even for those trying to watch their weight. Whether you are on a low-carbohydrate diet or not, you can indulge in Caldo de Camaron without feeling guilty.

It is full of good vitamins that help you keep the cold and flu viruses at bay while enjoying a delicious meal. Caldo de Camaron is enjoyed on both cold and hot days, especially when you make it spicier. Some people believe that taking spicy food on a warm day can help your body cool, ideal in such weather. Also, the hotness of a spicy Caldo de Camaron stew will leave your tummy feeling warm and packed on a cold winter day. Treat your Mexican visitors to a delicious stew that they can resonate with for a homey feeling.

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The gorditas de nata is a traditional dessert dish in Mexico. It is a sweet cake that resembles a tiny yet very thick pancake. It is prepared using clotted cream (called “Nata” in Mexico) from milk, sugar, white wheat flour, and cinnamon. The dish is a famous street and market treat across Mexico City.

Gorditas de Nata has an appearance close to that of the Mexican tortilla, but the gorditas de Nata is relatively thicker. The diameter can range between 4 and 12 centimeters. The seasoning may vary depending on which region of the country.

Although you may not miss them on various streets and corners of Mexico City, these treats are gradually disappearing. Those in many streets lack the vital ingredient, nata (clotted cream). In this article, I will share with you the original recipe so you can enjoy the rich and classic Gorditas de Nata. I will also share how to make the nata first, and then we will use it to make the gorditas.

Gorditas De Nata Mexico (Origin and History)

While it is somewhat hard to trace the exact origin, most texts suggest that Gorditas de Nata may have evolved from the Mexican pre-historic culinary. In pre-Hispanic Mexico, a great diversity of tortillas were made possible by mixing corn with different ingredients.

Wheat was not yet available in Mexico until after the country’s colonization. The original dish may have been prepared with masa and stuffed with meat, cheese, or other fillings. The dish Gorditas de Nata was born after introducing European ingredients into the country.

Others believe that gorditas de nata may have originated in Pachuca Hidalgo. The dish was among the many party bread consumed during town fairs. Some creative traders came up with the idea of packaging gorditas de nata in small bags (containing five or ten pieces).

They then sold the wrapped snacks to the foreign truck and private car drivers and passengers stuck in traffic on the Mexico-Pachuca highway during road closures. Today, you will still find some people selling gorditas de Nata in the streets of Mexico City.

Traditionally, the dish was commonly consumed during the marking of the day of Our Lady of Guadalupe, celebrated on December 12. Lady Guadalupe is a pre-Hispanic female fertility deity connected to the earth on the Tepeyac hill. The partakers of the faith later changed her name to the Virgin of Guadalupe.

Gorditas de Nata and various corn-derived dishes were among the food offerings offered during the celebration. For this reason, you will find some people referring to the dish as Gorditas Guadalupanas. As of 1895, the Guadalupe pilgrims visiting the Basilica of Santa Maria de Guadalupe preferred to eat gorditas de Nata prepared by the town’s inhabitants.

Today, the dish is a typical snack and breakfast dish across eastern and central Mexico. It is sweet with a light flavor, and many people love to accompany it with a hot beverage. The significant difference that makes Gorditas de Nata stand out from other Gorditas and buns is the cream in the recipe. Many desserts use whipping cream, but I am not alluding to whipping cream for this recipe, but clotted cream.

Gorditas De Nata Sinaloa

Gorditas de Nata Sinaloa is a delicious fatty nata bits prepared according to the Sinaloa style. They are pretty similar in appearance but differ in the leavening agent used. The same ingredients used in gorditas de nata are used in Sinaloa gorditas.

However, the Sinaloa recipe uses yeast (unlike baking powder or soda used in Gorditas de Nata) as the leavening agent. Both are cooked on a non-stick griddle or skillet without adding any oil.

Gorditas De Nata Michoacan

These gorditas de nata may have their origin in Michoacan. While they may resemble other Gorditas, this one is unique, thanks to the vanilla flavor included in the recipe. You are free to add or leave out sour cream or liquid milk for this recipe as you find it necessary. Unlike the Sinaloa variety, this recipe uses baking soda and baking powder as leavening agents.

Gorditas De Nata Recipe

Let us start with the nata; remember, it is an essential ingredient for the original Gorditas de Nata. Maybe you are wondering; what is Nata? Nata is a spreadable form of heavy cream derived from raw cow milk. It is clotted cream, the layer of fat you skim from milk after boiling and cooling it.

Preparing clotted milk takes a long time but is primarily hands of and worth the wait – it creates a delicious flavor in these fatty gorditas. It is important to note that the yield per liter of milk is not that much, which explains why you get it at a higher price from the stores.

Ingredients for the Nata

• 1 lt heavy cream high-fat content (not ultra-pasteurized)

Preparation

1. Preheat your over to about 175⁰F/80⁰C
2. Transfer the cream into a shallow oven-safe dish or casserole. Preferably, use a container with a large surface area to get reasonable amounts of clotted cream.
3. Place the dish and its contents in the oven – ensure it is at the center and uncovered—bake for 12 hours. I prefer to do this overnight (it is easier), so it is set in the morning. You want to ensure your oven will not switch off after a given amount of time.
4. After 12 hours have elapsed, the cream will develop skin. Remove from the oven. The product may appear bubbly with a yellow surface. Yes, this is how your clotted milk will look.
5. Set aside and let the clotted milk cool. Cover it and put it in the refrigerator for 8 hours. This allows it to set.
6. After chilling, carefully spoon off the thick and firm layer of clotted cream on top and transfer it into a clean jar. Leave the separated liquid behind (You can save this liquid for other recipes)
7. Gently stir the scooped clotted cream until it develops a smooth texture. If the cream is thicker than you prefer, you can add a little of the separated liquid back to the cream until it forms to your desired consistency.
8. Store the sealed jar in the fridge. Clotted cream can stay refrigerated for up to five days and frozen for up to a fortnight.

Ingredients

• 200 grams (7 oz.) clotted cream (nata) – we prepared this above.
• 500 grams (17.6 oz.) all-purpose flour
• 175 grams (6 oz.) sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1½ teaspoon baking soda
• 1½ teaspoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon cinnamon (ground)
• ½ teaspoon salt

Preparation

1. Add the nata into a sizeable bowl and whisk until a bit fluffy. Add the vanilla and eggs, and mix well. Once well integrated, add sugar and mix.
2. Sift the dry ingredients – flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt – into a medium-sized bowl. Add this gradually to the mixture of wet ingredients in step one. Mix with a spoon until it is no longer easy to mix. Now knead with your hands until you make a soft dough with a smooth texture.
3. Cover the dough using a plastic bag. Refrigerate the dough for at least thirty minutes or leave it overnight.
4. Remove the dough from the refrigerator. Sprinkle some flour to dust a smooth surface. Spread the dough on the surface and knead until the dough is about 1 cm thick.
5. Cut the dough using a round (approximately seven cm in diameter) cookie cutter.
6. Heat a non-stick pan over low heat. Place the cut dough on the pan and flip while it looks somewhat raw. This allows the dough to rise well. Flip again and cook until it is fully puffed up. It should take approximately five minutes on each side.
7. Serve with hot coffee or your favorite hot beverage – tea, coffee, milk, chocolate, or atole. You can pair the treats with jam or Dulce de leche, but they are rich in flavor and often do not require any additions.

You can make these tasty treats whenever you want. They are pretty easy to make, and the ingredients are readily available in your local stores.

Important Notes and Tips

Ensure your cream is not ultra-pasteurized. Use regular pasteurized cream; ultra-pasteurized cream undergoes a treatment process that prevents it from clotting. You can even get better results if you use raw or freshly milked milk.

An oven thermometer is a convenient kitchen tool in the clotting recipe. If your oven does not maintain the ideal temperature, your cream will not clot.

Some ovens have an inbuilt safety feature that turns them off after prolonged periods. For such ovens, you may prefer to clot your cream during the day, when you can monitor and keep your oven on during the entire 12 hours.

Do not doubt yourself if you get yellowish cream. This is okay, especially for clotted milk prepared at home. The cream contains high amounts of butterfat, contributing to the final product’s pale yellow color.

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The very special Mexican seafood dish Aguachile, is a sauce seasoned with chili pepper, cilantro, salt, lime juice with slices of onions and cucumbers, served with different seafood doused in the sauce. These kinds of seafood can be white fish (cod, halibut, red snapper), shrimp, or tuna.

Known as the chile/pepper water, the dish is attributed to the Mexicans as the Ceviche style of dish prepared by the Peruvians. However, this sizzling Mexican appetizer is more than just seafood marinated in lime juice, hence it’s low carb and keto healthy diet.

Aguachile comes in variations, such as the Aguachile negro (black version) prepared with adobo sauce, chipotles, and soy sauce, and the Red Aguachile. However, we will be highlighting the Red Aguachile, the red form of the typical dish made from Worcestershire, clamato, and chile de Arbol.

I will be sharing more on the origin and history behind the Aguachile Verde dish (green form), its differences from the Peruvian dish, ceviche, and of course its unique recipe.

Aguachile History and Origin

Interesting discoveries tie the origination of Aguachile to the coast of Sinaloa, one of the Mexican states, specifically the town of Mazatlan, a place is known for its fishing expertise.

Within the fishing town, the dish is referred to as Aguachile de Camaron, a seasoned dish with fresh veggies, cilantro, chili pepper, lime juice, salt, and some slices of onions. Although the typical version of the Aguachile is thought to be prepared with raw shrimp, red onion, lime juice, cucumber, and chilies (jalapenos or serranos). However, this isn’t the original native version the Sinaloa indigenes prepared at first.

Aguachile, by its meaning, had nothing to do with seafood, as our present generation has come to recognize it by. Centuries before the Spanish conquest (16th century), indigenes of Sinaloa were known to transport their meat from the mountaintops where they lived to the pacific coast where civilized traders were, to make a trade for some salt.

The salt was to preserve their sun-dried meat such as venison and wild boar. On their return, they would prepare a boiling bowl of water with chiltepin chili pepper (small round wild chili plucked from the forest around the mountain), and douse their jerky meat (dried salted meat) in the heating water.

This technique of dish preparation was what came to be known as Aguachile, chili water. Safe to say, the dish was named after its main ingredients (water and chili).

Over time the native dish of Sinaloa spread to the Northern region of the country. With its spread came to its reinvention, the recipe evolved into a tasty sauce used as a marinade for raw seafood, mainly fish and shrimp. Although the period of its evolution into a shrimp dish isn’t clear, senior citizens of the state point to its change back to the 1970s, when the fishing industry of Sinaloa grew rapidly.

It is believed that the Japanese migrants of the 20th century in Mexico, contributed to the adoption of seafood in the native food. However, other residents believe the seafood spin of the dish was a food eaten by Sinaloa fishermen who had left the urban region and valleys, hence its late discovery.

In the 21st century, about 20 years ago, Aguachile seems to be taking another recognition with a name, Camarones ahogados, meaning drowned shrimp.

Will Aguachile Verde ever go back to its original versions? That’s highly doubted. Mexico is presently the 17th-largest seafood exporter globally, with Sinaloa accounting for 37 percent of its shrimp in 2017. The adoption of shrimp and other kinds of seafood in Aguachile can be tied to Sinaloa’s major role as one of the major exporters of shrimp in the country.

The Aguachile marinade of nowadays, consists primarily of vegetables (chili pepper, red onions, and cucumber), salt and lime juice, with shrimp as the famous seafood. However other seafood options have included tuna, clams, snapper and even Octopus, yes Octopus! With octopus as the seafood of choice, it is boiled before marination, unlike other kinds of seafood.

The major ingredients of Aguachile (vegetables and seafood) have been subject to variations, hence the different versions of Aguachile (green, red, and black). For instance, common chili peppers used can include Habanero, Serrano, or even Jalapenos depending on the individual’s choice. Some fruit lovers go further to add watermelon, mango, while others add spirits (Mezcal or Tequila) into the marinade.

Aguachile Vs Ceviche

It is common to have the Mexican and Peruvian dishes used interchangeably. But there are considerably note-worthy differences between both dishes. Ceviche, also known as cebiche is a Peruvian dish (main course or appetizer) composed of fresh fish cured in citrus juice (can be lime or lemon) and seasoned with chili pepper, coriander, onions, salt, and aji.

We, however, recall how Aguachile is made, having derived its name from its main ingredients. It is important to note that although both dishes originate from South America, Ceviche is a peru-dominated dish, while Aguchile is accredited to the coastal northwest of Mexico cities found along the Pacific ocean (this refers to Sinaloa and Nayarit).

A difference, however, is in the initial preparation of both dishes. The Aguachile is first prepared by the heating of chiltepin/chili peppers in water, before the addition of its varieties of vegetables such as tomato, onions, lime juice, cilantro and more. So for Aguachile, it all begins with the chili and some water. While in Ceviche preparation, it begins with the seafood cooked in lime/lemon juice.

Another notable difference is the amount of time required to marinate the seafood in Ceviche compared to Aguachile. In preparing ceviche, the seafood is added and allowed to marinate for about 20 minutes.

This differs when comparing Aguachile, where as soon as the seafood is tossed into the line, it is ready to be served. So it’s a longer marination period in ceviche preparation and a short one in Aguachile preparation.

The process of marination in the ceviche preparation process also raises concern, since no form of heating is involved. The “cooking” here is a denaturation process occurring between the citric acid in lime/lemon and the proteins of the seafood.

Hence, the caveat here is that only freshly served ceviche should be taken, since the “heating” method here doesn’t completely get rid of potential germs in the seafood. However, this is different for Aguachile, where the seafood is marinated in the heated/cooked sauce and served.

Red Aguachile Variation

Red Aguachile or otherwise called “r o j o” is a sauce typical to residents of the Nayar mountains. It is composed of red chili peppers, Habanero red sauce (Huichol salsa), and oftentimes some tomatoes. The Cora people (indigenes of the nayar mountains) are located in Nayarit state, a boundary from Sinaloa in the north and west of the pacific ocean.

Famous for its fishing and agricultural practice, their adoption of the Aguachile dish into their taste comes as no surprise, given their proximity to Sinaloa.

Aguachile Mexican Recipe

We are sharing a sizzling process for preparing Aguachile as an appetizer or a main course meal. Our preferred method of serving the tasty Mexican dish is the Shrimp served with cucumber, avocado, and tortilla chips.

Preparation time: 30 minutes

Cooking time: 45 minutes

Total time: 1 hour 15 minutes

Servings: 1 bowl

Ingredients

• 1lb Raw shrimp (cleaned)
• ½ large limes
• A pinch of salt
• Water
• Red onion (sliced)

Seasoned Marinade

• 1 teaspoon salt
• ½ cup of fresh lime juice
• 1 Serrano chili
• 2 Jalapenos (halved lengthwise)
• 1 garlic clove

Optional toppings

• Cilantro leaves
• Avocado (slices)
• Tortilla chips/tostadas
• Olive oil
• Radish (slices)
• 11/2 Cucumber (sliced)

Preparation

1. Place the clean (tails and veins removed) halved shrimps in a flat serving dish in a layer. Squeeze some lime juice on the shrimps, while heating mildly till shrimps turn pink. Add some salt and turn, to cook on both sides in the juice for 15 to 20 minutes
2. In another bowl, thinly slice red onions, sprinkle with salt, and add some water.

Marinade preparation

1. Prepare a mix of all ingredients for the marinade in a blender or processor and blend (1 minute) for a smooth texture. Collect all mixture into a bowl, add some lime juice to ease the removal process in the blender.
2. Doused the marinade over the cooked shrimp. Toss to mix. Sprinkle the red onions over the top, with some cucumber, and radish for different tastes.
3. Serve when ready on/with a tortilla chip or tostadas (as desired). You can choose to add some avocado, and cilantro with a drizzle of olive oil to give it a delicious look. Enjoy

Note

Feel free to try out processed frozen shrimps, if seafood cares for you or you just feel squeamish. Also, remember to allow the shrimps to thaw before you are ready to start cooking. You of course still get the flavor as you get ready to use the raw shrimp on your next try.

Nutrition

• Calories 355
• Total Fat 23g
• Saturated fat 5g
• Trans fat 0g
• Unsaturated fat 16g
• Cholesterol 22mg
• Sodium 408mg
• Carbohydrates 32g
• Fiber 12g
• Sugar 7g
• Protein 12g

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go back to American Cuisine

Escabeche refers to a class of dishes familiar to the Spaniards, Portuguese, and a host of Latin American natives including, the Filipinos and Mexicans. The name explains the pickling technique identified differently from the quick pickling in heated vinegary liquids, which is mainly the pre-heating of some of its ingredients in oil, which helps for the extraction of favorable taste in its ingredients.

It identifies a set of dishes of either meat or fish cooked in vinegar sauce with saffron or paprika, some spices and citrus juice, to give its famous acidic content.

Slight differences are observed in the way Escabeche is being prepared, such as the use of pork, rabbit, chicken and seafood as common options among the Latin Americans and Spanish, this we will be highlighting as we discuss the Mexicano and Spanish style to the dish.

As we go further, we will also be touching down on the history behind escabeche, its recipe and of course how it is served.

Escabeche Origin and Curiosities

The name escabeche, in Arabic, means Iskabej (Arabic), which identifies it origination from among the Moors in the middle ages, a mixed-race of Arabs, Spanish and Persia. The Moors, who occupied Spain more than 700 years ago, were known to have introduced their eastern dishes.

In Arabic, its name is derived from another dish referred to as alsikbaj, a meat dish heated in sweet-sour sauce with vinegar and honey as the major ingredients, the native term of escabeche points to the number of spices involved in preparing the dish. In Persian, Sikbaj means vinegar stew and is known as the lamb stew with spices and vinegar.

Its Spanish meaning, pickling brine, referred to its use of fish or meat in the dish, till the 13th century when the meat escabeche version almost phased out, leaving the fish version.

It is believed that the Christian Spaniards were more interested in the fish escabeche dishes for their Lent amongst other fasting days. Hence the origination of vegetable escabeches, a common version among the Mexicans prepared with jalapenos.

Although there are debates on the origination of the dish among the Arabs (Moors) and its spread to Spain by immigrants through its parent dish (al-sikabaj). The roots of escabeche are still typically traced to Spain on its widespread of the dish internationally, noting that the Northeastern Spaniards introduced the dish to Italy in the 13th century.

Eschebeche being more than just a dish is a preservation technique, similar to marinades, its acidic content (mostly due to vinegar and citrus juice) is used to prevent putrefaction. However, unlike marinades, pickling involves the cooking of the food. This technique singles out the Spanish version of escabeche, where the food is fried in olive oil with different spices (paprika, bay, saffron, black pepper) for a taste.

Today, what represents the dish among Spanish-speaking countries are local modifications of the original escabeche prepared in the early ages in Spain. Guam was introduced to the dish in the 17th century during the Spanish period, as an island skilled in fishing it sort ways to preserve its seafood in a period when vinegar wasn’t present.

The adoption of the Filipinos improvisation with fermented coconut sap, helped Guam adopt two styles of escabeche dish preparation; a Chamorro diet without vinegar and the Filipino style. The Portuguese cuisines also hold their variety of escabeche with a mix of carrots, onion, garlic, peppers, corns and chilies.

Along with these modifications came the different recipes of the popular dish, such as the Shrimp escabeche served with radish, cilantro and white wine vinegar; Chicken escabeche served with orange and some salad by the side; Filipino fish escabeche and other country-specific forms of the dish we will be highlighting.

Internationally, escabeche has its version in Jamaica (escoveech), Italy (escabecio), North Africa (scabetche) and even Greece (savoro). A typical escabeche dish is widely believed to have either fried or poached fish, that is to be served hot or cold after marination in its sauce overnight, which could contain vinegar or citrus as its major content.

Escabeche Mexicano Recipe

Often referred to as Jalapeno escabeche, the dish is a vegetable dish of escabeche common among Mexicans. It offers fresh crunchy pickled peppers (Jalapeno), white onions, garlic, herbs, carrots, cider vinegar and some herbs. The Mexicans adoption of escabeche and their creativity with the dish extends their use from jalapeno peppers to varieties of vegetables obtainable in their gardens or local market.

• Preparation time: 45 minutes
• Cooking time: 60 minutes
• Total time: 1 hour 45 minutes
• Servings: 6 cups

Ingredients

• White vinegar
• 4 Bay leaves
• 1 tbsp dried Mexican Oregano
• A pinch salt
• 11/4 Cups Cider vinegar
• 1lb carrot (peeled & sliced)
• 2 tbsps Olive oil
• 1 Onion (sliced)
• 4 Garlic cloves (peeled)
• 6 Cups of water
• 15 Jalapeno or serrano chiles (seeded and sliced into thin strips)

Preparation

1. Add olive oil into a saucepan/skillet and heat over medium heat
2. Pour in the vegetables and allow to heat for 2-3 minutes, then add the garlic and onion, continue cooking to soften onions for 2 minutes.
3. Allow boiling, with water added. Pour in the carrots, Jalapenos/serrano and heat for 5 minutes to soften.
4. Add the bay leaves, cider vinegar, table salt, oregano and allow to simmer for 60 seconds. Put heat off and allow it to sit and cool to room temperature.
5. Discard the bay leaves, strain the chiles and carrots, keeping the juice into a Mason jar.
6. Add the vegetables to the cooking sauce to an almost filled jar. Add in a tablespoon of salt and bring to the top with white vinegar, but leaving about ½ inch spacing from the rim of the jar
7. Allow to sit and cool to room temperature undisturbed
8. The jar should be covered and refrigerated, with the latest usage period from twelve hours to a week time.

Note: As the pickled vegetables age in the fridge, its tastes and flavour intensify absorbing its sharp spiciness from the peepers to give a blast of flavours and texture you will love.

Spanish Escabeche Recipe

The Spanish-style of escabeche involves a delicacy of meat and more common fish. Its classic dish involves searing the fish (mackerel, bonito, herring or any thinly sliced fish as preferred) or meat with a prepared mix of spice and herbs in vinegar sauce.

• Preparation time: 24 hours 40 minutes
• Cooking time: 30 minutes
• Total time: 25 hours 10 minute
• Servings 4

Ingredients

• 4 Bay leaves
• 1 tsp peppercorns (black)
• 1 cup white vinegar
• ¼ cup kosher salt
• 1 cup white wine
• 4 cup of water
• 1 cup fish or chicken broth (as preferred)
• 1lb fish fillets (cut in sizable inches)
• 1 tbsp oregano leaves (dried)
• ¼ cup olive oil
• 1 tsp coriander seed
• 2 mashed garlic cloves
• 1 tsp thyme leaves (dried)
• 1 chilli (cut in halves)
• ½ tsp cumin seeds
• 1 onion (large-sized cut into half)

Preparation

1. Prepare a mix of the ingredients.  Add 4 cup of water with the kosher salt to taste and stir to mix. Douse the fish in the mixture and allow to sit for 35 to 45 minutes.
2. Using a large skillet, pre-heat the olive oil and pour in 2 bay leaves, chilli and mashed garlic cloves. Cook the veggies in oil over low to medium heat to a light brown for about 5 minutes. Be sure to not burn the garlic while heating. Discard the heated veggies.
3. Cook the fish in the sauce with the heat turned up to medium-high level, to enable you to get a good sear. Ensure each side of the fish is seared for 2 to 3 minutes, especially if the fish is thick. Also, complete heating of the fish is not mandatory.
4. Remove the fish and allow to cool. Pour in the onion and heat at medium level till translucent, then allow to cool.
5. Pour in any ingredients left out into the saucepan and bring to a boiling point by heating on a high level. Put off the heat and allow it to cool to room temperature.
6. Transfer the sauce, fish and onions into a Mason jar (of any jar as preferred).
7. Store in a refrigerator overnight, allowing the flavour to intensify

Note: Most people are concerned about the state of the fish if it is allowed to stay longer in the stored sauce. No need to worry, the state of the fish is preserved by the acidic content given by the vinegar.

Nutrition

Calories 320

Protein 24g

Carbs 9.2g

Fat 15.1g

What to Serve with Escabeche

Quite often the escabeche dish is served cool or at room temperature, given its storage in the refrigerator for hours to days. The mode of serving the dish often depends on the locality within which it is prepared.

A typical Spanish-styled escabeche can simply be served with salad and crusty bread, another great option is serving the dish as a garlic toast, carrots and red onions or with roasted peppers, if you are craving a more spicy taste. Other varieties of escabeche such as the chicken escabeche are served over quinoa or rice.

The dish can also be served as a cold side dish or mixed up with some veggies (onions and pepper) into a salsa dish. The versatility of the escabeche dish is wild, which helps for a creative meal setup.

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