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197 recipes

Sopa de frijolesBlack bean soup

In Honduras and Guatemala, from Tegucigalpa's comedores to family kitchens in the Guatemalan highlands, sopa de frijoles is the soup of rainy-season evenings and Sunday lunches: black beans simmered until the broth turns inky and silky, seasoned with onion, sweet pepper, garlic and plenty of culantro or coriander. Each bowl is finished at the table with a spoonful of thick cream and served with warm corn tortillas. A bowl gives about 24 g of protein from the beans and cream. Many cooks crumble over salty fresh cheese, which is often made with animal rennet; choose one labelled vegetarian, or leave it out. Soak the beans for 12 hours first; that time is not counted below. The most common mistake is serving it watery: the broth should be thick enough to coat a spoon, so mash some beans into it. Chef's tip: for a vegan bowl, swap the cream for avocado slices.

110 minCentral American Soups

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TopfengolatschenSweet quark puff pastry squares

A Topfengolatsche is what Viennese office workers grab from the bakery on the way in, and what grandparents order with a Melange in a coffee house on a Sunday afternoon. The corners of a puff pastry square are folded over a lemony, vanilla-scented filling of Topfen (Austrian quark) with plump raisins, and the top gets a thin white glaze. It is flaky, light and not too sweet. Raisins are sometimes soaked in rum; warm water or orange juice works just as well, and the recipe below is alcohol-free. Wet quark is the classic problem, because it turns the filling runny and it leaks out in the oven. Chef's tip: hang the quark in a sieve lined with a clean cloth for an hour, or squeeze it, until it is as thick as soft cream cheese.

57 min

Austrian Baking

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MarquesoteSugar-crusted sponge loaf

In Tegucigalpa, León and San Salvador, marquesote turns up on bakery shelves in big golden slabs, cut to order and wrapped in paper to dunk in morning coffee. It is a separated-egg sponge, very light and slightly dry, with a thin crackly crust from sugar sprinkled on before baking; Salvadoran bakers often add rice flour for a finer crumb. Around Holy Week in Nicaragua it is soaked in a cinnamon and clove syrup, and the syrup is given here as an option. Rough folding is what sinks it: beaten whites lose air fast, so fold in the flour with a light hand, just until it disappears. Chef's tip: line the tin with paper that stands 3 cm above the rim; the sponge climbs it, and you can lift the whole slab out to cool without squashing it.

60 minCentral American Baking

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Salpores de arrozCrumbly rice flour cookies

Ask in a Salvadoran panadería for pan dulce to go with the afternoon cafecito and you will be offered salpores, round cookies with a sugar-crackled top that break into soft, sandy crumbs. Salpores de arroz are made with rice flour instead of wheat, which gives them their fine, almost powdery texture and makes them naturally gluten free. They taste of butter and vanilla with just enough sugar. Families in San Salvador buy them by the bag for wakes, birthdays and Sunday visits, and they are made to be dunked. Chef's tip: use finely milled white rice flour, not glutinous rice flour, which turns the cookies gummy; and don't wait for colour on top, because salpores stay pale and an extra few minutes dries them out.

40 minCentral American Baking

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ChampurradasCrisp sesame biscuits

No breakfast table in Guatemala City or Antigua is complete without a basket of champurradas, saucer-sized biscuits scattered with sesame seeds and made thin enough to snap. Guatemalans dunk them in a mug of sweet black coffee or hot chocolate, and they are sold in stacks wrapped in paper at bakeries and markets. They taste of butter and toasted sesame, not too sweet, with a crisp, slightly blistered top. Being too timid with the rolling pin is where most people go wrong; thick champurradas come out like cake. Chef's tip: roll each ball out directly on the baking paper to about 3 mm, so you never have to lift a fragile disc.

45 minCentral American Baking

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Kärntner ReindlingCinnamon raisin yeast cake

Carinthia's Easter loaf takes its name from the Reindl, the round, deep pan it is baked in, and in southern Austria no Easter basket goes to church without one. Inside the golden yeast crust is a spiral of butter, cinnamon sugar and plump raisins, so every slice shows a dark swirl. Locals eat it two ways: sweet with coffee on Easter morning, or alongside the savoury Easter platter with horseradish. Many bakers soak the raisins in rum overnight; warm water or tea works just as well and keeps it alcohol-free. A dry, crumbly Reindling usually means too much flour went in during kneading, so keep the dough soft and only lightly floured. Chef's tip: butter the pan well and dust it with sugar, which caramelises into a thin crunchy shell.

180 min

Austrian Baking

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ErdäpfelstrudelSavoury potato strudel

Austrians, especially in the Mühlviertel of Upper Austria and the Waldviertel, make savoury strudels as often as sweet ones, and Erdäpfelstrudel is a farmhouse favourite for a meatless Friday or a cold evening. Thin pastry wraps a filling of potatoes, fried onion, sour cream, marjoram and parsley, baked until crisp and golden and sliced with a green salad or a dill and sour-cream dip. Bought filo makes it easy at home. The mistake to avoid is a wet filling, which turns the pastry soggy underneath. Chef's tip: cool the filling completely before rolling; warm filling makes the layers stick and tear.

90 min

Austrian Vegetarian

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ChirmolCharred tomato and mint salsa

Wherever Guatemalans light a grill for Sunday carne asada, a bowl of chirmol sits beside it. The tomatoes are blackened on a comal until their skins split, then crushed with raw onion, lime and fresh mint, which is the herb that sets it apart from Mexican salsas. It is smoky, sharp and loose, meant to be spooned over grilled meat, black beans, eggs or plain rice. A common mistake is blending it smooth; chirmol should be chunky and juicy, crushed by hand or with a fork. Chef's tip: leave some of the charred skin in; those black flecks carry most of the smoky flavour.

20 minCentral American Chutneys & Dips

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ChifrijoRice, beans and crisp pork bowl

Chifrijo was born in a San José bar in the 1990s and is now on every Costa Rican cantina menu as the snack to share over a cold drink: a bowl layered with rice, saucy red beans, crunchy pork chicharrón, pico de gallo and avocado, with tortilla chips stuck in for scooping. The name joins chicharrón and frijoles. The pork is belly, simmered and then fried in its own fat until crisp. Soggy chips are the common mistake: add them at the very last moment, never before serving. Chef's tip: squeeze lime over the pork right before it goes on top; the acid cuts the richness and wakes up the beans.

50 minCentral American Snacks & Starters

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ChorreadasSweet corn pancakes

In the Costa Rican countryside, from the Central Valley to Guanacaste, chorreadas are made when the corn is fresh and milky: kernels are blended into a thick batter with a little sugar and butter and "poured" (chorrear) onto a hot griddle, then eaten with a dollop of natilla, Costa Rica's soured cream, and a cup of coffee. They are soft, sweet and taste purely of corn. The common mistake is a thin batter that spreads and tears; it should drop thickly from a spoon, so add masa harina if your corn is very juicy. Chef's tip: leave a few kernels only half-blended so the pancakes have little pops of whole corn.

30 minCentral American Breakfast & Brunch

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Indio viejoShredded beef in corn masa sauce

Masaya and Granada both claim indio viejo, a thick, tangy stew of shredded beef cooked into a sauce of corn masa, tomato, sweet pepper and achiote, sharpened with sour orange and scented with mint. It has the texture of a savoury porridge and is eaten for lunch with white rice and fried ripe plantain. The mistake that ruins it is tipping masa straight into the hot pot, where it forms lumps; whisk it into broth first. Chef's tip: add the sour orange juice only in the last few minutes, so it stays bright and fresh rather than flat.

120 minCentral American Meat

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BahoSteamed beef, plantain and cassava

Baho, also spelled vaho, is the dish Nicaraguan families plan a Sunday around, especially in Granada and Managua: beef marinated overnight in sour orange and garlic, then steamed for hours in a big pot lined with banana leaves on a bed of green plantain, ripe plantain and cassava. Everything comes out tender and fragrant with the leaves, and it is served with a crunchy, vinegary cabbage salad to cut through the richness. Marinate the beef in the fridge, never at room temperature. The mistake that ruins it is letting the pot boil dry, which scorches the leaves and the plantain at the bottom; top up the water every hour. Chef's tip: keep a few banana leaves back to tuck over the top, so the steam stays trapped inside the parcel.

250 minCentral American Meat

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PuliqueChicken stew in chile sauce

Pulique is a ceremonial stew of the Kaqchikel Maya around Chimaltenango and Sacatepéquez in the Guatemalan highlands, made for weddings, saints' days and cofradía feasts, and now cooked at home for Sunday lunch. Chicken simmers with potatoes, güisquil (chayote) and green beans, then a blended sauce of tomatoes, tomatillos, guaque chiles and toasted bread or masa thickens the broth into a smooth, brick-red caldo. Serve with rice and tamalitos or corn tortillas. The usual mistake is adding the masa straight in, which makes lumps; whisk it into some cool broth first. Chicken is done at 74 °C, when the juices run clear. Chef's tip: char the tomatoes and tomatillos in a dry pan until blackened in spots for the gentle smoky flavour of the highlands.

90 minCentral American Chicken

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ChileroPickled vegetable and chilli relish

Sit down in any soda in Costa Rica, from San José to the Caribbean coast at Limón, and next to the napkins you will find a jar of chilero: small dice of carrot, cauliflower, onion and green beans with hot chile panameño, swimming in vinegar. Costa Ricans shake the spicy vinegar over gallo pinto at breakfast, spoon the crunchy vegetables onto a lunchtime casado of rice, black beans, plantain and salad, and add a splash to olla de carne on a rainy afternoon. It is more vinegar than vegetable, sharp and clean, with crunchy, sour bites and a fruity heat that grows the longer the jar sits. Unlike Guatemalan escabeche, nothing is blanched; the hot vinegar alone softens the vegetables slightly. The usual mistake is cutting the vegetables too big, so they will not come out of the bottle and do not pickle through; dice them no larger than 5 mm. It is ready after three days, when the vinegar has turned faintly yellow and tastes hot and the cauliflower is sour all the way through. Chef's tip: add a few strips of the vinegar-softened chile to your rice, but warn your guests.

35 minCentral American Chutneys & Dips

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Ensalada de feriaBeetroot potato salad

No Panamanian Christmas, birthday or town feria table is complete without this bright pink potato salad: cubed potato, beetroot, chopped egg, onion and celery bound in mayonnaise, the beet staining everything a vivid rose. It is served cold next to arroz con pollo, tamales and roast meats. Overcooked potatoes are the usual mistake, turning the salad to mush; boil them whole and cube them once cool. Keep it chilled because of the eggs and mayonnaise, and don't leave it out more than two hours. Chef's tip: dress the warm potatoes with a little vinegar first; they absorb it and the salad tastes brighter.

45 minCentral American Salads

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Ensalada salvadoreñaChopped fruit apple drink

Order an ensalada at a pupusería in El Salvador and a tall glass arrives: apple juice crowded with tiny cubes of apple, mango and marañón (cashew fruit), drunk through a straw and finished with a spoon. It is the country's favourite cooler for hot afternoons and Sunday lunches. Outside Central America cashew fruit is rare, so pineapple stands in well. Cutting the fruit too big is the mistake people make; pieces should be small enough to come up a wide straw. Chef's tip: chop the apple last and drop it straight into the juice so it stays white.

15 minCentral American Drinks

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Escabeche beliceñoChicken and onion soup

Northern Belize, around Orange Walk and Corozal, makes escabeche very differently from the pickled fish of the same name elsewhere: it is a clear, peppery chicken soup piled with sweet sliced onions, sharpened with vinegar and scented with allspice, oregano and plenty of garlic. Families eat it for Sunday lunch or to settle a party night, tearing warm corn tortillas into the bowl. Cook the chicken until it reaches 74 °C at the thickest part next to the bone. The common mistake is adding the onions at the start, so they boil to mush; they go in at the end and stay soft but bright. Chef's tip: brown the chicken under the grill or in a hot pan after boiling, as many Belizean cooks do, for a smoky edge before it goes back into the broth.

75 minCentral American Soups

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Arroz con palmitoBaked rice with hearts of palm

Hearts of palm grow commercially in Costa Rica's northern lowlands, and arroz con palmito is the creamy, cheesy rice bake that turns up at family birthdays, first communions and Christmas buffets across the country. Cooked rice is folded with sliced palmito, sweet corn and a light white sauce, then baked under melted cheese until bubbling. Overcooking the rice at the start is the usual mistake; it keeps softening in the oven, so cook it just tender. Costa Rica's Turrialba cheese and most mozzarella use animal rennet, so choose a vegetarian melting cheese if needed. Chef's tip: slice the palm hearts into coins rather than chopping them; they keep their delicate, artichoke-like bite.

45 minCentral American Rice & Grains

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Ayote en mielSquash in spiced syrup

Nicaraguan grandmothers set a pot of ayote en miel on the stove on Holy Wednesday, so there is something sweet to share with neighbours right through Easter week, often alongside sweet green mango and coconut. Chunks of squash simmer in dark panela syrup with cinnamon, cloves and allspice until they are glossy and tender and the syrup tastes of caramel and spice. Stirring is the common mistake: a spoon breaks the soft squash into mush, so shake the pot instead. Chef's tip: leave the skin on the squash; it holds each piece together and turns soft enough to eat.

75 minCentral American Desserts

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Café chorreadoCloth-filtered coffee

Every Costa Rican grandmother has a chorreador: a small wooden stand holding a cloth bag, the bolsita, over a cup or jug. Hot water is poured through the grounds by hand, a little at a time, and the result is the coffee drunk at breakfast with gallo pinto and again at the afternoon cafecito around three, with a tamal, a slice of pan casero or a rosquilla. The cloth catches the oils and fine grounds, so the cup is clean, bright and smooth, with the soft acidity and caramel sweetness of Tarrazú and Central Valley beans. In the countryside the water is sometimes sweetened with tapa de dulce before it goes through. It is strong coffee, so mind the caffeine late in the day. The common mistake is pouring all the water in at once, which floods the bag and leaves weak, uneven coffee; pour in slow circles, in four or five goes. It is ready when the drips slow to a trickle and the coffee is dark reddish-brown and smells of toasted caramel. Never wash the bag with soap; rinse it in hot water and hang it to dry. Chef's tip: boil a new bag once with a spoonful of coffee before using it, to season the cloth.

10 minCentral American Drinks

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MoshOat and milk drink

In Guatemalan homes, mosh is what a mother hands a child on a chilly highland morning in Quetzaltenango or Huehuetenango: rolled oats cooked long and thin with water, milk, cinnamon and sugar, so it's drunk from a mug rather than eaten with a spoon. The common mistake is making it too thick like porridge; it should pour easily, so keep adding hot milk or water as the oats swell. Chef's tip: whisk it hard for a minute at the end; it breaks up the oats and makes the drink smooth and frothy.

15 minCentral American Drinks

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ChichemeCold cracked corn drink

Chicheme comes from La Chorrera, just west of Panama City, where it is sold by the glass at the town's fairs alongside bollos and chorizo, and it is now drunk all over the country on hot afternoons. Cracked white corn is cooked until soft and swollen, then mixed with sweetened milk, cinnamon and vanilla and served very cold, so every sip has chewy grains in it. Undercooked corn is the classic mistake; the kernels must be soft right through or the drink feels gritty. Chef's tip: soak the corn overnight, and it cooks in under an hour instead of two.

60 minCentral American Drinks

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Atol de plátanoWarm plantain and milk drink

In Guatemalan markets, steaming pots of atol are sold from early morning: thick, sweet, drinkable porridges made from corn, rice, oats or, in this case, very ripe plantain blended with milk and cinnamon. Atol de plátano is creamy and fruity, a filling breakfast in a mug. The common mistake is boiling it hard after the milk goes in, which catches and burns on the bottom; keep it at a gentle bubble and stir. Chef's tip: simmer the plantain with the cinnamon in water first, then blend; this cooks the starch fully and gives a silky drink without any raw-banana taste.

30 minCentral American Drinks

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Atol shucoSour black corn drink

In San Salvador's Plaza Libertad and outside churches on cool mornings, atol shuco is ladled from steaming clay pots into gourd bowls. Shuco means 'dirty', for its dusky purple-grey colour: it is made from fermented black corn, so it tastes slightly sour and earthy, topped with ground toasted pumpkin seeds, a few whole black beans and a pinch of chilli salt. It is savoury and filling rather than sweet. The usual mistake is leaving the masa to ferment too long in a hot kitchen; check it after a day and use it as soon as it smells pleasantly tangy. Throw it away if you see mould or it smells unpleasant. Chef's tip: if you can't wait for fermentation, a squeeze of lime at the end gives a similar tang.

40 minCentral American Drinks

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