Peruvian Dried Potato Stew

Want to try something with completely different textures and flavor combinations? It’ll either blow your mind or not.
For our Peruvian dinner last night we cooked with recipes from the Saveur Peruvian Cooking section except for this traditional dried potato stew that I learned from author/blogger/food writer/critic, Peru’s grand fabulous Maria Elena Cornejo. When I was in Lima recently she organized a lifetime experience gastronomic tour of Lima and I am forever grateful for all the recipes she shared with me.
See the notes for the recipe in Spanish.
Course Main Dish
Cuisine Peruvian
Servings 4
Calories 657 kcal

Ingredients
  

  • 1 pound dried potatoes I used a Peruvian brand
  • 3 tablespoons home-rendered lard or vegetable oil
  • 1 pound pork stew meat cut in ½-inch squares
  • 4 cloves garlic puréed
  • 2 red onions finely chopped
  • 3 tablespoons aji panca paste available at Kalustyan’s
  • 1 tablespoon aji amarillo paste available at Kalustyan’s and Mi Bandera in Jersey
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
  • 1 cup sweet wine Port will do
  • 1 cup roasted peanuts finely ground but not made into peanut butter
  • 1 square unsweetened chocolate ground
  • 4 sprigs cilantro or 2 sprigs culantro, whole or chopped
  • 2 cloves ground
  • 1 teaspoon cumin ground

Instructions
 

  • Toast the potatoes in a heavy saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring constantly. Cover with boiling water to an inch higher than the potatoes. Let rest for one hour.
  • Heat the lard over medium heat until rippling, add the pork and cook until browned, and remove with a slotted spoon to a bowl to catch the juices.
  • To the same fat in the pan, add the garlic, onions, and chile pastes, stirring well to combine. Add the reserved pork, stirring well to combine. Add the potatoes and their soaking water. Taste and add salt and freshly ground black pepper. Cover and cook over low heat for about 35 minutes, stirring often as the potatoes tend to stick to the bottom of the pan. Add water a little bit at a time if needed.
  • Add the remaining ingredients and cook for about another 10 minutes.

Notes

Maria Elena Cornejo’s Carapulcra
1/2 kilo de papa seca
3 cucharadas de aceite
1/2 kilo carne de chancho
2 cebollas bien picadas
3 cucharadas de ajíes panca (los rojos, secos) remojados y molidos sin pepas
4 dientes de ajo molidos
1 cucharada de ají mirasol (es el fresco de color amarillo) hervido, sin piel ni pepas y licuado con aceite
1 copita de vino dulce (puede ser oporto)
2 ramas de culantro
10 rosquitas de manteca (si no las consigues puedes remplazarlas por 200 gramos de maní tostado y molido)
2 clavos de olor
1 cuadrado de chocolate sin dulce
sal, pimienta, comino
preparación
En una sartén tostar bien la papa seca, agregarle agua caliente que la cubra y remojarla durante una hora. Cortar la carne en trozos, dorarla en el aceite y retirar. En la misma grasa, hacer un aderezo con los ajos molidos, la cebolla picadita y los ajíes. Sazonar. Incorporar la carne de chancho y la papa seca con su agua. Tapar la olla y cocinar a fuego lento moviendo de vez en cuando porque se pega en el fondo de la olla. Unos 35 minutos aprox.
Cuando esté casi listo, agregar el vino, las rosquitas y el chocolate rallado. Mezclar y cocinar a fuego bajo unos minutos más. Apagar el fuego, tapar la olla y dejar reposar treinta minutos antes de servir.
Un beso, querida, y me cuentas si salió como esperabas. En tus manos no me cabe la menor duda.
María Elena

Nutrition

Calories: 657kcalCarbohydrates: 44gProtein: 28gFat: 37gSaturated Fat: 15gPolyunsaturated Fat: 7gMonounsaturated Fat: 13gCholesterol: 46mgSodium: 230mgPotassium: 1241mgFiber: 8gSugar: 8gVitamin A: 172IUVitamin C: 29mgCalcium: 98mgIron: 5mg
Keyword pork, potatoes
NOTE: Nutrition values are approximate and for informational purposes only. Values do not include optional or alternate ingredients, nor do they include the nutritional values for any secondary recipes that may be listed in the ingredients.