Comida Dominicana : La Bandera Dominicana

La Bandera Dominicana

Dominican food is a fusion of the African, Indian, and Spanish cultures. The Dominican Republic has several national dishes but La Bandera Dominicana is the most popular. La Bandera Dominicana, or the Dominican flag, is consumed by all Dominicans regardless of their social status. The dish is important to the Dominican culture because it a staple food. It is served during lunch and is considered to be the most important meal of the day. The dish consists of rice, beans, meat/seafood and a side of plantains and is always made with fresh ingredients. The dish is called the Dominican flag because of how often it somehow represents the flag colors and because of its popularity.

This particular dish is interesting to me because it was the first Dominican recipe I actually prepared. Even though I am not Dominican I feel like this dish is a part of my culture now because it has helped me to expand my palate and appreciate Dominican culture that much more.

Here is a recipe for La Bandera Dominicana:

(This is not an original recipe. I found it on the Punta Cana Information Guide)

Plantains

Pan-fry in hot oil, lightly salt them and allow to dry on paper towel. You can treat fried plantains much the same way that you would french fries in a North American kitchen.

Red beans

2-3 cups of red kidney beans

1 red onion finely chopped

3 cloves of garlichalf tspn. of coriander

2 tablespoons of tomato paste

2 cups of chicken stock

salt & pepper to taste

Start by caramelizing the onions over medium heat in a little oil. Add garlic and coriander and saute for a couple minutes before adding other ingredients. Stew beans for 20-25 minutes; use a potato masher to turn parts of them into a paste while they're simmering. Keep them simmering until they reach a nice creamy consistency. Serve them mixed with the criolla (rice), the Dominican term for rice & beans is “moro”. However, in la bandera the items are usually separated into quarters on the plate – symbolizing the Dominican flag.

Rice

Whenever rice is cooked well there is a layer that sticks to the pot. In North American kitchens people tend to hide this part of the cooking process and throw it out. This is not the case in the Dominican Republic. This crispy layer of cooked rice is called “concon” and is a delicacy, served separately from the rice. A good Dominican cook can make great tender rice and wonderful crispy concon.

Guisade: Stewed Meat

Usually goat is used for this recipe, but you can substitute with stewing beef.

3 pounds of goat, cut into cubes

3 roughly chopped onions

6 cloves of garlic

4 tomatoes roughly chopped

2 sweet peppers julienned

2 cups beef stock

Coriander, salt & pepper to taste

Marinade:

3 tablespoons oil

3 tablespoons lime juice

Finely chopped onion

3 teaspoons oregano

Salt & pepper

Dominican goats graze on wild oregano, giving their meat a wonderful pre-marinated flavor, something that is always lacking when their dishes are recreated elsewhere. To get around this, marinate the stewing meat overnight in the refrigerator. Rub the meat with the marinade, place in a Ziploc bag and refrigerate overnight.Saute meat in hot oil until seared on all sides. Add onions, garlic, tomatoes and peppers and saute for five minutes. Add beef stock and allow to simmer for a couple hours. Season and adjust liquid as needed.

Works Cited

La bandera. (2011). [Web Photo]. Retrieved from http://www.bestday.com/Puerto-Plata-Area-Dominican-Republic/Restaurants/

La bandera dominican recipe: La bandera means “the dominican flag”. (2007). Retrieved from http://www.puntacana-information-guide.com/la-bandera-dominican-recipe.htm

Recipes 2. (2011). Retrieved from http://www.colonialzone-dr.com/food-recipes-2.html