{"id":6094,"date":"2013-01-20T03:49:44","date_gmt":"2013-01-19T23:49:44","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.dominicana-online.org\/?p=6094"},"modified":"2020-04-08T14:41:55","modified_gmt":"2020-04-08T14:41:55","slug":"gastronomia","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.dominicanaonline.org\/en\/cultura\/gastronomia\/","title":{"rendered":"Gastronomy"},"content":{"rendered":"

Dominican cuisine is multicultural, an aboriginal, Spanish, and African legacy of five centuries that continues to evolve with the contribution of other ethnic groups and the new generations of creative chefs that enhance its identity. Innovations and fusions, with their combination of ingredients \u201cachieve an explosion of flavors for all tastes,\u201d according to \u201cLo Dominicano \/ All Things Dominican,\u201d a book by the Global Foundation for Democracy and Development (GFDD).<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>The basis of the Dominican cuisine is the sofrito, a seasoning made of garlic, onion, chilli, oregano, cilantro, salt, vinegar, bija or tomato sauce, which are simmered slowly until they release their flavors and the fragrance of their scents.<\/p>\n

That basis is one of the similarities that Dominican cuisine shares with other Caribbean islands, in addition to the consumption of cassava, yautia, sweet potato, yam, corn, bananas, pumpkin, fruit bread, rice and beans.<\/p>\n

Did you know?<\/strong> \u201cLa Bandera\u201d (the flag) is the most emblematic everyday meal dish in the Dominican Republic, consisting of white rice, beans (over rice) and meat servings, accompanied by some salad and fried ripe plantains.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

We invite you to learn more about Dominican cuisine, including some of the most recognized emblematic recipes, in the publication \u201cLo Dominicano \/ All things Dominican\u201d of the Global Foundation for Democracy and Development (GFDD), which is available on Amazon here<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Typical Cuisine<\/strong><\/h2>\n

An early Creole culinary fusion was sancocho, a broth that combined the meats of beef, pork, and chicken of the Spanish diet, with yam and yautia brought from Africa, and the bananas from Asia, along with corn, chili and native herbs.This dense tuber broth, which contains in its richest version up to seven meats, has been declared by consensus the \u201cmost representative and popular\u201d dish of the Dominican cuisine.Sancocho has been eaten since the colonial era and, for centuries, was the main food of the Dominican peasants. Nowadays, it is a dish for special occasions.It has been a long time since the combination of rice with beans, meat, green salad and fried plantain or cassava has dominated lunchtime, a dish so associated to the Dominican identity that it is called \u201cla bandera dominicana\u201d (the Dominican flag).<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Did you know?<\/strong> Casabe is a dry, thin and circular bread that is obtained after a long and painstaking process of grating, pressing and drying cassava to extract the juice. Then, it is grinded to obtain a fine flour from which the casabe is made.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

 <\/p>\n

As rice is a basic component in the national diet and in the generation of agricultural wealth, its importance has become such that the authorities consider it a \u201cpolitical crop.\u201d<\/p>\n

No surprise there. Statistics indicate that each Dominican consumes between 45 and 50 kilograms of rice per year.<\/p>\n

There are other typical rice-based dishes: the asopao, a soup of thick rice to which chicken, pork chops or seafood is added, along with auyamas and potatoes; moro of rice and beans, and locrio, a combination of rice with ham, chicken or shrimp, a distant relative of the Spanish paella.<\/p>\n

On the heels of rice is the banana,\u201d one of the most consumed and preferred foods, which is prepared in a myriad of ways\u201d (\u201cLo Dominicano,\u201d GFDD). It is estimated that each Dominican eats about 300 units of bananas a year.<\/p>\n

Bananas have given rise to three classics of the Creole cuisine: mang\u00fa, tostones and mofongo, of incomparable flavor.<\/p>\n

Mang\u00fa encebollado (cooked with onions), with fried eggs, ham or salami, is a typical breakfast, and, sometimes, also dinner. Tostones or fried plantains cut into slices accompany all dishes, the \u201cpica pollo,\u201d pork, fish, rice, and are served in \u201cpicaderas\u201d (snacks). Mofongo is made with roasted or fried plantains, mashed with garlic and crispy pork rinds. Culinary experts consider it an adaptation of the African fuf\u00fa.<\/p>\n

Other traditional side dishes of the middle class are arepitas or fried cassava or corn, salads, and eggplant, potato, banana and cassava pies.<\/p>\n

It is also worth mentioning the Ta\u00edno cassava, derived from cassava, which is evident still today in the Dominican table in varieties unthinkable to the natives. The crispy cassava cakes that accompany the \u201cpicaderas\u201d have different sizes, shapes and flavors.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Sweetly Dominican<\/strong><\/h2>\n

In terms of high quality desserts, Dominican baking is well positioned. Many bakeries preparing exquisite pastries are thriving, fusing local and foreign ingredients. De la Casa Pasteler\u00eda, La Cuchara de Madera, Pasteler\u00eda del Jard\u00edn, Bondelic, Fresco del Horno, Espa\u00f1oler\u00edas, La Dolcerie, Panavi, among others, stand out in the capital city.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>The traditional desserts of the popular fare are flan, rice pudding, majarete, based on grated corn, coconut milk, sugar, vanilla and cinnamon; sweets made with milk, soft coconut, pineapple with sweet potato, and coconut; coconut \u201cjalao;\u201d tamarind balls; figs with tender coconut; milk and oranges; cashews; guava with fresh cheese, and canqui\u00f1as, multicolored and chewy coconut sticks.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Did you know?<\/strong> Churumbeles, also known as memelos or cacos, are well-known little balls stuffed with grated coconut in syrup, covered in red caramel. They can be found in the streets and at Dominican beaches, on a tray on the shoulders of their vendors.Equally important are the sweet arepas made of corn, the sweet beans, and the sponge cakes and puddings that adorn the celebrations and cheer the palates, next to salty delicacies, such as cakes filled with beef and raisins, or cheese and leeks, and the miniature quipes, the chicken croquettes and the cassava empanadas, called catib\u00edas.<\/p>\n

Did you know?<\/strong> Mocana cookies are crispy cookies made from ginger and colored ssuspiros (beaten egg white), made in the city of Moca, located in the province of Espaillat. They have been in the Dominican market for more than 100 years and have become a nostalgic product at local pastry shops.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

 <\/p>\n

Regional Dishes<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Although the consumption of traditional dishes is nearly common place in the entire country, each region has its own culinary expressions that depend on its environment. Young goat (kid) or goat meat is one of the favorites in the South, where Chench\u00e9n and El Chac\u00e1 are also eaten, both based on corn, which are typical of Haiti, and possibly native to West Africa.Kid with oregano and hot peppers is popular in the Northwest, and in the Cibao region, as well as the \u201cpieces\u201d of plantains, bananas and boiled rulos (shorter, thicker variety of plantain), accompanied by smoked herring or fried beef, as well as pork roasted outdoors at the stake with firewood in iron cookers. Among the preferences of the Eastern region are fish and moro with coconut, corn flour with molondrones, and yaniqueques, a crunchy flour pastry.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Ethnic Contributions ‘gone native’<\/strong><\/h2>\n

In addition to its Columbian-era legacy, Dominican cuisine is nourished by the contribution of other immigrants, such as the Lebanese, the Syrians and the Palestinians (\u201cLo Dominicano,\u201d GFDD.)Lebanese kibbe and tabouleh have reappeared in the country with the names of quipe and tipile, two dishes that are frequent found on the Dominican table, as well as the stuffed meat, rice and vegetables wrapped in grape leaves or cabbage, which the natives have named \u201cni\u00f1os envueltos\u201d (wrapped children). Cheeses with oregano have a preferential place, along with eggplant and Arab-style meatballs, as well as the empanadas stuffed with spinach and other vegetables seasoned with distinctive ingredients: onion, lime, cinnamon, pepper and malagueta.The national cuisine has also assimilated the sweets from the Middle East: deditos de novia (bride’s fingers), baclava, polvorones (shortbread) and other sweets based on white flour, sesame seeds, nuts, honey and almonds.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The Afro-Caribbean<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Dominican gastronomy has also been enriched by the culinary tradition of the \u201ccocolos,\u201d immigrants who came from other Caribbean territories to different parts of the national territory, mainly to the port areas of Puerto Plata, San Pedro de Macor\u00eds, S\u00e1nchez, Saman\u00e1 and Montecristi.<\/p>\n

The cocolos and their descendants contributed their cuisine based on wheat and corn flour, coconut and fish, and the appreciation for white yaut\u00eda and coconut yaut\u00eda. Fried yaniqueques, made of wheat flour, are among the most widespread and assimilated dishes, as well as the domplines or boiled flour buns, accompanied with cod or salami in a cheese sauce. Also, fish with coconut milk, oregano and garlic, as well as the \u201cconconetes,\u201d which are made from wheat and coconut flour.<\/p>\n

The unique Guavaberry drink, a liqueur prepared with bayberry berries, rum, dried fruits, cinnamon, ginger and vanilla, originally comes from them and is very popular in the province of San Pedro de Macor\u00eds.<\/p>\n

In the Caribbean island of St. Martin, the wild myrtle is known as guavaberry. They make an infusion with those berries, rum, and sugar and put the mix in a bottle. It is a Christmas tradition that is preserved from generation to generation.<\/p>\n

\u201cCalalu\u201d is part of the cocola tradition, a green soup of molondrones and vegetable leaves, a national dish of Trinidad and Tobago that exists in the Caribbean islands in different versions and with different names. The Calal\u00fa, callaloo, or quimbomb\u00f3, evokes the Gumbo of the southern creoles of Louisiana, United States. Its origin is traced to the rituals of the African Yoruba religion.<\/p>\n

Calal\u00fa-gombo is a popular food in Haiti, particularly at wakes, and it is offered as food to the Orisha Chango or Sang\u00f3 god in the Santer\u00eda rites in Cuba, which blends it together with San Marcos and Santa B\u00e1rbara (cocina del Caribe, mailxmail.com).<\/p>\n

It is a typical dish in Paria, Venezuela, in the Caribbean coast of Colombia, in Jamaica, Puerto Rico and throughout all the Lesser Antilles.<\/p>\n

Freed African-Americans who came to the island in the 19th<\/sup> century, before the creation of the Republic, also enriched the culinary heritage with dishes such as grits, corn flour that they ate at breakfast, and roast pork, chicken and turkey; cornbread and sweet potato bread, chocolate and ginger beer (Martha Ellen Davis, \u201cAsentamiento y vida econ\u00f3mica de los inmigrantes afroamericanos de Saman\u00e1,\u201d Bulletin of the General Archive of the Nation, volume XXXII number 119).<\/p>\n

European cuisine has left deep traces in the Dominicans eating habits. Spanish dishes are preserved in the form of potato omelets with eggs and ham; chickpea stew with bacon; black pudding; cod with potatoes; and, when it comes to sweets, the nougat, marzipan, custard, donuts, punches and rice pudding.<\/p>\n

The contribution of Italian pasta dishes is more recent but of great impact. Dominicans frequently consume pasta in all its varieties, fillings and sauces: cannelloni, elbows, spaghetti, fettuccini, noodles, linguini, gnocchi, macaroni and ravioli. Lasagna has been adopted as a staple dish, with numerous Creole versions.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

<\/h2>\n

\"\"<\/a>Christmas Eve Dishes <\/strong><\/h2>\n

Lasagna has become so conspicuous that it even appears in the traditional Christmas dinner, although the three musketeers on December 24th<\/sup> are still pork, pasteles en hojas (tamales) and Russian salad (made of potatoes, carrots and beets). Additionally, telera, a long loaf of soft bread, and optionally, rice and pigeon peas or a ripe plantain pie.<\/p>\n

Round cakes filled with meat, eggs and raisins, and semicircular empanadas filled with chicken, beef, pork, cheese and vegetables are popular party foods.<\/p>\n

Nougat, polvorones and biscuits with dried fruits, as well as grapes, pears and apples for dessert. The traditional Christmas drink is the cream and rum punch, as well as cider and wine.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Easter<\/strong><\/h2>\n