Cooking 101 in Honduras

We have had some fun times the last few days in the kitchen.  Karla has taught us to make 2 very popular foods here in Honduras. The first, is the good ole corn tortilla. This is a staple.....people eat these like we Americans, eat rolls.  They eat them with everything; breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks.  So, it is only right that we learn how to prepare these ourselves.  First you need a good "masa" or corn flour. 

You then add your masa and water to a bowl to form a soft dough.  Using a circle cut from a ziplock bag you form the ball into a flat round circle.  It is a little more difficult than you might think and takes a little practice to get it right.

Then you must cook it over a hot eye. We tried to use a griddle but it was not hot enough....so we used the flattop stove eye. In the future we plan on buying a flat cast iron pan.

When you are all done....you can have a nice stack of your very own homemade corn toritlla.....

The second item Karla taught me to make is a compliment to every meal....it is called "encurtido". Really it is just pickled veggies......if you eat out....they will put this on your table...like we put out salt and pepper.  It is really rather simple.....onions, jalepenos, carrots, salt, pepper, water and vinegar.  First, slice the onions and carrots into thin strips. Then add as much jalepenos as you desire for the heat factor......In a pot pour about 2-3 cups of vinegar and equal parts of water. Then generously add salt and pepper. Place all the veggies in the pot and boil for about 10-20 minutes or until the onions have turned a little orangish yellow. Then allow to cool and store in an air tight container.

We hope that one day you will try these to things if you have not already.

!APROVECHA!

Enjoy !