Cuban food is so delicious and multifaceted and this featured recipe makes a perfect Whole Food Plant Based meal or side! Food connoisseur Hector Rodriguez notes that Cuba is the 1st and last Spanish colony. Because it was an important port city for Spanish conquistadores and colonizers, Cuban cuisine has its roots in Andalusia from the Spanish aspect but also has a strong influence from indigenous Taino African and Caribbean origins.
https://www.thespruceeats.com/cuban-food-profile-2137859
I’ve always been fascinated with Cuba, maybe because this little island in the Caribbean has resisted Capitalist America for more than a half a century. Their artists, writers and national heroes stand out in world history.
We might know Cuba for its baseball, sugar cane, Cuban cigars, vintage cars, beautiful beaches and the infamous Fidel Castro, but there is so much more to their rich culture including the origins of salsa, the rich history of artists and intellectuals including Benny Moré, Celia Cruz, Gloria Estefan, Gertrudis Gómez de Avellaneda, Alejo Carpentier , Reinaldo Arenas and my favorite writer and politician, José Martí .
I must confess, I have a secret crush on Cuba’s revolutionary leader and writer, José Martí. Unfortunately, he exists in a different time space continuum, but he has touched my soul through his prolific and expressive writings. I’m truly inspired by his tenacity and his passion. . . his unbelievable awe inspiring passion.
I mean, how can you make a poem about going to war sound so romantic and poetic and human? It brings a tear to my eye every time I read it.
Yo soy un hombre sincero De donde crece la palma Y antes de morirme quiero, Echar mis versos del alma.
I don’t know if José Martí ate black beans and rice and it doesn’t really matter. I just thought I’d take advantage of the geographic common denominator between the two to mention my favorite writer of all time.
Getting back to the matter at hand, I must mention that I’m also crazy about Cuban food which was nowhere to be found in suburban homogeneous Greensboro, North Carolina, my place of residence for the last 20 years.
I was fortunate enough to fly with fellow flight attendant Doris last week who gave me her family recipe of Cuban rice and black beans. Thank you for sharing Doris!
Delicioso! 😊
INGREDIENTS
- 1 bag of black beans
- 10 cups water
- 1 pepper
- 1 onion
- 3-4 cloves garlic
- 1-2 chicken bouillon, vegan optional
- culantro (or cilantro)
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1 pinch cumin
- 1 tsp sugar
- salt and pepper to taste
- white vinegar
- red vinegar
- olive oil
HOW TO MAKE CUBAN BLACK BEANS AND RICE
1.Soak black beans overnight with Bay leaf
2. Cut 1 onion and 1 pepper in quarters and add to soak
3. The next day bring to boil with the same water and put on medium for 2 hrs or until beans are done
4. Add garlic
5. If you need to add water during cooking process, add boiling hot water, not cold. This prevents beans from staying hard.
6. Roast a green pepper on stovetop on medium high and add to beans
7. Add culantro, chicken bouillon
8. Add oregano, pinch of cumin, 1 tbsp of red wine or red wine vinegar, 1 tbsp of white vinegar, 1 tsp sugar, salt and pepper
9. At very end add olive oil
10.Serve over rice
BAKED PLANTAINS
I served my black beans and rice with baked plantains. The recipe says you can use Olive oil or coconut oil. I used coconut oil and they were delicious right out of the oven However they didn’t reheat well so I would recommend using the Olive oil.
See the recipe here:
https://www.aspicyperspective.com/perfect-baked-plantains/
Getting back to José Martí. Did you know that the famous song “Guantanamera” is based on one of José Martí more famous poems from Versos Sencillos?
He wrote this book of poems while in the Catskills shortly before for he hung up his metaphorical doctoral writer cloak (as indicated in the verse) and set out to fight the war of independence. He died shortly after fighting for his country.
Guantanamera, which means girl from Guantanamo, refers to the area in Cuba that has become a point of contention between United States and Cuba. The song is about a romance gone bad but has become a more universal patriotic song about injustice and political struggle. Ironically, Cuba’s national heroe, José Martí is embraced by Cubans on both sides of the spectrum.
https://www.liveabout.com/guantanamera-1322497
Here is my favorite version of the song
Image of José Martí https://westminsterschools.libguides.com/c.php?g=918703&p=6620633
