The land known as "Mother Nature's Best Kept Secret" is located just south of the Yucatan peninsula in Central America. It is a relatively small country, with only 8,867 square miles, which is just slightly smaller than than the State of New Hampshire. It is also similar to New Hampshire in another respect: namely, smaller populations of people surrounded by large expanses of wilderness. Belize is home to more than 5,000 species of plants and animals that call the area their home.
Yet, the history of area is one marked by one particular species. As early as 1,500 B.C., the Mayan civilzation settled in the area, establishing cities like Lamanai, Altun Ha, and Yalbac. In its late era, there were perhaps as many as one million Mayans living in the area that is present-day Belize. Yet, like the rest of Central America, Spanish conquistadors made their way through the area, claiming it for the Spanish Empire. British pirates began to make the area their home, with the first permanent British settlement being established in 1716. The land officially became part of the British empire around 1786. It remained a part of that empire until its independence in 1981.
What makes any country interesting is the cultures and people who reside within. The country of Belize is home to a mix of cultures, including Maya, Creoles, Garinagu (a mix of West African, Arawak and Carib Islander), Mestizos and even Mennonites. All of these cultures, as well as the others who live in Belize, have contributed to what could be defined as Belizean cuisine. Some commonalities can be found with Mexican or Central American cuisine, as well as Jamaican food. Yet, the cuisine of Belize retains its own identity.
MAIN COURSE
For this personal culinary challenge, I am going to prepare Chimole, which is also known as "Black Dinner." It is a dish with roots in the both the Mayan and Metizo communities. It is a dish that was originally prepared by Mestizo families, traditionally on a Sunday. Chimole is a soup that is full of protein. A whole chicken goes into the pot while the cook prepares pork meatballs to be added in toward the end of the cook. There are also vegetables and other ingredients, such as a pepper, onion, and tomatoes, but they definitely play a secondary role to the meat. As for the name "Black Dinner," that comes from the use of recado negro, a very smoky and spicy mixture made from ancho peppers and other spices. The mixture itself can be traced back to the Mayan civilization.
I tried to make both the recado negro and the Chimole. I thought that my effort to make the spice mixture was going well, because I followed the recipe. However, as the Chimole came together, it appeared that there was something missing. The soup was not glack, but rather a deep, dark red. It was more like a recado rojo than a recado negro. I continued with the recipe, which produced the soup in the picture below.
CHIMOLE
Recipe from International Cuisine
Serves 4-6
Ingredients:
1 chicken, divided
4 cloves garlic
1 pound of ground pork
3 hard boiled eggs (chopped into small pieces)
2 raw eggs
3 tablespoons of recado negro (see recipe below)
Salt
Pepper
1 bay leaf
2 tomatoes diced
1 bell pepper diced
1 onion diced
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon thyme
Directions:
1. Prepare the recado negro. In a small bowl, add the recado negro with enough water so that it will dissolve (add the cumin as well).
2. Prepare the pork. In a separate bowl, mix the ground pork with the hard boil eggs and raw eggs, add salt and pepper to taste and thyme. Form into small meatballs and cook in the oven at 350 degrees for about 15 minutes.
3. Prepare the chicken. Brown the chicken in garlic, and then put in a large pot. Add the recado liquid and fill the pot with water until the chicken is covered. Add the diced tomatoes, diced peppers, diced onion and bay leaf and cook over medium high heat for 30 minutes.
4. Finish the soup. Add the meatballs and cook for 5 additional minutes. To thicken the soup, add a little cornstarch mixed with water at the end. Serve with rice or tortillas.
Salt
Pepper
1 bay leaf
2 tomatoes diced
1 bell pepper diced
1 onion diced
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon thyme
Directions:
1. Prepare the recado negro. In a small bowl, add the recado negro with enough water so that it will dissolve (add the cumin as well).
2. Prepare the pork. In a separate bowl, mix the ground pork with the hard boil eggs and raw eggs, add salt and pepper to taste and thyme. Form into small meatballs and cook in the oven at 350 degrees for about 15 minutes.
3. Prepare the chicken. Brown the chicken in garlic, and then put in a large pot. Add the recado liquid and fill the pot with water until the chicken is covered. Add the diced tomatoes, diced peppers, diced onion and bay leaf and cook over medium high heat for 30 minutes.
4. Finish the soup. Add the meatballs and cook for 5 additional minutes. To thicken the soup, add a little cornstarch mixed with water at the end. Serve with rice or tortillas.
SPICE MIXTURE
A recado is a spice mixture that originagted with the Mayan people and is still used today by the peoples who live on the Yucatan peninsula and in Belize. There are three types of recados: recado negro (or the black spice mix), recado rojo (or a red spice mix) and recado blanco (or a white spice mix).
The recipe for chimole calls for the recado negro. This is a dark mixture that includes annatto seeds, cumin, oregano, cloves and allspice. The mixture is also know for s smoky and spicy flavors, which comes from the use of ancho chiles. As you may know, the ancho pepper is the dried form of the poblano pepper. In order to make recado negro, you have to grill the anchos much like you would roast a poblano pepper, that is, over a flame to char the outside. This roasting should be done outdoors because the roasting of an ancho pepper will produce smoke and a lot of it.
RECADO NEGRO
Recipe from Mexican Authentic Recipes
Ingredients:
12 poblano/ancho peppers
1 garlic head
6 whole allspice berries
4 cloves
2 tablespoons of oregano
1 tablespoon of achiote seeds
1/2 teaspoon of cumin seeds
1/2 cup of white vinegar
1/2 teaspoon of pepper
1/2 teaspoon of salt
Directions:
1. Roast the peppers. Discard the seeds from the ancho peppers. Roast the peppers on the stove, directly over the fire until all of their sides are totally black. Put the bowl and reserve. Repeat the procedure for the remaining peppers. Cover the roasted peppers with water and let them soak for about 10 minutes.
2. Toast the spices. In a frying pan over high heat, add the allspice berries, cloves and cumin seeds. Toast for about 1 minute until all ingredients are lightly toasted. Transfer to a spice grinder and grind to a powder. Reserve the powder.
3. Blend the ingredients. Transfer the ancho peppers to a blender and set aside. Peel the garlic cloves and put them in the blender. Also add the white vinegar, pepper and salt and blend all of the ingredients very well.
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In the end, as I noted above, this personal culinary challenge did not produce a "black dinner." More of a deep crimson dinner. If a Belizean looked at my chimole, he or she would have thought I used a recado rojo rather than a recado negro. Upon reflection, I think that may have been due to the fact that I did not roast the peppers long enough to ensure that they were "totally black." Given anchos are dried poblanos, I was a little hesitant to let them go too long on the grill, lest I be left with charcoal. (I suppose if I had charcoal for anchos, that would have produced a black dinner.)
I also struggled a little with the pork meatballs. The use of 3 hard boiled eggs and 2 raw eggs produced a very wet mixture that was difficult to shape into small meatballs. I think 1 less of each type of egg would have probably worked a little better in terms of getting the right consistency for the meatballs.
In any event, the soup itself was delicious. For my first time making this dish, I think that is all that really matters. Until next time,
ENJOY!
