Tastes of the Tropical Coastal Lowlands of Honduras #EattheWorld

This month the Eat the World writers are looking at the country of Honduras. Read more about the Eat the World project here. Wendy of A Day in the Life on the Farm is hosting and she is actually traveling back from a dive trip to Roatan as these go live. I can't wait to hear more about her trip as it's been on our bucket list for a long time.

The #EattheWorld Virtual Banquet from Honduras...

• Honduran Baleadas by A Day in the Life on the Farm

• Honduran Salpicón-Keto by Sneha's Recipe

• Honduran Style Refried Beans by Amy's Cooking Adventures

• Tastes of the Tropical Coastal Lowlands of Honduras by Culinary Cam (you're here)

Tastes of the Tropical Coastal Lowlands of Honduras

There were too many dishes I wanted to try, but I landed on three...

Ceviche with Chimol

This is a dish from the Caribbean coast. It's a ceviche with some tropical flair in the form of mangoes and dragon fruit. Chimol is the Honduran word of pico de gallo.

Ingredients

Ceviche

• 1/2 cup halibut, skinned, deboned, and cut into 1-inch cubes

• 1/2 cup prawns, peeled, deveined, and cut into 1-inch cubes

• 1/4 cup onion, chopped

• 1/2 cup white vinegar

• 4 Tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice

• 1/4 cup ripe mango, diced

• 1/4 cup ripe dragonfruit, diced

• salt and pepper to taste

• 1 Tablespoon fresh cilantro, chopped

• Also needed: lime wedges for serving

Pico de Gallo

• 1/2 red onion, chopped

• 1 jalapeño pepper, chopped

• 2 to 3 sweet peppers, chopped

• 1 Tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

• 1/8 cup fresh mint leaves, roughly chopped

• 1/8 cup fresh cilantro leaves, roughly chopped

• freshly ground salt, as needed

• freshly ground pepper, as needed

Procedure

Pico de Gallo

Place all of the ingredients - except for the salt and pepper - in a small mixing bowl. Blend gently and let stand for at least 15 minutes to blend flavors. To make this more spicy, adjust to use more jalapeno peppers.

Ceviche

Place onions, fish, and shrimp in a shallow bowl. Pour in the vinegar and lime juice. The seafood should be completely covered by the liquid. If it is not, add in more lime juice to cover the fish. Cover and refrigerate for one hour. Stir and let stand for another hour.

To serve, drain off all about 1 Tablespoon of the marinade. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Fold in the mangoes, dragonfruit, and cilantro. Serve immediately with a spoon full of pico de gallo on top.

Machuca

I found this recipe mentioned and, then, realized it's the Honduran version and spelling of one of our favorite Caribbean seafood stews: Moqueca!

Ingredients

• 2 to 3 pounds of seafood (we used a combination of mussels, shrimp, squid, and salmon)

• 3 to 4 cloves garlic, peeled and pressed

• olive oil

• 1 cup chopped celery

• 1 cup chopped onion

• 1 cup plantain, sliced into coins

• 1 cup yucca root, peeled and sliced into coins

• 3 to 4 large tomatoes, sliced into wedges

• 1 Tablespoon smoked paprika

• pinch of red pepper chile flakes

• 5 cups water or stock (we used chicken stock + clam juice)

• corn on the cob, cut into 1-1/2 inch lengths

• 1 can coconut milk

• 1/2 cup fresh cilantro chopped + more for garnish

• fresh green onions, trimmed and thinly sliced for garnish

• Also needed: cooked rice (we used Jasmine rice), fresh limes for squeezing

Procedure

Heat a splash of olive oil in a large soup pot. Add in the celery, onions, and garlic. Cook until the onion is translucent. Add in the plantains, yucca, and tomatoes and cook for another 3 to 4 minutes.

Stir in the paprika and chile flakes. Pour in the liquid (we used chicken broth and clam juice). Bring to a boil and stir in the seafood in order of how long it takes to cook. Shrimp first, then sa;mon, and squid and mussels last.. Stir in the coconut milk. Submerge the corn and heat till warm. Adjust seasoning as needed.

Banana Licuado

I was looking for a Honduran dessert and found mention of 'liquidifed banana.' Okay, that does not sound appetizing, but I was intrigued by the simplicity of the ingredients and procedure. We loved it!

Ingredients

• 3 to 4 bananas

• 1 cup coconut milk

• Also needed: blender, baking sheet

Procedure

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Peel and slice bananas into thick slices. Place in the freezer until solid. Place frozen banana slices and coconut milk into the blender. Pulse until smooth. Serve immediately.

The group will return next month with an exploration of recipes from the Czech Republic. Stay tuned!