Arepas De Coco with Ensalada de Pulpo y Camarones

• porce: 12 Buns
• celkový čas: About 1.5 Hr

Ingredience

AREPAS DE COCO (THE BUNS)

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons granulated sugar

½ teaspoon kosher salt

1½ teaspoons baking powder

1 cup coconut milk

Canola oil for frying

ENSALADA DE PULPO Y CAMARONES (THE FILLING)

2 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped

1 small white onion, coarsely chopped

2 dried bay leaves

1 lemon, halved, plus juice of 1 lemon

2 pounds WHOLE octopus

1 pound 16/20-count shrimp, peeled and deveined

1 shallot, finely sliced

1 tablespoon Sofrito (see below)

1 teaspoon olive brine

2 Persian cucumbers, coarsely chopped (optional)

Juice of 1 lime

¼ cup olive oil

Kosher salt

SOFRITO (THE SAUCE)

2 Roma Tomatoes, quartered

1 yellow onion, quartered

6 garlic cloves, smashed

1 green bell pepper, quartered

1 bunch cilantro

1 bunch coriander

Pokyny

FOR THE FILLING

Fill a stockpot with water. Add the garlic, onion, bay leaves, and lemon halves and place over high heat. Bring to a rolling boil, then add the octopus, turn the heat to low, and bring to a low simmer. Cook the octopus for 45 minutes to 1 hour, or until tender when you insert a knife into the thick part of the tentacles and feel a little resistance.

While the octopus is cooking, make the buns.

AREPAS DE COCO (THE BUNS)

In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder, mixing with your hands.

Add the coconut milk, switch to a plastic bench scraper, and mix with scooping motions until a shaggy dough forms.

Flour a work surface, turn the dough onto it, and knead until the dough forms a smooth ball; it will be soft and sticky.

Using the scraper or your hands, place the dough in another bowl, cover, and set aside for 20 to 30 minutes.

Re-flour the work surface, then turn the dough onto it.

Using a rolling pin, roll out the dough until it's ⅛ inch thick. Using a 4-inch round cookie cutter, biscuit cutter, or the mouth of a cup or glass, cut out as many circles as you can. Gather up the dough scraps, reroll, and cut out another batch of circles.

Place a wire cooling rack in a baking sheet and set near the stove. Fill a 10-inch cast-iron skillet with ½ inch of canola oil and place over medium-high heat. You want enough oil to cover the arepas. Heat the oil until it registers 350°F on an instant-read thermometer. (Add a tiny piece of dough; if it starts to sizzle but doesn't disintegrate, the oil is ready.)

Place a few dough circles at a time into the hot oil and fry for 30 seconds to 1 minute, or until deep golden brown. Using tongs or a slotted spoon, flip the circles and fry for 30 seconds to 1 minute more; they should puff up. Transfer the circles to the prepared rack and repeat to fry the remaining dough. Serve the arepas, hot, with ensalada de pulpo.

RETURNING TO THE SEAFOOD SALAD (AFTER 45MIN-1HR OCTOPUS TIMER)

Add the shrimp to the pot and cook for 2 to 5 minutes, or until pink and curled.

Using tongs, remove the octopus and shrimp from the water and set aside on a cutting board until cool enough to handle. With a paring knife or kitchen scissors, remove the tentacles from the body.

Alternatively, if you're more adventurous, remove and discard the head from the body, leaving the tentacles connected at the top. In the center of the tentacle bunch, there's a little circle indentation. This is the beak. Using the knife or scissors, make four slits around the indentation and pull out and discard the beak with a fork or tongs. Separate the tentacles until you have eight individual legs and roughly chop.

Then chop the shrimp into pieces. (Uniformity isn't incredibly important because the octopus and shrimp are al- ready cooked)

In a serving bowl, combine the octopus and shrimp. Add the shallot, sofrito, olive brine, and cucumbers (if using). Toss to combine, then add the lemon juice, lime juice, and olive oil.

Season with salt and toss again, ensuring that the dressing coats everything, then taste, adding more salt as needed. Serve the ensalada immediately, or let chill in the fridge for up to 1 hour.

Poznámky

From: Diasporican by Illyanna Maisonet

Reviewer: Cult Flav

“The cover recipe of the book - the Arepas de Coco w/ Ensalada de Pulpo - is an absolute masterpiece that looks as good as it tastes.”