Maria from Venezuela demonstrated Venezeula’s natioanal dish in the Caring Place Community Kitlchen. We were so excited to learn about this dish.

Venezuela’s national dish is called Pabellon Criollo. It is has rice, beans and beef. Maria made a version called Pabellon Criollo con Barandas which also include fried plantain. Branda is Spanish for guard rail. The long fried plantain slices are placed on the sides to keep food from falling off the plate. Fried plaintain slices are called tajadas.

Panellon Criollo is one of the most representative of Venezuelan cuisine. It is full of colours and flavours which shows represent the union and integrity of the country.

This dish is made up of a few elements. The first item is the rice which is called Arroz. The rice may look plain but it has lots of flavour in it. I will blog about the other elements in following posts.

Ingredients

• 1 kilogram of white rice (about 4 cups)
• 1 onion, peeled and cut into quarters
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 green or red pepper, cut into quarters
• 1/2 cup oil
• 2 teaspoons salt
• green onion, sliced (optional)
• 6 cups water
• 

Source: Maria

Prep time: 10 minutes; Cook time: 30 minutes;  Serve 8 to 10

Instructions

Wash and rinse the rice and place in a large pot. Top with the vegetables. Add the oil. Season with salt.

Add water. Bring the pot of rice to a boil on high heat and boil uncovered for 5 to 7 minutes.

When the water is almost absorbed by the rice, cover and cook on low heat for 20 to 22 minutes. Remove the vegetables and discard. Fluff the rice and serve warm.