I’m back in Ecuador this week for a quick business trip, so I thought now would be an appropriate time to start sharing some Ecuadorian recipes. I wrote about the things we did on our trip in detail (see: Quito, The Amazon, Banos, Cotopaxi), but I haven’t shared any Ecuador-inspired recipes yet. To be honest, I haven’t had any meals in Ecuador that have really blown my mind, but they do have some solid recipes that are worth sharing. One of my favorites is locro, a creamy potato soup, often served with large chunks of boiled potato and an entire avocado sitting on top. I also love the traditional drink canelazo, a mixture of sour orange juice, cinnamon, and aguardiente, served piping hot to warm you up on cold mountain nights. And the fresh juices made from every fruit imaginable are an amazing addition to the breakfast table.
This recipe for Pan de Yuca with Guava-Chile Butter is actually not something I’ve tried while in Ecuador, but when I saw the recipe in the Ecuadorian section of Jose Garces’ book The Latin Road Home, I wanted to give it a try. Although I can’t say from personal experience whether this is a particularly common recipe in Ecuador, all the ingredients – yuca, queso fresco, guava – are very typical. These rolls are a tasty little snack, salty and savory from the addition of an entire pound (!) of queso fresco to the dough. Served with the sweet guava paste, which is tempered by the deeply savory flavor of black vinegar and the spice of sriracha, it’s a new and interesting way to dress up your pre-dinner bread and butter.
Like what you just read? Subscribe to Katie at the Kitchen Door on Feedly or Bloglovin‘, or follow along on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, or Google+. Thanks for reading!
Pan de Yuca (Yuca-Queso Bread)
Recipe adapted slightly from The Latin Road Home. Makes 16-20 rolls.
- 1 c. yuca flour (yuca starch)
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp granulated sugar
- 1 lb. queso fresco, finely grated
- 1 large egg, beaten
- 2 TBS whole milk
- 1 TBS unsalted butter, melted
- Guava-Chile Butter (recipe below)
- Preheat the oven to 375°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Whisk together the flour, baking powder, and sugar until evenly mixed. Add the queso fresco, egg, milk, and melted butter and knead with your hands until thoroughly mixed and fairly smooth. Form the dough into 16-20 small round balls. Place on the baking sheet (with space in between, they will spread out as they bake). Bake for 20-25 minutes until golden brown. Serve warm with guava-chile butter.
Guava-Chile Butter
Recipe from The Latin Road Home. Makes 4 cups.
- One 21-oz can guava paste
- 1/4 c. Chinese black vinegar, such as Chinkiang
- 1/4 c. sriracha sauce
- 2 TBS salted butter, at room temperature
- Put the guava paste in a bowl or stand mixer and beat until it is smooth and has lightened in color (this will take some effort if doing by hand!). Add the vinegar, sriracha, and salted butter and beat in until evenly mixed. Store the butter in the fridge in an airtight container.
Yum!! These look really similar to chipa (or pan de queso). I wish I had these to eat for breakfast now!
Kisses from Buenos Aires xx
http://amateandarottweiler.blogspot.com.ar/
These look so moreish! Perfect to serve with all sorts of dipping goodness :D
Excuse but the real canelazo doesn’t have orange juice in it, it has a fruit called naranjilla that is original from Ecuador!
We also have a lot of recipes varieties that could blown everyone’s mind, like: ceviche, cazuela de mariscos, bolon, colada morada, empanada de verde (green plantain empanada), empanada viento, empanada de Morocho, corviche, encebollado, hornado, fritada, sancocho, caldo de salchicha, sango, tigrillo, patacones, menestra, llapingacho, tripa mishqui, cuy (Guinea pigs), cascaritas, tortillas de maiz/choclo/verde/trigo, fanesca, caldo de bolas de verde, llama, and the list goes on and on! As you can see we have a big variety of traditional food!
You have to visit and know really well our country, that has everything from high mountains, jungle (Amazonia), coast, beaches and Galápagos Islands! Everything really close!
Hi Jorge,
Thanks for your note! It’s very difficult to find naranjilla here in the US, so I usually use a mix of orange juice and lime. I know it’s not the same, but it’s better than nothing! I spent two and a half weeks in Ecuador (not nearly enough!) and agree with you that the food is amazing… my favorite (besides canelazo) is all the soup, especially locro!
Cheers,
Katie
Both of my parents are from Ecuador, so I grew up eating Pan De Yuca! It’s definitely a family dish; we make it when we all reunite together. I have never tried the Guava-Chile Butter. Sounds interesting! Thanks for sharing!