Pollos en pebre gachupin - Chickens in gachupin pebre, a Pinedo recipe

I'm really enjoying the stews that Encarnación Pinedo included in her book, El Cocinero Español.  The flavors are intriguing with combinations I haven't tried before.

Today I tried Pollos en pebre gachupin, on page 208.  Today, the term "gachupin" is derogatory.  It started off as purely descriptive, used for Spaniards who left the Iberian peninsula to immigrate to the Americas.  But often those people had political or powerful connections.  When they arrived, they would have high-placed jobs waiting for them.  This, of course, was irritating to the people who were born and lived there.  It is understandable that the term started having negative connotations.

Did Miss Pinedo intend it to be an insult?  I doubt it.  First, why name a tasty food after someone you don't like?  Also consider that a pebre, while today is considered to be a Chilean condiment with pepper, vinegar, oil and chiles, also has culinary roots in Spain.  In Catalan, it means a sauce that has pepper, vinegar, and other spices.  Pinedo's family on her mother's side were from Spain (we think Basque) and her father was from Ecuador.  Recipes she included in her book reach far back into her European heritage.  Her maternal grandparents could have brought the recipe with them when they traveled from Mexico to the San Francisco area in the 1770s, when "gachupin" was not yet a bad word.

I conclude that the recipe refers to a sauce that uses pepper and has connections to Spain and does not intend an insult to anyone.  Perhaps her family brought it with them from Spain or got it from someone who had arrived from there. 

 You can see that the sauce she specifies to cook the chicken in has connections to Chile -- oil and vinegar -- and also to Spain because it is a simmer sauce and not a dip or condiment.

 Her Recipe

 

 My Translation

 

My Redaction 

2 to 3 pound whole chicken, boiled or otherwise cooked

1 tablespoon peppercorns

1 tablespoon coriander (seeds)

1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon chile flakes

2 medium onions

1 cup olive oil

1 cup white wine vinegar

3 cloves garlic

1 cup loosely packed parsley leaves

I decided not to use the oregano.

Skin and debone the chicken, then chop into bite-sized pieces.

Grind the peppercorns and coriander in a mortar until fine.  Add the salt and chile flakes; grind again.

Peel and chop the onions.  Peel and mince the garlic.  Finely chop the parsley.

Heat the olive oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat.  Cook onions in it until clear. 

Add the garlic and parsley; cook for 1 more minute.

Add the vinegar and stir well.  Bring the mixture to a simmer, then simmer it for about 2 minutes.

Add the chicken and 2 tablespoons of the spice mix.

Mix well, bring to a simmer, lower the heat and cook for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Put the cover on the pan if the mixture appears to be drying out quickly.

When the cooking is done, add 1 more tablespoon (or whatever is left) of the spice mix and stir well.

Serve!

Chunks o'chicken.

Finely ground spices.

The simmer sauce.  Everything but the chicken and spice mix.

Now everything.  Ready to simmer.

It seemed more juicy once cooked.

My Notes

I previously cooked my chicken by bringing a kettle of water to a boil, adding the bird, bringing it to a boil for 3 minutes, then covering the pan and turning off the heat and letting it set for 2 hours.  This was done the day before, so the bird was cold when I starting making this recipe.  I saw the direction to shred the meat, so I assumed it was already cooked.  There are other Pinedo recipes that say specifically to shred raw meat, which I did not consider until after I cooked this one!

My cooked chicken weighed nearly 3 pounds; when I was done separating the meat from the bones and skin, I had about 2 1/2 pounds of just meat.

I had read up on pebres because I wasn't sure what spices I should use; I saw that chiles, black pepper, coriander, and maybe fresh oregano were ingredients.  I thought I would use oregano (that's why it's in the picture) but then changed my mind.  Also, I wasn't sure if the coriander meant the seeds or the leaves (cilantro) but chose to use the seeds because I wanted to grind them with the peppercorns.

I had to choose an oil, and since it was a primary ingredient of the sauce, I chose olive oil for the flavor. I also had to choose the vinegar, and white wine vinegar seemed to be both flavorful and not too acidic.  I thought it would complement the chicken meat.

I decided to add the vinegar after cooking the onions, garlic, and parsley in the oil.  It seemed that the goal was to get their flavors infused in the oil first.  

I thought that 2 tablespoons of the spice mix would be enough, and it tasted good when the cooking was done.  However, I thought about how cooking can reduce the impact of spices, and a pebre is really supposed to be "pepper-forward" and spicy.  That's why I added more spice mix afterwards - adjusting the spices to taste.

Keep in mind that when Miss Pinedo said "and then it is seasoned," she meant "cook the dish until the flavors meld and mature."

 The Verdict

I served it with white rice and cauliflower.  The cauliflower recipe was a repeat of Pinedo's, with butter sauce; you can view the recipe by clicking here.  And wine.  Don't forget the wine!

The cauliflower is not in the picture.

A nice combination in the bowl.

My guest taster and I enjoyed it very much.  The chicken was cooked and moist and tender.  The sauce had an oily mouthfeel, but not greasy.  It was tasty and not off-putting.  The spices were strong enough to make us taste them:  a bit of a chile kick but the other flavors were there, too, so they had a nice balance.  The vinegar countered the oily feeling with a bit of an acidic taste, which was also pleasant. I think the pepper flavor was the most dominant but not overwhelming the other flavors in the mix.

Two other guest tasters tried the leftovers.  One agreed that the flavors were good and not too strong.  She felt that there was lemon in it (that was the vinegar, I think).  The other said it was "yummy," but really didn't get the chile kick - which it not surprising since he likes strong chile flavors.  He thought it had wine in the mixture.

It made enough that there were leftovers for several meals, which we always served with rice.  It reheated well and tasted yummy each time.

Success!

It was easy and fast, because you start off with cooked chicken.  I made it again, starting with raw boneless, skinless thighs cut into chunks, and I also added the spices to the oil and vinegar mix while it was simmering.  I cooked it the same amount.  The finished look was a little different because the meat didn't look as "shredded" as it did the first time.  The chunks looked rounder.  The sauce was juicier.  But the taste was still the same.  Double success!

UPDATE:  I took the second attempt to a gathering, where it was well received. I suggest using less oil and vinegar, especially if you are starting with raw chicken.  I had a lot of liquid, only took about a third of it, and still thought it was too much.   

 

Barbecued Pork Ribs - a Texas recipe

Forty years ago, my Texas cousins gave me The Texas Cookbook by Mary Faulk Koock, as a gift that also reminded me of them.   

ISBN 0-316-50182-4

Its organization is interesting:  the chapters are regions of Texas, such as Amarillo, Houston, Corpus Christi, and The LBJ Ranch.  The recipes are from people the author knew in those regions, so there are often stories that go with the recipes to put them in context.  Some of the stories are funny, like the one about a Welshman who had never tried Fritos dipped in guacamole.  It did not go well - he spat out the one bite he took.  But the dinner was saved because he loved the buffet of rib eye, roast turkey, potatoes, rice pilaf, eggplant casserole, green tomato relish, whole wheat biscuits, and two types of cake.

The author name-drops like crazy, and why not?  If you've had a meal with President Lyndon B. Johnson and his wife, Lady Bird Johnson, you should talk about it!  

The recipes often are accompanied with menus, showing how the meal planners offered luncheons, buffets, wedding and anniversary parties, and more.  Those Texans knew how to party!

I had a slab of pork ribs that I wanted to cook, and my Texas cousins came to mind.  On page 215 I found a straight-forward recipe that I could try on my grill.  It came from the Brownsville chapter.

Barbecued Pork Ribs

10 pounds small pork ribs

Brown sugar

Salt

Java cracked pepper

Small bottle of soy sauce and/or lime juice or red wine vinegar

2 cloves garlic

Just one of those garlic cloves, please!

Rub ribs lightly with brown sugar and sprinkle with salt and cracked pepper.  Marinate in small bottle of soy sauce and/or fresh lime juice or red wine vinegar and sprinkle with cut cloves of garlic.  Cook and smoke slowly in covered barbecue for at least 1 1/2 hours, basting frequently with marinade.

My Notes    

I had 2 3/4 pounds pork loin back ribs, so I used as much sugar, salt, and pepper as I thought I needed, and one clove of garlic.  I also used 1/2 bottle (about 3 ounces) of low-sodium soy sauce.

So I rubbed the meat on all sides with brown sugar, about 1/2 cup.  Then I sprinkled about 1/2 teaspoon of salt and about 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper - that was probably not Java, and it was ground, not just cracked.

I poured the soy sauce over the meat slowly so as not to wash off the sugar and spices.  I put garlic on the meaty side only.

This mixture went into the refrigerator to marinate for one hour.  

I preheated my barbecue grill to between 300 and 350 degrees F.  Then I left on two burners on low on the left side of the grill and put the meat on the right side for indirect heat cooking.  That kept the temperature about the same.

The marinade measured about 1/3 cup, and I basted the meat every 15 minutes until the marinade ran out.  I stored the marinade in the refrigerator between bastings.  I left the barbecue's lid down when I wasn't basting the meat.

After one hour of cooking, I added a foil cup of mesquite chips to smoke the ribs. At this point the marinade was used up, so I just left the lid down so the meat could capture the smoke flavor.

Now here's the twist in the story.  After 1 1/2 hours, the ribs were not close to being done, and I had to prepare to leave for an hour or two.  I really didn't want to leave the barbecue cooking without me there to monitor it, so I removed the ribs from the grill.

Then I wrapped them in foil and put them in the oven at 300 degrees F.  When I got back from my appointment, the ribs were tender and smelled fabulous.

Rubbed with brown sugar and sprinkled with salt and pepper on all sides.

Garlic and soy sauce on the meaty side only.

Off the grill and almost ready for the oven.

The Verdict

They were GOOD.  

Sweet, salty, peppery, and an added burst of umami from the soy sauce.  Not overwhelmingly strong for any of the flavors, which is good because we wanted to taste the pork meat, too.  A nice enhancement for already good meat.

The garlic flavor was very subtle.  I could not taste the smoke, so I think I should have put the foil cup in earlier. 

As I mentioned, they were tender, to the point where they were falling off the bone, but not overcooked.  We ate half of them at one meal; the leftovers reheated were just as good.

Out of the oven.  So tender, it is easy to slice for serving.

Success!  Recommended!  My guest taster has asked to have a repeat performance.

Well done, Texas! 

(I haven't seen my cousins in years, and I miss them.)