Global Cuisine

All the Way from Colombia

Name of Employee: Andrea Gallo Hernandez

Age: 29

Nationality: Colombian

Location: FoodExpress Swatar

Role: Cashier

This month, we spoke to Andrea from our FoodExpress in Swatar, who enlightened us with a recount of her upbringing in Colombia, her hometown traditions and local cuisine. Andrea grew up with two brothers in what she described as a very traditional and loving family environment, who instilled good values in her and her siblings.  Nowadays, Colombian culture is a mixture of customs and traditions reflected through various mediums such as music, art, literature, and a relationship with nature. Andrea explained that music is an essential part of the Colombian culture, with the Colombians having an especially great passion for cumbia and vallenato music styles. Colombian music has even been popularized by well-known artists like Shakira as feel-good music all around the world. Colombia is also famous for its annual Carnival. Andrea moved to Malta to improve her education in languages like English and she is also pursuing a master’s degree in design. When asked about her experience working at the FoodExpress so far, she described it as a fruitful learning curve where the employees work together as a family in support of each other.

Andrea wanted to share the recipe for Bandeja Paisa with us for this month’s Global Cuisine issue. It reminds her of when her whole family used to get together back in Colombia to celebrate special occasions.

Recipe: Bandeja Paisa

Prep Time: 45 mins

Total Time: 3 hrs

Servings: 6

Ingredients: 

• 2 tbsp oil
• 2 cups white rice
• 600-800g pork rind
• 6 eggs
• 3 ripe plantains, sliced
• 680g pork sausage
• 3 cups red beans, pre-soaked from the night before
• 3 avocados, sliced
• 907g ground beef
• Salt

For the Hogao (Colombian creole sauce): 

• 4 large onions
• 4 tomatoes
• Cilantro
• Salt
• Vinegar
• Achiote paste*
• 2 tbsp oil

* To substitute Achiote paste if not found locally: 

• 1 ½ tbsp paprika
• 1 tbsp white vinegar
• ¾ tsp dried oregano
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• ¼ tsp oil
• ¼ tsp ground cumin

For the Arepa Antioqueña:

• 3 cups corn flour
• 2 cups warm water
• 3 tsp oil
• Salt

A wide variety of quality ingredients for our recipes are available from Arkadia supermarkets in Malta and Gozo, including Arkadia FoodExpress Swatar and Arkadia Food Market Valletta.

Method: 

For the hogao: 

1. Mix all ingredients together and cook in a skillet for 10 minutes.

For the arepas: 

1. Place the corn flour in a large bowl and stir in the oil.

2. Stir salt in the water and add to the flour mix. Mix until the dough is formed.

3. Make a ball of dough in your hand and flatten to small patties.

4. Heat the oil in a skillet over medium to high heat and cook the patties until browned on both sides.

For the main recipe: 

1. Cook the red beans in the same water they were soaked in and stir in 1 tbsp of oil. When softened, add some salt.

2. Meanwhile, cook the ground beef and sausages in some oil and stir in half the hogao. Fry the pork rinds in a separate skillet.

3. When the beans are tender, stir in the remaining hogao and cook for 5-10 mins.

4. In a separate skillet, fry the plantain and eggs over high heat. Meanwhile, cook the white rice. You may add some salt, garlic, and onion to the rice if desired.

5. Once ready, serve the meat with rice, avocado and arepas.

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