Hispanic Heritage · Ecuador

La Sierra

Quito · Cumbayá · Tumbaco · Sangolquí · El Tingo · Pomasqui

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Locro de papa

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In Ecuador’s sierra, locro de papa turns potatoes, milk, cheese, and a seasoned refrito into a rich soup. Its golden color and soft texture make it an inviting introduction to highland comfort cooking.

La Gente

Let some potato soften into the broth while leaving pieces intact. Add dairy with gentle heat and taste after the cheese is incorporated. Avocado and ají at the table offer contrasting richness and heat.

Sabor

The sierra cooks soft and warm. Achiote for color, cumin and garlic in the refrito, white onion, milk and cheese for richness, and the ají on the table for anyone who wants heat. Pork brings the salt and the smoke. Nothing is sharp except the curtido beside the pork.

Spice DNA · Sweet low · Herb low · Smoke medium · Heat low · Acid low

Seasonings to explore

Minced Garlic in Olive Oil. In the refrito and on the pork. Adds a savory garlic base.
Sazón with Coriander and Annatto. The closest jar to achiote oil, which colors the locro and the fritada.
Cumin, ground. In the fritada, and a pinch in the locro if desired.
Onion Powder. With the fresh white onion.
Black Pepper, ground. On the pork.
Oregano, whole. On the pork.
Cilantro flakes. For the curtido when the fresh is gone.

From your market: potatoes of two sizes (russet or Yukon for body, small yellow or fingerlings to dissolve), whole milk, queso fresco, avocados, and for the fritada a pork shoulder, mote (canned hominy works), and ripe plantains. Badia does not sell the papa chola. Nothing outside the Andes does.

Cocina

Locro de papa

The potato soup of Quito. Turn the potatoes in the fat before the water. That is the whole secret.

Serves 6

3 tbsp butter
1 tbsp oil
1 tsp Badia Sazón with Coriander and Annatto
1 white onion, finely chopped, the white part only if using green onion
1 tbsp Badia Minced Garlic in Olive Oil
½ tsp Badia Onion Powder
Pinch of Badia Cumin, ground, optional
2 lb potatoes, half in large chunks and half in small, uneven pieces
6 cups water
1 cup whole milk
Salt and Badia Black Pepper
1 cup queso fresco, cubed
2 avocados, sliced
Cilantro, chopped
Ají on the table

The refrito. Melt the butter with the oil and sazón over low heat. Cook the onion, garlic, onion powder, and cumin if using for 4 minutes without browning.
Turn the potatoes. Add all the potatoes to the refrito and cook over low heat, stirring, 5 minutes. They will begin to look chalky at the edges. This is the starch coming out and it is the reason the soup will be creamy.
Water. Add cold water. Bring to a simmer and cook 20 to 25 minutes, stirring often, until the small pieces have dissolved and the large ones are tender. Mash a few against the pot if it needs more body.
Milk. Lower the heat, stir in the milk, and warm through without boiling. Salt and pepper.
Serve. Cheese cubes in each bowl, a slice of avocado on top, cilantro over. Ají beside it for the person who wants the sierra to have some heat.

Fritada

Pork cooked in water and its own fat until the water is gone and the fat does the frying. Sunday in the highlands.

Cut a 3 lb pork shoulder into large chunks. Put it in a wide pan with 2 cups water, 3 tbsp Badia Minced Garlic in Olive Oil, 1 tbsp Badia Cumin, 1 tsp Badia Oregano, 1 tsp Badia Black Pepper, 1 tsp Badia Sazón with Coriander and Annatto, a sliced white onion, and salt. Bring to a boil and cook uncovered over medium-high, turning now and then, until the water evaporates, about 40 minutes. Lower the heat and let the pork fry in its own rendered fat, turning, until every piece is brown and crisp at the edges, 15 to 20 minutes more. Serve with mote, fried ripe plantain, a llapingacho if you have the energy, and a curtido of red onion, tomato, lime, and cilantro. The highland plate.

Pueblos de la Sierra

Quito · Cumbayá · Tumbaco · Sangolquí · El Tingo · Pomasqui · Guayllabamba · Cayambe · Otavalo · Ibarra · Cotacachi · Latacunga · Salcedo · Ambato · Baños · Riobamba · Guaranda · Cuenca · Gualaceo · Azogues · Loja · Saraguro