Each semester CASU presents Conflict Café, a cooking class centered around a specific country that is experiencing political conflict noteworthy in world news. We work with cultural campus organizations to bring light to the issue and discuss it, while cooking and eating food from that particular country’s culture. Food is often a medium that brings people together, so through this event we aim to bring awareness to the conflict and promote solidarity.
This fall, we looked at the Colombian civil war involving the Armed Revolutionary Forces of Colombia, or FARC.
Colombia’s culture is rich and each geographic region has its own specialty and variation of famous dishes. Many of the dishes we highlighted come from the mountainous regions of the Zona Andina. There dishes are characterized by hearty stews, starchy pasabocas and warm beverages (check out this Buzzfeed video of Latinos trying Colombian hot chocolate, and wait until the end for a delicious gooey salty surprise.)
The first dish we made was sancocho, which is a stew with potatoes, yucca, plantains, corn, and any choice of meat. This is CASU’s rendition of Sharif’s family’s sancocho de gallina.
For dessert we also prepared Cocadas, which is more commonly found in the coastal regions such as Cartagena. These delicious morsels combine coconut, cinnamon, dulce de leche, and a little bit of lemon to balance all the sweetness.
Chicken Sancocho (Serves 10)
1 head of garlic
4 white onions
6 carrots
4 sticks of celery
2 whole chickens
pumpkin
~ 9 potatoes
~ 3 yucas
~ 8 plantains
~ 3 sweet plantains
~ 6 corn on the cob
~ 1 bundle cilantro
3 bouillon cubes
2 saffron goya packets
water
Preparation
Heat the oil in a large stockpot over medium heat for 1 minute.
Add the onions and garlic and cook until they're soft and translucent, about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Add the chicken and sear.
Add water, boullion, salt, pepper goya, and pumpkin. skim the foam from the top of the broth when necessary.
Add the green plantains, and potatoes.
Wait about 15 minutes and add corn on the cob and yucca.
Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, covered, until the plantains are tender, 30 minutes.
Add sweet plantains at the end.
Cook for another 15 minutes.
Cocadas (15 bite size)
2 fresh coconuts
1 can dulce de leche/arequipe
1 tea spoon nutmeg
1 tea spoon cinnamon
1 tea spoon vanilla extract
2 tea spoons rum
Preparation
Combine all ingredients and bake at 350 for 15 minutes.