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1
Marinate the Pork in Achiote
2 Hrs
Refrigerated, about 4°C (39°F)
Blend the 80 g of chopped onion, the garlic, ground achiote, cumin, oregano, lemon juice, beer and 3 g of salt until smooth. Put the pork cubes in a bowl, pour the marinade over them and turn to coat every piece. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or overnight for a deeper red colour.
Do not skip the marinating time — the achiote needs hours to stain the pork that deep red.
Done when: Pork cubes stained deep orange-red all over, sitting in a brick-red marinade.
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2
Boil the Mote and Potatoes
60 Mins
Boiling, 100°C (212°F)
Drain the soaked mote and put it in a large pot with 1.2 litres of fresh water. Bring to a boil, skim off any foam, then simmer for about 35 minutes. Add the peeled potatoes and the remaining water, and cook for 25 minutes more until both are tender. Drain.
Start the mote first — it takes the longest, and the pork and plantain fit around it.
Done when: Mote kernels swollen and tender, and potatoes that give easily to a knife.
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3
Fry the Plantain
10 Mins
Oil at 175°C (350°F)
Heat half the vegetable oil in a wide pan until it shimmers at about 175°C (350°F). Fry the plantain rounds in a single layer for 2 to 3 minutes a side until golden at the edges. Lift out and drain on paper.
Ripe plantain burns fast — keep the heat at medium and watch the edges, not the clock.
Done when: Golden rounds, crisp at the edges and soft inside.
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4
Pan-Fry the Carne Colorada
25 Mins
Medium-high heat, about 190°C (375°F)
Heat the rest of the oil in a large, heavy pan. Lift the pork out of the marinade and fry it in batches for 4 to 5 minutes a side, then pour the remaining marinade into the pan and cook, stirring, for 15 to 20 minutes until the sauce reduces and clings to the meat in a deep red glaze. The thickest cube should read 71°C (160°F) on a thermometer.
Do not crowd the pan — the cubes need space to brown before the sauce goes in, or they steam pale.
Done when: Deep red, glossy cubes with the sauce reduced to a glaze, and 71°C (160°F) at the centre.
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5
Make the Tomato-Onion Salad
5 Mins
Room temperature
While the pork finishes, toss the tomato wedges with the sliced salad onion, the cilantro and the remaining 2 g of salt. Slice the avocado.
Salt the salad at the last minute so the tomato stays firm and the onion stays crisp.
Done when: A bright salad: red tomato, pale onion and green cilantro, with the avocado sliced beside it.
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6
Plate Up
3 Mins
Serving temperature, about 70°C (158°F)
Spoon the mote onto each plate, add the boiled potatoes and the fried plantain, and pile the red pork beside them. Lay the tomato-onion salad and the avocado slices on the side. Serve at once, while the pork is hot.
Serve the pork beside the mote, not over it — the plate should show the red meat against the pale mote and golden plantain.
Done when: A full plate: red pork, white mote, golden plantain, potatoes, salad and avocado, all hot.
auto_awesome Finishing Touches & Plating
Serve the plates at once, while the pork is hot and the glaze is glossy. Put the salad and any extra mote on the table so everyone can build their own plate — that is how Imbabura eats this lunch.
Ecuador
30m
