Culinary Guide to Corona
Corona in the 1950’s was a predominantly Italian American and African American neighborhood. Thus, Italian and African American cuisines were popular during that time. However, in the 1990’s there was a change in the wave of immigrants and latinos (especially Dominicans) began to reside in Corona. This lead to a change in the types of restaurants and grocery stores around the neighborhood. If you take a walk around Corona today, you may notice many hispanic influenced stores. There are restaurants, grocery stores and convenience stores all with signs in spanish. When I walked in to a random hispanic restaurant in Corona for the first time, the cooks and cashiers had a hard time understanding my english and I had a hard time reading the menus in Spanish. This exemplified the cultures surrounding Corona today. The majority of the Hispanic community consist of Dominicans, Mexicans, Colombians, Ecuadorians, Guatemalans, Bolivians, Peruvians and Chileans. Recently, there has also been an influx of Asian Americans. As a result, there is a variety of cuisines in Corona, but still an overwhelming number of Hispanic restaurants.
On this page you will find a range of ethnic recipes. Many of these dishes can be commonly found in restaurant or household in Corona:
Typical Dominican Dishes:
Asopao de Pollo- a typical Dominican dish which literally translates to “Chicken Soup.” This Dominican soup has been passed down for centuries and is a important part of Dominican meals.
1 medium chicken
1 lbr. pumpkin
1 medium onion
4 cloves garlic
1 small green pepper (cut into 6)
1/2 red pepper (chopped medium) (optional)
1 cchditaa. salt
1 bit of oregano
1 tomato paste cuchdita
2cuchdas lemon
2 olives and capers cuchdas
2 sprigs cilantrico
1 cup uncooked rice.
PREPARATION
Season the chicken (after it is chopped and well washed,), 2 cloves of garlic mashed with salt and oregano. (Crush the remaining 2 cloves of garlic with salt and set aside, along with the oregano and red pepper).
Fry chicken in a little bit of hot oil, stirring a little as usual. (if possible, let brown). Add what is left of seasoning and a little bit of water. After this second sautéed, begin adding the chopped onion in 4 (if you want to remove before serving). green pepper, and pumpkin cut into small pieces. Reduce heat to medium
Boil about 6 or 7 cups water, adding garlic salt majadocon.
After leaving fry chicken with what you added already, pour the boiling water to the chicken. Well … we’re ready to add the cup of rice. Cook slowly, stirring occasionally, especially in the bottom of the pan to prevent sticking. Add the oregano, red pepper and lemon juice.
When the rice is tender, try salt and lemon, avocado is biting. if you and Casabito. ! Nice meal!
Asopao de Marisco- This dish is similar to Asopao de Pollo, but it is different because instead of chicken, it contains seafood. The origins of this dish may be closely linked to the Spanish dish “paella” since they are so similar. However, this dish is more soup-like.
INGREDIENTS:
- 2 lbs of shrimp, crab or lobster
- 1 lemon (may be omitted)
- 2 1/2 cups of rice
- 3/4 gallon of water
- 5 tablespoons oil
- 4 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1/4 cup chopped green peppers
- 1 pinch oregano
- 1 teaspoon mashed garlic
- 1 pinch black pepper
- 1/8 cup chopped seedless olives
- 1/4 cup chopped celery
- 1 spoon finely chopped parsley
- 1 spoon finely chopped coriander
- 1/2 spoon of thyme leaves
- 1 cube of chicken stock
- Salt
METHOD / DIRECTIONS:
- In an iron pot heat the oil (reserve 2 spoons of oil)
- Add the herbs, olives, spices, tomato paste, peppers, garlic and salt.
- Add the shrimps and stir (be careful with hot oil splattering)
- Cover and wait two minutes, then stir again.
- Add the remaining water and bring to a boil.
- Add all remaining ingredients (including the rice)
- Stir regularly to avoid excessive sticking. Let 3/4 of the water evaporate, by then a grain of rice should be about 3 times its original size.
- Adjust salt to taste. Serve while hot.
Conconete (Coconut Bun)- A typical Dominican dessert.
INGREDIENTS:
- 1 3/4c packed shredded Coconut (Mounds or Bakers brand)
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 1/2 (to 2/3) cup milk *(to juice-in the coconut)
- 1/2 cup ‘butter flavored’ Crisco shortening (or 1 sticks of margarine softened)
- 1 egg
- 1/2 teaspoon almond essence
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups of all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon grated nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
METHOD / DIRECTIONS:
Combine coconut, 1/2 cup milk, 1/2 teaspoon almond essence. Set aside.
Blend shortening and sugar for about 1 minute; add egg, 1 teaspoon vanilla.
Combine all dry ingredients and incorporate to the sugar mixture in three portions, making sure each portion is mixed well before adding the next. Dough should be on the sticky side. Drop soup spoonfuls of the mixture on a lightly greased baking sheet and bake in a 350*F oven about 27 minutes or until light brown. Let cool for about 7 minutes and store in an air tight container with a slice of bread to keep them soft and fresh. Replace slice of bread after 48 hours. Taste better next day Yield about 1 1/2 dozen.
*If you can grate your own coconut… More power to you!
If using fresh grated coconut reduce milk to about 1/4 cup and quantity of coconut to 1 1/4 cups.
Mangú- This dish contains bioled mashed plantains, which can be traced back to Africans in the Congo region who came to the island of the Dominican Republic during the height of the slave trade. The original word was something close to mangusi and referred to almost any root vegetable that was boiled and mashed. Mangú is thought to have originated in the Dominican Republic but it is possible that mangú is just another name for a west African dish called fufu (boiled mashed plantains pre-dateing long before mangú)
Ingredients
- 3 unpeeled plantains, cut into pieces
- 1 quart water
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 cup sliced white onion
- 1 1/2 tablespoons salt
- 1 cup sliced Anaheim peppers
Directions
- Place the plantains and water in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, and cook 20 minutes, until plantains are tender but slightly firm. Drain, reserving 1 cup of the liquid. Cool plantains, and peel.
- Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat, and saute the onion until tender.
- In a bowl, mash the plantains with the reserved liquid and salt. Transfer to a food processor, mix in the peppers, and puree. Serve the pureed plantain mixture topped with the onions.
Typical Italian Dishes:
Gnocchi- an Italian dish that is eaten as a first course. It is an alternative to soup or pasta. The term Gnocchi is thought to derive from the Italian word nocchi0 meaning “knot in wood.” The traditional Italian pasta is thought to exist since Roman times. It was introduced by the Romans during the expansion of the empire into European countries. In the past 2,000 years each country has developed the pasta in its individual way.
Ingredients
- 3 pounds russet potatoes
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 egg, extra large
- 1 pinch salt
- 1/2 cup canola oil
Directions
Boil the whole potatoes until they are soft (about 45 minutes). While still warm, peel and pass through vegetable mill onto clean pasta board.
Set 6 quarts of water to boil in a large spaghetti pot. Set up ice bath with 6 cups ice and 6 cups water near boiling water.
Make well in center of potatoes and sprinkle all over with flour, using all the flour. Place egg and salt in center of well and using a fork, stir into flour and potatoes, just like making normal pasta. Once egg is mixed in, bring dough together, kneading gently until a ball is formed. Knead gently another 4 minutes until ball is dry to touch.
Roll baseball-sized ball of dough into 3/4-inch diameter dowels and cut dowels into 1-inch long pieces. Flick pieces off of fork or concave side of cheese grater until dowel is finished. Drop these pieces into boiling water and cook until they float (about 1 minute). Meanwhile, continue with remaining dough, forming dowels, cutting into 1-inch pieces and flicking off of fork. As gnocchi float to top of boiling water, remove them to ice bath. Continue until all have been cooled off. Let sit several minutes in bath and drain from ice and water. Toss with 1/2 cup canola oil and store covered in refrigerator up to 48 hours until ready to serve.
- Polenta- Derived from the Italian word “hulled or crushed” grain. This dish was one of the earliest forms of grain mush. It was eaten in Roman times. Before the introduction of corn from the New World in the 16th century, polenta was made with starchy material such as farro, chestnut flour, millet, and chickpeas. In the past, Polenta was classified as peasant food.
Ingredients
- 6 cups water
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 3/4 cups yellow cornmeal
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
Directions
Bring 6 cups of water to a boil in a heavy large saucepan. Add 2 teaspoons of salt. Gradually whisk in the cornmeal. Reduce the heat to low and cook until the mixture thickens and the cornmeal is tender, stirring often, about 15 minutes. Turn off the heat. Add the butter, and stir until melted.
