Terrence, Paul, Michael, Eva, and Sandy gathered in our kitchen to put together ingredients that cost about 200 pesos but could feed 12 or more happily under Josefina’s instruction. The recipe for potage (which those of us who learned French in the dark ages will recognize as the word for soup, however, in Mexico, it is pronounced po ta (accent on the ta) hay) follows. Josefina really liked having 5 sous-chefs because she broke into song, especially when we played some Vicente Fernandez mariachi music -- she could not resist. And we could not resist her!!!
POTAGE รก la Josefina
INGREDIENTS:
2 habanero peppers
1 Xcatic (a cubanele chile)
1 small red pepper
2 chayote
1 large flat calabasa (squash—could substitute 2 zucchini)
3 tomatoes
5 medium white potatoes
8 carrots
1 onion, can be yellow or white
¼ cabbage
2 kilos pork – shoulder or leg
½ kilo tocinetta (with as little fat as possible, could substitute smoked ham)
2 packages, each with one long, sausage – longaniza valladolida (may try substituting other sausage but probably not chorizo)
450 grams lenteja chica (Preve brand of lentils) – can substitute white, red, or pinto beans, but should not substitute garbanzo or black beans; as the larger beans will take longer to soak and cook
achiote (we used a cube from La Estra condimento de achiote, but could substitute powdered chile if you can find it. This is a smoky flavored and not spicy chile and is necessary for the proper flavor, so check a Mexican grocery store if you’re not already IN Mexico.)
3 large platano (type of banana)
PREPARATION:
There is prep time of washing (all vegetables, chiles, and meat), cutting, and sorting that can be done in any order.
Trim pork. Cut both pork and bacon into 1 inch chunks
Peel carrots, but leave whole, cutting off only the tips
Clean beans/lentils, removing those pieces that are too green, then rinse, and put into a large pot of boiling water
Cut calabasa into 8 pieces, remove seeds
Cut onion and tomato into chunky pieces
Seed red pepper and cut into chunky pieces
Cut chayote into 4 pieces from each and peel
Make a salsa of the tomatoes, the onion, and the red pepper, using Cuisinart is easiest
COOKING:
Brown all meat together, adding only salt
Sear all three peppers in the flames of the meat but don’t burn
Add to the lentils in the giant pot the potatoes and carrots, still whole
Once meats are browned, add to the lentil pot
Use that same fry pan to cook the salsa for about 10 minutes until the tomatoes seem cooked, then add it to the lentil pot
Add other ingredients (chayote, calabasa, and cabbage) to pot, stirring while the heat is on high. Once the soup boils, can reduce heat and cover for about another hour-1½ hours
SERVING:
Prepare a separate sauce to spice this up, to be served separately so each person can use it to taste. Remove the stems of the chiles. With a spoon, work with the soft chiles, smashing them, and removing burned skins. When softened, add juice of one lime squeezed and salt to taste. Mix together and put into a small bowl.
Remove meat and vegetables from the giant lentil pot and put on a platter. Serve bowls of lentils and soup and allow each person to help himself or herself from the platter of ingredients and from the spicy sauce. For this version, fry plantains in oil and serve as a garnish on each individual plate served with the soup. Could also use other garnishes like avacado, onions, cilantro, etc. as this is the cook's signature.
