
Sofrito
Ingredients
- 2 medium Spanish onions, cut into large chunks
- 3 to 4 Italian frying peppers or cubanelle peppers, stemmed, seeded, and cut into chunks
- 16 to 20 garlic cloves, peeled
- 1 cup fresh cilantro, washed (1 large bunch)
- 7 to 10 ajices dulces (mini sweet peppers that look like scotch bonnets, but are not hot), optional
- 1/4 cup culantro or 1/4 cup fresh cilantro
- 3 to 4 plum tomatoes, cored and cut into chunks
- 1 large red bell pepper, cored, seeded, and cut into large chunks
Directions
Place the onions and Italian frying pepper (or Cubanelle) into the food processor and pulse to coarsely chop. While the motor is running, drop in the remaining ingredients, one at a time, and continue processing until your mixture is relatively smooth. That is it.
The sofrito will keep in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. You can freeze it for longer storage. I find it convenient to freeze the sofrito in ice cube trays and store in a plastic freezer bag. Then I just pop a few of the frozen cubes into stews, soups, or rice dishes. There is not need to thaw out first.
NOTE: Ajices Dulces are also called cachuchua or ajicitos. They do have a hint of heat as do the Italian frying peppers. Bell peppers can be substituted for both. Jamaican peppers are habaneros or scotch bonnets and they are very hot and probably not good for this, even if you like a lot of heat. You can also add a pinch of cayenne or crushed red pepper flakes, if using bell peppers only.
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