Lima Beans & Bacon

I've been making this dish since the mid 1990s and I use frozen green lima beans or frozen baby lima beans. Lima beans are named for the capital city of Peru, as the beans first were taken to Europe from Peru in around 1500. Of course, the interesting thing is, the Peruvian city name is pronounced as if "lee-mah," but the bean name is pronounced "lye-mah," as is the name of the city located in western Ohio. Why did this pronunciation difference come about? It may well have developed because the first exposure many English speakers had to the word was through the written word, which they then assumed to have a long 'i' sound, especially because not many English speakers were familiar with Spanish or Quechua, the South American Indian language of the Incas from which the word was derived.  

 

This is not a diet dish. Serve with boiled potatoes

 

Ingredients (6 side dish servings):

 

1 (12 ounce) bag frozen green lima beans or baby lima beans

1/3 cup finely chopped onion

3 tablespoons reserved liquid from the lima beans

12 slices smoked bacon

(optional) 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper (or other ground red pepper)

1/3 cup brown sugar

2 tablespoons butter

 

Cook the beans separately first per the instructions on the package of the brand you use. Generally, the lima beans are put into a pan, covered with water and the water is brought to a steady simmer for about 20 to 25 minutes, with water added as needed. Drain, reserving three tablespoons of the cooking liquid.

To a shallow baking dish, add the lima beans, onion, cooking liquid, sprinkle on the cayenne pepper (if using), cover the beans with bacon slices, then sprinkle the brown sugar over the bacon, top with small pieces of butter scattered about. Bake in a preheated oven at 300 F for 40 to 50 minutes.

 

 

Lima Beans & Bacon along with fried potatoes and tomato slices ...

WORD HISTORY:
Truck/Truckle- "The most common modern meaning" of the noun is really American usage for a "hauling motor vehicle" (British usage for such a vehicle is "lorry"). This is only the history for the noun, for although the meaning of the verb form seems to tie in with the noun, they are really different words from different sources. The verb form means, "to deal or trade in something." The noun goes back to Indo European "dhregh," which had the notion, "to run, to move." This gave Greek "trekhein," which meant "to run," which then produced Greek "trokhos," meaning "wheel" (which made/makes devices move, run). This then produced Greek "trokhileia," which meant, "a collection of pulleys and wheels." This was borrowed by Latin as "trochlea," with the same general meaning. This gave French a form carried to England as "trocle," which was then borrowed into English and became "truckle," meaning "small roller type wheel." When cannons were put onto ships, they were mounted on "carts" on wheels, that also used a system of pulleys for a gun's recoil (the backward thrust of a gun when it is fired). The carts were termed "trucks," a short form of "truckle." The usage broadened to other carts and eventually was applied to heavy motor vehicles used for hauling in the United States prior to the outbreak of World War One in Europe.    

Peruvian Kebabs: Anticuchos

Peru, located in western South America, is a former colony of Spain that gained independence in 1821. Most Peruvians speak Spanish, but there are also minorities of the population that use various Amerindian languages as their primary forms of speech. One of those Amerindian languages is "Quechua," pronounced as if, "ketch-oo-wah" (others say, "ketch-wah"). It is a language family in South America, best known as the language of the Incas. Another prominent Amerindian language family is "Aymara" (pronounced like "eye-mahrah"), which is spoken in parts of Peru and in some neighboring countries.

If you've never had beef heart, please don't be intimidated by it. It is delicious! If you are too skittish, you can substitute some steak, like chuck steak. Aji panca (pronounced like, "ah-hee pahncah") is a paste (sauce) made from a type of red chili pepper. It is not terribly hot, but rather it gives a little kick to foods. It is deep red in color. Aji amarillo is another paste, but it is made from a yellow chili pepper with a bit more heat. Aji panca is often in supermarkets or Latino grocers, and you may find aji amarillo also, but it is not as common. For the aji panca, you could substitute some ancho chili powder, some paprika, a little water and a pinch of cayenne pepper or a few drops of chili pepper sauce mixed together to form a paste, but if you can find aji panca (definitely available online), you'll be rewarded by the wonderful flavor, and a little heat. These Peruvian kebabs are called "anticuchos" (also, "anticuchos de curazon") in Spanish and they are very common in Peru, with street vendors selling them too.

Ingredients:

2 1/2 pounds of beef heart
1/2 cup aji panca paste (or substitute mentioned above) 
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon cumin
1 teaspoon salt
skewers for cooking

Trim the heart of fat and vessels, then cut the heart into about 1 to 2 inch pieces, and about 1/4 to 1/2 inch in thickness. Mix together the chili paste, red wine vinegar, garlic, dried oregano, cumin and salt. Add the pieces of beef heart to the mixture, cover, refrigerate and let marinate for a minimum of 2 or 3 hours, but up to 12 hours is better. If using wooden skewers, soak them in water first. You can grill the anticuchos on a charcoal or gas grill, turning them often, and cooking them for anywhere from about 5 to 8 minutes, depending upon desired doneness, or you can broil the anticuchos. Arrange the anticuchos on a baking sheet and broil about 5 to 6 inches from the heat. Turn the anticuchos once or twice during broiling. Broil for "about" 5 to 10 minutes, depending upon desired doneness. Serve with aji amarillo paste (sauce), chopped green onions, boiled potato slices, boiled or grilled corn on the cob pieces.

Boiled potato pieces and small pieces of corn are commonly served with Anticuchos, as well as some sauces, like aji amarillo and some green onions.

I enjoy both of these wonderful chili pastes/sauces, which are not only different in color, but also in heat and flavor. There are other brand names of both.

WORD HISTORY:
Mere-This is the noun, as English has two words of this spelling, but they seem to come from different sources. It is related to "marsh," a word from the Germanic roots of English, and it goes back to Indo European "mori," which meant, "body of water, sea." This gave Old Germanic "mari," meaning, "lake, sea," which then gave Old English (Anglo-Saxon) "mere" (ending "e" then was likely pronounced as "eh/ah"), with the same meanings. The word has remained, especially in place names that were (or still are) located near a body of water, more typically with reference to a lake. The Germanic form is related to forms in Latin, Celtic and some other branches of Indo European and languages spawned by those branches (for instance, Italian has "mare," French has "mer" and Spanish and Portuguese have "mar," all from Latin). The Germanic languages have: German "Meer" (sea), Low German Saxon "Meer" (lake), West Frisian "mar" (lake), Dutch "meer" (lake), Icelandic "mar," now antiquated (sea), Norwegian "marbakke" (seashore slope).  

Venezuelan Arepas

Unlike Colombian arepas,* the Venezuelan arepas (pronounced as if, "ah-ray-pahs") are commonly used as a kind of sandwich, filled with any number of fillings, like cheese, black beans or Venezuelan shredded beef.** "Typically," they are made with white arepa flour,*** but I have the yellow arepa flour, so that's what I used. Some Venezuelans grill the arepas, which can give the arepas some blackened spots on them. Others use a griddle to fry the arepas, while still others fry them in a skillet, which is what I did. The cakes will crisp on the outside, but may not completely cook through, so I chose to finish them in the oven, which is also called for in some Venezuelan recipes I read, and they only need about 10 minutes in the oven.     

Ingredients:

2 cups white or yellow arepa flour
2 cups warm water
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon corn or canola oil
enough butter and oil (corn, canola or olive, but not extra virgin olive oil) mixture to make a little more than a coating on the bottom of the skillet (the oil helps to keep the butter from easily burning)
pats of butter for serving
filling of your choice 

Gradually stir the arepa flour into the warm water (with the salt added), mix well and let the dough sit for about 10 to 12 minutes. By that time, the dough should have a good consistency for shaping into rounded cakes about 4 to 5 inches in diameter and 1/2 inch thick. Over medium heat, melt the butter in the oil in a large skillet (cast iron is good, but not really necessary). Fry the cakes on both sides until they are golden brown, about 6 minutes on each side. The outside of the cakes will be crisp. Put the fried cakes onto a baking sheet and bake in the oven at 350 F for about 10 minutes. After the cakes cool slightly, you can slice the cakes in half (use a serrated knife), or you can slice through the cakes, but not clear through the cakes, leaving one side to act as a "hinge" (like a clam or an oyster). Add a small pat of butter and "close" the arepas to let the butter melt. Gently open the cakes and add some filling of your choice. 

* For my article on Colombian arepas, this is the link:  http://pontificating-randy.blogspot.com/2018/03/colombian-arepas.html

** For the shredded beef or black beans, here is the link to my article with those recipes: http://pontificating-randy.blogspot.com/2017/05/venezuelan-creole-pavilion.html

*** Arepa flour, which comes in yellow or white, is made from ground, precooked corn meal, and from my readings, people from Venezuela and Colombia adamantly insist there is NO substitute for it. You can find arepa flour in many Latino markets or in some supermarkets (check the Latino food section), and it is available online, but if you have masa harina or polenta/cornmeal, you can use it, but it will not be quite as genuine. Arepa flour is precooked, a bit starchier (because of the way it is processed), and it is finely ground, more so than the aforementioned products, and the cakes come out with a crunchy outside, but a soft and smooth inside.

I deliberately overfilled this arepa for this photo. This is filled with Venezuelan shredded beef. The red pieces are red bell pepper. You can see the browned top of the arepa. 

WORD HISTORY: 
Condor-This word for large types of vultures from the Andes Mountains of South America and from the western United States, primarily California, goes back to Quechua^ "kuntur," the name for the large bird. This was taken by Spanish as "cóndor," and this was borrowed by English (through North American colonists) in the early years of the 1600s.

^ Quechua, pronounced as if, "ketch-oo-wah" (some also say, "ketch-wah"), is a language family in South America best known as the language of the Incas.