Carib Notes

Comments (0) By Kathleen Vanesian Thursday, Mar 30 2000

...continued from page 1

Plantains, both unripe and ripe, also figure notably in comida puertorriqueña. Tostones,salted slices of fried green plantains, and maduros,slices of sweeter, ripened plantains fried in vegetable oil, come with a number of entrees or can be ordered as sides. Mofongo, a sort of Caribbean take on chicken soup, features a generous ball of mashed, fried green plantain, bits of pork, garlic and olive oil. Crunchy, grainy and garlicky, a bite of mofongo is slurped up with a spoonful of caldo de pollo, the accompanying chicken broth.

On occasion, K-Rico serves Puerto Rican pasteles, a tamale-esque concoction using a green plantain and shredded yuca masa(dough) filled with a sofrito-laced pork filling. The pasteles, wrapped in banana leaves, are then boiled, rather than steamed.

Casey McKee

K-Rico owner Elsie Lara.

More About

Consider washing down your ultimate order with malta, a thick, foamy non-alcoholic brew ragingly popular in Puerto Rico and other places in the Caribbean. "I used to think malta tasted nasty," declares Lara's 15-year-old daughter, Carla, of its slightly bitter, caramel-con-malt flavor, "but now I love it."

By the time I leave, people spill out K-Rico's front door, filling a number of white plastic chairs and tables outside. Urania Hernandez, K-Rico's pleasant front counter lady from Sinaloa, is patiently explaining the unfamiliar menu in Spanish to the next person in line. Eavesdropping on her explanation, I depart, hands full of food for later, wondering how hard it would be to grow plantains in Phoenix.

But why bother when K-Rico is so close?

Contact Kathleen Vanesian at her online address: goodtaste@newtimes.com