Tacu Tacu Americana
Yield 4
Author
Prep time
1 Hour
Cook time
20 Min
Inactive time
12 Hour
Total time
13 H & 20 M

Tacu Tacu Americana

Refried bean and rice patties done Peruvian Style served with bacon and eggs. It's a filling, healthy, cheap, and delicious lunch--although you might need a nap after.

Ingredients

  • 2 small cans of white beans (or 1 Cup dry, soaked overnight and cooked till soft); Lima are my favorite, Great Northern a close second
  • 1 Cup Dried rice, cooked
  • 1/2 large red onion
  • 4-6 cloves of garlic
  • 1 small hot chili pepper (optional)
  • ¼ Cup vegetable oil
  • 2 Tablespoons aji amarillo chili paste
  • 1 teaspoon cumin
  • 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
  • 1 Tabelspoon finely chopped mint
  • 3 Tablespoons finely chopped cilantro
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

Rice and Bean Mix
  1. Cook rice and beans, set aside, reserving some bean cooking liquid.
  2. Mis en place. Mince onions, garlic, and chili pepper. Finely chop the cilantro and mint.
  3. Mash most of the beans until its mostly paste with visible whole beans. Or, transfer 2/3 of the beans to a blender and blend until smooth, adding bean cooking liquid (or water) if necessary to blend.
  4. Bring vegetable oil to medium high heat in a stainless steel pan. Add onions and garlic, and cook for 3-5 minutes until softened and very fragrant.
  5. Add aji amarillo paste, cumin, and turmeric. Cook for 1-2 minutes until combined and slightly reduced.
  6. In a large mixing bowl, combine beans, rice, pan contents, and chopped herbs. Mix, and salt to taste.
  7. Let cool completely before using.
Bacon
  1. Add bacon to a cold pan or oven.
  2. Fry on medium low heat until edges brown nicely, flip, and repeat.
  3. If using oven, bake at 350 on a wire rack above a sheet pan until desired crispiness.
Eggs
  1. Heat a stainless steel (do NOT use non-stick, it can't take the heat) pan to high heat, and add 2 Tablespoons of oil. Wait for the oil to smoke.
  2. Crack two eggs into a bowl. Add to pan, and cook for 15-20 seconds, constantly moving the pan to stir the eggs around until the whites harden but before the yolks cook through.
  3. Flip (tilt the pan down 15 degrees so the eggs slide to the back and nestle in the curve. Jerk the pan forward and back, flicking your wrist gently upwards as you do so, so the momentum carries the eggs up the back like a ski slope and gently turns them upside-down. Be decisive and confident.). Cook for another 10 seconds, again, constantly moving the pan.
  4. Remove from heat onto plate. Salt and pepper.
  5. Or, cook them however you like your eggs.
Tacu Tacu
  1. Heat 2 T vegetable oil to high heat on a 10inch stainless steel pan.
  2. Add ~ 1.5 C of tacu tacu mix, and press into the side of the pan with a spatula to make rounded into a long oval with points on either long end.
  3. Move shape to the center of the pan and cook 3-4 minutes, until desired crispiness.
  4. Flip, and repeat the previous step on the other side of the patty.
  5. To serve with the crispy side up, cover the pan with a plate, and smoothly turn both upside-down. Or, after cooked, flip one more time, cook for another minute, and then slide it off the pan onto the plate.
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