#36 - Columbia

Columbia very clearly has a national meal - Bandeja Paisa. It's a plate full (and I mean FULL) of a variety of foods including crispy, fatty pork belly, hogao (a traditional Colombian condiment —it’s similar to a sweet tomato-onion jam), saucy red beans, beef, chorizo, cheesy arepas, caramelized plantains, and fried eggs. This was by far the most complex meal we've had so far. And yes, this was a weekend I was working so Andrew was left in charge of pulling it all together (including trying to find the little Mexican grocery store downtown whose owner had told me on the phone that yes, she sells masarepa (cooked corn flour)). Andrew had to start making the chicharrones (pork belly) yesterday, and the beans cooked for almost 5 hours, so this meal was a major time investment!

He did a great job and ultimately we all really liked this heart-attack on a plate (although none of us actually could stomach the pork belly it was so salty and fatty). I suspect that the bean recipe may get used again!