Ethnic Food Project

As a way to stir things up, we decided to encounter Cuban cuisine by hunting down the Cuban sandwiches on board El Floridano, a traveling food truck that delivers Cuban sandwiches, banh mi, soups, and perhaps some other menu items around the D.C. area. El Floridano is still learning the area and the best way to approach his business. He informed us that he’s still trying to find a neighborhood that provides the best return. So far, this has proven to be Southeast rather than Northeast. To find out where he is going to be, follow his Twitter, FLmeetsDC. When we met him, he was parked outside the Starbucks in Foggy Bottom.

Cuban cuisine, like the cuisine in other Caribbean nations, is influenced by trade, colonization, and immigration. The primary influences in Cuban cuisine include Spain, Africa, surrounding Caribbean nations, and China. According to Miami.edu, very little of Cuban food is fried or served with heavy sauces; most of it is slow-cooked with only a few spices over open flame. The primary staples in the Cuban diet include rice and beans. According to Wikipedia:

A typical meal would consist of rice and beans, cooked together or apart. When cooked together the recipe is called either, “Arroz congri“, “Congri“, or “Arroz moro” if cooked separately it is called “Arroz con/y Frijoles”–Rice with/and Beans.” A main course (mainly pork or beef), some sort of vianda (not to be confused with the French viande which stands for “meat”, this term encompasses several types of tubers, such as yuca, malanga, and potato, as well as plantains, unripe bananas and even corn), a salad (usually simply composed of tomato, lettuce and avocado, though cucumber, carrots, cabbage and radish are not uncommon). Curiously, typical criollo [Spanish-influenced] meals largely ignore fruit, except ripe plantains, which are usually consumed together with the rice and beans. Tropical fruit could be served, however, depending on each family’s preferences. Usually, all dishes are brought together to the table at once, except maybe for desserts.

There are also regional variations in Cuban food. Western Cuban food is criollo, and includes finger foods like sweet Cuban pastries, the use of eggs, fish, crab, and is influenced by Galician and Asturian migration during the early 20th century (paella, arroz con pollo, etc.). Eastern Cuban food is influenced more by Africa and other Caribbean nations like the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico. Wikipedia provides the example of “mofongo (called fufú de plátano in Cuba), which is mashed plantains stuffed with pork, chicken, or seafood. The name ‘fufu‘ comes from Western Africa.”

Sandwiches are also an important part of the Cuban diet – and not just the Cuban sandwich. Others include the medianoche, which is similar to a Cuban sandwich, but with an egg loaf in place of the Cuban bread and sometimes without the ham (medianoche means “midnight” and this is a common late night nightclub snack in Havana). Additionally, the pan con lechón and pan con bistec are also similar to the Cuban sandwich; they are pressed sandwiches with Cuban bread, onions, and mojito, and either roasted pork or flank steak, respectively. One interesting sandwich is the Elena Ruz, which contains a lyer of cream cheese, strawberry jam, and thin slices of turkey atop Cuban bread. This sandwich was requested by the socialite Elean Ruz during the 1930s. Another sweet and savory sandwich is the  pan con timba, which has guayaba paste and cream cheese. 

The history of the Cuban sandwich itself reflects Cuba’s history of migration. The sandwich is also known as a cubano, and in Cuba itself, simply as a sandwich or sandwich mixto. The components of the sandwich include, according to The Cuban sandwich, “Cuban bread (cut lengthwise and buttered on both sides to prevent browning during the grilling process), mustard, dill pickles, roast pork, ham, Swiss cheese, and slow roasted pork marinated in mojo. The sandwich is then lightly grilled in a plancha (sandwich press) until the cheese is melted and the bread toasted. The sandwich should be compressed to about 1/3 of its original size.”

Original inhabitants of Cuba did not have access to ham, but did have access to cheese. The History of the Cuban Sandwich notes that ham was brought by the Spaniards in the form jamonada (which is more like a chopped ham). The indigenous Taino/Arakaks were already making cheese, although the Spanish brought this, as well, and were making a crispy flat bread from cassava or yuca flour. However, it took over 400 years to actually create and perfect this sandwich.

The Cuban sandwich blurs the line between an authentic Cuban meal and an American-Cuban meal, although it is served both in southern Florida and in Cuba. The History of the Cuban Sandwich describes the timeline, which we’ve condensed:

1870s: Cubans travel the 90 miles to Key West, Florida, to avoid Spanish rule and to find a safer place to manufacture cigars, initiating the strong Cuban influence found in Florida today.

1886: A fire destroys a major cigar factory in Key West, leading the owner to move the operation to Tampa. He was Vincente Martinez Ybor, leading to Ybor City, a suburb known for the Cuban sandwich. By the 1930s, Ybor City flourished as a Cuban community, especially since economic depression in Cuba lead to more immigration.

1910: Cigar factory workers began selling sandwiches for 15 cents each. These sandwiches also often included genoa salami, since Ybor City was also populated by Italians. The Cuban sandwich becomes a sandwich of the people, the favorite food of the common working man.

Wikipedia’s “The Cuban Sandwich,” finishes up the story by noting that around 1910 onwards, “travel between Cuba and Florida was easy, and Cubans frequently sailed back and forth for employment, pleasure, and family visits. Because of this constant and largely undocumented movement of people and culture and ideas, it’s impossible to say exactly when and where the Cuban sandwich first became a common worker’s meal. By around 1910, however, workers’ cafés in Cuba, Ybor City, and the older Cuban enclave of Key West were serving many such sandwiches daily.” Consequently, the Cuban sandwich is both a typical meal in both Cuba and the US today.

Our Cuban sandwich from El Floridano was the traditional variety. The sandwich contained yellow mustard, pork, ham, Swiss cheese, pickles, etc. atop a light and thin bread that was then pressed on the grill top. We liked the fact that the sandwich was long and thin, wrapped in paper, and was sealed with a a sticker so that it resembled a cigar, suggesting that El Floridano understood the history of the Cuban sandwich. We also recommend buying Boylan’s Fruit Mash as a counterpart to the sandwich.

TOTAL: $9 for a Cuban sandwich and a Boylan’s drink

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Tropicana Eatery conveniently has its own parking lot wifi, and decent hours (11:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. most days), with great lunch deals. The restaurant resembles a typical fast food restaurant and has an large menu. Jamaican cuisine is distinct and evolved through influences of many other cultures to Jamaica. The original inhabitants were the Arawak and Carib Indian tribes. Jamaican Food states that the Caribs “are known to spice raw meat and seafood using chili peppers, a staple in Jamaican cooking. Arawaks, on the other hand, devised a slow-cooking method of meat by placing it on a makeshift wooden grill over open fire. Food historians believe that this method is what pioneered barbecuing.” Foreign immigration from Spain, Britain, African, India, and China influenced Jamaican cuisine. In fact, breadfruit, a staple of Jamaican cuisine, was introduced to the island by settlers. Of the influences in traditional Jamaican dishes, African settlers are thought to have introduced the use of okra, callaloo (a leafy green vegetable similar to spinach that plays an important role in Jamaican cuisine), and ackee. Chinese and Indian settlers brought different cooking methods to Jamaica and are thought to have introduced the use of rice. The Indian immigrants pioneered curry goat, a very traditional Jamaican dish, but has been modified from a typical Indo curry; for example, curry goat’s main pepper is the Caribbean scotch bonnet, a cousin to the habanero, but with a different flavor. The Cantonese and Hakka immigrants from China are are thought to have led to the Jamaican patty, a yellow meat-filled pastry similar to an empanada and eaten as a full meal. These have become so popular that we see them as a regular item at 7-Eleven, available in both hot and mild. The Spanish are responsible for escovitched fish. Additionally, since Jamaica is an island, seafood is also popular. We ordered Jamaican jerk chicken, ackee and saltfish, fried dough, coco bread, ginger beer, and fried plantains.

The jerk chicken was really well seasoned and came atop rice. The rice was not plain white rice, but was seasoned and contained beans. According to Jamaicansfood.com:

The term jerk is said to come from the word charqui, a Spanish term for jerked or dried meat, which eventually became jerky in English.

Another origin is linked to the jerking or poking of the meat with a sharp object, producing holes which were then filled with the spice mixture. The origins of jerk pork can be traced back to the pre-slavery days of the Cormantee hunters of West Africa through the Maroons, who were Jamaican slaves that escaped from the British during the invasion of 1655.

However, we also found some contradictory information on the history of jerk chicken. Wikipedia states that:

Christopher Columbus visited Jamaica multiple times towards the end of the 15th century and the beginning of the 16th century, once even shipwrecked off the north coast for two years (1503–1504). During these visits he described a way the Arawaks (the indigenous inhabitants of Jamaica) preserved meat by adding peppers, allspice and sea salt to make what is now known as Jamaican jerk spice.

We were very excited about trying ackee and saltfish, which is considered Jamaica’s national dish. Ackee is a fruit native to West Africa and thought to have been brought to Jamaica as early as 1778, probably on a slave ship ("Ackee"). The plant spread throughout the Caribbean, but is consumed only in Jamaican cooking. The entire plant is important to Jamaican life. The oil is important to the diet, the seed is thought to have medicinal properties. The fruit also has a dark side. Apparently it has to be prepared carefully and when ripe, otherwise it can cause serious damage and a disease known as Jamaican Vomiting Sickness. The saltfish component of the national dish is cod, which has been an important part of the Jamaican diet since the 1700s when people from Newfoundland brought dried cod (or saltfish) to trade. We found the ackee and saltfish to be delicious. The ackee is yellow in color and has a mild and almost negligible flavor. The texture and appearance is like a scrambled egg. The saltfish, on the other had, gives the dish a delicious flavor and texture. We recommend ordering it with dumplings instead of rice, because we think it tastes better and is more interesting than the seasoned rice. The dumplings are large, dense, boiled, bland, and go well with the dish. The saltfish is not a large piece of fish, but are small boneless pieces mixed in with the ackee like a curry.

We also ordered coco bread, plantains, and fried dough, and ginger beer.  The coco bread was like a hamburger bun and slightly sweet. According to Wikipedia, coco bread does not actually contain coconut. The plantains, which are an important part of the Jamaican diet, were very ripe and similar to other friend plantains. Finally, the fried dough was a round ball that was very dense and similar in texture to a hush puppy, except not made with cornmeal and it was not sweet. The ginger beer, which was Jamaican, was delicious and very spicy. We thought that ginger beer was from Jamaica, but Wikipedia states that ginger beer was developed in Britain during the 1700s, so it must have come to Jamaica from British settlers. Jamaicandrinks.com tells the story of ginger in Jamaica:

Ginger (Zingiber officinale Rosc.) is thought to have been introduced into Jamaica about 1525. By 1547 though, it is reported that the export of ginger amounted to over 22,000 quintals (1.2 million Kg).

Prior to 1740, the ginger was associated with the Parish of St Ann, where it had first been planted by the Spanish. After that the Christiana region took over when it was recognised that the soil and climatic conditions were especially suitable for the growing of ginger. In 1980, a survey by the International Trade Centre reported that 1,100 acres of ginger were planted in Jamaica in the central range areas of Clarendon, Manchester and Trelawny.

Between the 1930’s and 1960’s, Jamaica was listed as one of the three largest producers of ginger in the world, along with India and Sierra Leone. A 10-mile radius around Christiana was identified as the region which grew the finest ginger in the world. Since then the production has fallen significantly, from close to 2 million kilogram of ginger in 1953 to around 0.4 million kilos in 1995.

Note: Bring your own bags, as they may charge you for a plastic bag if you carry out.

We didn’t get to try any of the other traditional dishes, including fricasseed chicken, callaloo, oxtail, snapper, or any of their desserts. We found the food to be extremely filling and rich.

TOTAL: $15.60 including tax for a small ackee and saltfish, 1 fried dumpling, 1 order of plantains, and 1 ginger beer

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Taqueria Distrito Federal is a small restaurant colorfully decorated in the Columbia Heights neighborhood of D.C. that offers carryout, delivery, and dine-in. There is a small outdoor seating area and a small basement-style indoor seating area. We dined outside on their small but nice patio on Cinco de Mayo. The Taqueria is open early and late and serves breakfast, lunch, dinner, and a special weekend menu. Among the traditional weekend items are menudo (a hominy and tripe soup), pozole (a pre-Columbian ritually significant soup of nixtamalized cacahuazintle corn, various meats, and seasonings), and tamales. Mexican cuisine can be divided into six groups, reflecting the six regions of Mexico, which comprise different climates, geography, and the different cultures of Mexico’s indigenous peoples, as well as the impact of Spanish colonization. Northern Mexican cuisine’s meat staples include beef, goat, ostrich, and the arrachera cut. The Yucatan region’s dishes are sweet instead of spicy, a result of their beekeeping history and the importance of honey, and typically use achiote seasoning. The Oaxacan region is celebrated for its tamales and moles. The West is known for its goat (birria or goat in a spicy tomato-based sauce). Central Mexico is known for barbacoa, pozole, menudo and carnitas. Finally, Southern Mexico, due to its proximity to the Caribbean and the Pacific Ocean and Gulf of Mexico, has spicy vegetable dishes, chicken dishes, and seafood dishes. Within individual villages, even more exotic and unusual dishes can be found with exotic meats, depending on local ingredients.

Taqueria Distrito Federal’s daily menu includes tacos, burritos, tostadas, quesadillas, tortas, and several platters featuring sausages and meats. We tried the tacos and a torta, but read some interesting background information on tamales, burritos, tostadas, and quesadillas.

The history of the tamale actually is quite long:

Tamales originated in Mesoamerica as early as 5000 to 8000 BCE. Aztec and Maya civilizations as well as the Olmeca and Tolteneca before them used tamales as a portable food, often to support their armies but also for hunters and travelers. There have also been reports of tamal use in the Inca Empire long before the Spanish visited the new world.

The burrito, or large taco, originated in Mexico and translates to “little donkey,” probably because the burrito resembles either the ear of a donkey or resembled the packs that donkeys carried. Wikipedia discusses the history of the burrito:

Mexican popular tradition tells the story of a man named Juan Mendez who used to sell tacos in a street stand, using a donkey as a transport for himself and the food, during the Mexican Revolution period (1910–1921) in the Bella Vista neighborhood in Ciudad Juárez. To keep the food warm, Juan had the idea of wrapping the food placed in a large home made flour tortilla inside individual napkins. He had a lot of success, and consumers came from other places around the Mexican border looking for the “food of the Burrito,” the word they eventually adopted as the name for these large tacos.

Burritos are a traditional food of Ciudad Juárez, a city in the northern Mexican state of Chihuahua, where people buy them at restaurants and roadside stands. Northern Mexican border towns like Villa Ahumada have an established reputation for serving burritos, but they are quite different from the American variety. Authentic Mexican burritos are usually small and thin, with flour tortillas containing only one or two ingredients: some form of meat, potatoes, rice, fish, beans, asadero cheese, chile rajas, or chile relleno.

The tostada is simply a toasted taco (the traditional taco is soft, not hard). Some say the tostada was developed as a way to use stale tacos. The tacos were deep fried to make them crunchy again. However, now tostadas are entrees in their own right, and often are served like a pizza and open-faced.

Finally, the quesadilla (or cheesy tortilla) is traditionally is a folded tortilla filled with oaxaca cheese and cooked until the cheese melts. The American version of the quesadilla (the two flour tortillas with various fillings in between them) is actually the Mexican sincronizada, which is two flour tortillas with cheese and ham sandwiched to them. The version of the quesadilla most Americans know is the Tex-mex alteration of the sincronizada, which is filled with beans, various types of meat, sour cream, etc.

We tried the tacos at the Taqueria Distrito Federal and they were  small, but the perfect amount of food (since we were served several tacos). The toppings were avocado, cilantro, radishes, cucumbers lime, etc., giving them a fresh taste. They had a variety of fillings, including:

• Al Pastor (Beef and pork)
• Carnitas (Pork)
• Carne Asada (Grilled steak)
• Chorizo (Mexican sausage)
• Lengua (Beef tongue)
• Barbacoa Chivo (Goat)
• Barbacoa Res (Beef)
• Pollo (Chicken)
• Costilla Puerco (Baby Pork Ribs)
• Tripa (Beef tripe)
• Chicarron en salsa verde (Pork skin in green sauce)

We also learned some interesting facts about the taco. The taco predates the arrival of Europeans in Mexico and there is evidence that tacos were originally eaten with small fish. The Spanish called this indigenous food the “taco,” although the reason why is unknown. Although originally the taco was eaten with fish, today’s fish and seafood tacos were created in Baja, California. Also, tacos dorados (“golden tacos”) are what are also known as flautas or taquitos and are traditionally Mexican and Puerto Rican. The original taco was soft and the creation of the hard taco (with its infamous U-shape) was first discussed in 1949 in a cookbook. However, it did not take off in popularity until New York restaurateur Juvenico Maldonado patented a machine for mass-producing the hard taco in 1950.

We were particularly interested in trying the torta, which we were unfamiliar with. A torta is a is a Mexican sandwich served on a French roll with various fillings. The torta is not native to Mexico, and according to Chelsie’s Mexican Food blog, the French influence during the 1800s made bread from flour a Mexican staple and lead to the rise of bread as a staple and bakeries, or “panaderies.” We ordered the milanesa de res torta, which is a meat fillet that is breaded and fried. This dish is common in South America, although less common in Mexico, and also is not a native dish. This dish was brought to South America by Central European immigrants and is similar to weiner schnitzel. We found the sandwich tasty and the milanesa to be surprisingly lean. Our sandwich was also served with lettuce, tomatoes, avocados, etc.

Our combos also came with a choice of beverage and could choose from aguas frescas, soda, and Jarritos. Aguas frescas translates to “fresh cold waters,” and originated in Mexico. These drinks are typically sweet fruit flavored drinks, but can also be made with various seeds and be creamy. Taqueria Distrito Federal offers horchata, tamarindo, marañon, coco, and jamaica. Horchata is milky and contains cinnamon and vanilla, often made from rice. Tamarindo, one of the most popular flavors, is made from the cooked tamarind and is one of the sour fruits. Marañon translates to cashew apple, the fruit that the cashew comes from. Jamaica is hibiscus, referring to the flor de Jamaica. We tried the jamaica, and found it fragrant and very sweet. We also tried the soda, which turned out to be Mexican Coca-cola (which contains cane sugar, not high fructose corn syrup) and comes in a bottle with the nutrition facts crudely affixed to the bottle. Mexican Coca-Cola did taste a lot better than American Coca-Cola, which justifies this New York Times article on the “Cult of Mexican Coca-Cola.” They also had a variety of Jarritos, which is a brand of soda in Mexico (“jarritos” means “jugs” and comes from the Mexican tradition of drinking liquids in jugs). Jarritos are less carbonated than American sodas and currently are the most popular soft drink among Latinos. Jarritos began by offering a coffee flavored soda, and soon moved to tamarind and now offers a variety of fruit flavored sodas.

We ended our meal with dessert of the day, which was also a part of our combo. The dessert that day was flan (we also heard it is always flan), which was a tiny slice but actually the right size since we were pretty full. Flan was originally French, and must have come to Spain and thereby Mexico that way.

Note: They do not serve alcohol here. We brought our own tallboy of Tecate in a brown bag. They didn’t say anything to us…so either they did not notice or did not care.

TOTAL: about $9.50 excluding tax/tip (for a combo that includes entree, drink, and dessert)

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