The following highlights some of the popular Traditional Puerto Rican Foods. If you manage to be in an Puerto Rican restaurant or you are visiting Puerto Rico, I recommend the following:
1. Tripleta
The tripleta is a popular sandwich from Puerto Rico, its name comes from the fact that it is filled with three types of meat: grilled steak, pork loin and ham. The meat is placed on a bun and topped with fries, ketchup, mayonnaise, cheese and vegetables such as lettuce, cabbage, tomatoes and onions. Sandwiches can be eaten plain or grilled, depending on personal preference. Trifectas are usually quite large and one sandwich can easily feed two people.
2. Tostones
Tostones are flattened plantain slices that are fried twice – or as many times as necessary – until crispy. They are used as a kind of tostada and are eaten on the spur of the moment. They are perfect for “chinchorrear”, which is the word Puerto Ricans use to refer to eating and drinking with family or friends on the cheap.
3. Pastelón
This is one of the most original and delicious typical Puerto Rican dishes. It is a kind of lasagna, where slices of fried ripe plantains (yellow) are layered over beaten egg, followed by fried ground beef, the layers are repeated, until ending with slices of plantain, which are bathed in beaten egg.
4. Bistec Encebollado
Bistec encebollado is a tender, exquisite meat, full of flavour. In Puerto Rican cuisine, it is one of the most popular dishes because it is obtained by cooking the meat in its juices, and because of the accentuated flavour of the onions and seasonings. The steak has a watery consistency because it is cooked in its own juices, which results in a very tender meat with a unique flavour, enhanced by the onion rings.
5. Asopao
Chicken asopao is a family of stews that can be prepared with chicken, pork, beef, shrimp, seafood, vegetables or any combination of the above. Asopao is Puerto Rico’s national soup and one of its most important gastronomic recipes. Versions of asopao are found in many parts of the Caribbean, including the Dominican Republic, where the addition of chicharrones de pollo (small pieces of fried chicken or chicken skin) is characteristic or coconut milk and shrimp.
6. Arañitas
This typical Puerto Rican recipe basically consists of cutting green plantains into small strips, pressing them into flat balls, then frying them and serving them with a rich mayonnaise and ketchup sauce, which is a must to accompany this delicious Puerto Rican dish. Its name comes from the fact that the small strips of split plantain that protrude from them when connected visually resemble a spider, hence its special name, leaving them with a delicious flavour and well toasted.
7. Mofongo
Mofongo is very popular, it is the soul of Puerto Rican cuisine. A typical Puerto Rican dish that is truly delicious. It is made by crushing fried green plantain slices with a mortar and pestle. This technique comes from the Tainos, who used mortars made of hard wood such as mahogany or guayacol. The base of this dish is thus mashed green plantains, which are fried and ground in a mortar with garlic, oil and crispy pork skin, also known as chicharrones. In its traditional version, mofongo is prepared with pork cracklings and served with a creamy chicken broth and fried meat.
8. Pasteles
These small, delicious crescent-shaped empanadas are filled with a tasty mixture of ground meat and potatoes. Whether fried or baked, the filling is flavoured with two Puerto Rican staples: sofrito and achiote, a sweet, nutty spice in powdered form. The sofrito in the empanadilla, browned onions, garlic and peppers is seasoned with olive oil and cilantro. The most popular filling options are lobster, conch and shrimp, but the possibilities and seasonings for this Puerto Rican dish are endless.
9. Pernil
Pernil asado is a whole pork shoulder with skin and bones, which is marinated for a long time and slowly cooked in the oven. The meat is infused with the well-seasoned flavours and later the cooking melts the fat, which gives the meat an incredible aroma as it becomes tender during cooking. Roast pork leg is the staple dish of the Christmas Eve dinner. It is usually accompanied by rice with pigeon peas and cakes. Also, throughout Latin America, pernil asado is a classic for New Year’s Eve.
10. Arroz con Gandules
Arroz con gandules is a combination of rice, pigeon peas and pieces of pork cooked in the same pot with a Puerto Rican-style sofrito. It is for many the signature dish of Puerto Rican cuisine, being very popular in the Caribbean islands and northern South America.
If you found this list useful, here are some more Traditional Caribbean Foods to try out on my Pinterest channel.