This small country loves holidays, and its people have a cheerful disposition and an easy attitude to life. Dominican cuisine is delicious, vibrant, often unconventional, and innovative.
Attracting tourists by diving and visiting numerous attractions, Dominicans will offer hungry guests a hearty exotic national cuisine that cannot be forgotten. Dominican cuisine has been influenced by African, Spanish, and Caribbean influences, and therefore the dishes of this country are a mosaic of tastes and combinations. Dominicans add platano bananas to the bulk of food, cook a lot of meat and prefer tropical fruits, fresh juices, and cocktails as a dessert. The main alcoholic drink of the Dominican Republic is rum. Here it is produced independently and is very proud of its many varieties.
What should you definitely try when traveling in the Dominican Republic?
La Bandera
This dish is a chicken stew with vegetables. Despite the lack of blue ingredients, La Bandera calls the “Dominican flag”. The chicken is pre-fried and then stewed with spices and seemingly completely incompatible ingredients – beans, rice, bananas, and corn.
Sancocho
Sancocho is a soup that contains many ingredients. First, meat or fish broth is prepared, then pork sausages, ribs, pieces of bacon, small fish, garlic and onions, all types of peppers are added to it. The options for sancocho are incredible. And having ordered it in different restaurants, it is as if you are trying different dishes. The invariable ingredient in sancocho is young corn.
Asopao
Another soup made from vegetables, rice, and chicken, less often with seafood. Served asopao with orange sauce and fried bananas.
Chimichurri
Chimichurri is a hamburger with meat and cabbage served with a special sweet sauce. This street vendor dish will fill you up on long walks through the historic streets.
Pescado con Coco
For this dish, the fish is pre-marinated with cilantro, parsley, lime juice, and crushed garlic. At this time, coconut flakes or coconut milk are boiled with salt, and then fish is added there and stewed with onions, peppers, and a variety of aromatic spices. Fish served with rice, coconut sauce, and stewed tomatoes.
Pastel on de Platanos
This is a meat pie with bananas added – a scary combination, but absolutely incredible taste. The mass of ripe bananas is laid in a thick layer, the fried minced meat with spices and onions is spread on top, and the top is again covered with bananas. All this hearty splendor is sprinkled with cheese and baked.
Mangu
Mangu can be cooked as a main course or as a side dish due to its erratic recipe. Most often, these are just bananas grated with onions, but when meat and local herbs are added to manga, then a self-sufficient full-fledged meal is obtained. Manga is also eaten for breakfast with cheese, chicken eggs, and bacon.
Mofongo
Another banana-based dish. To make mofongo, bananas are presented and kneaded with garlic, olive oil, salt, pepper, and pork rinds. The vegetarian version of the dish excludes pork. Mofongo is also cooked with shrimp, beef, chicken, or any other type of meat.
Chivo a la diablo
Chivo a la diablo consists of goat meat stewed in wine according to a special recipe and served with rice, garlic and onions. Carefully selected spices give the dish a special character. Chivo a la diable is a festive national dish, although it is available to tourists in restaurants all year round.
Abichuelas con dulce
This is a dessert, although it is made with red beans and sweet potatoes. It turns out a hearty, tasty, and at the same time light dish. Beans are cooked for a long time with coconut milk, cinnamon, vanilla, and at the end chopped sweet potatoes are added. Grind the finished mass, layout in portions, and add raisins with cloves.
