Guacho

Ingredients

Base

• 400 grice
• 300 gdried pigeon peas, soaked overnight
• 500 gpork ribs or salted pork tail

Sofrito

• 2 tbspachiote oil
• 1onion, chopped
• 1sweet pepper, chopped
• 4 clovesgarlic, chopped
• 1 tspdried oregano
• salt
• black pepper

Herbs

• 2 tbspculantro and coriander, chopped

Liquid

• 2 litreswater or stock

To serve

• hot sauce
• lime wedges

Directions

1. If you are using salted pork tail, soak it overnight in two or three changes of water, then boil it for 10 minutes and throw that water away.
2. Skipping the soak leaves the whole pot too salty to rescue, and salted tail is what gives guacho its backbone.
3. Boil the soaked pigeon peas in the water until almost tender, about 45 minutes, and keep every drop of the cooking liquid.
4. Keep the bean water. It is the base of the stew, and pouring it away costs you both the colour and the body.
5. Brown the pork in the achiote oil in a heavy pot.
6. Add the onion, sweet pepper, garlic and oregano and cook until soft.
7. Return the beans with all their liquid and simmer for 30 minutes, until the meat is tender.
8. Stir in the rice with enough extra water to come well above it, roughly three parts liquid to one of rice.
9. Far more liquid than for plain rice. Guacho is soupy by definition and should pour off the spoon rather than sit in separate grains.
10. Simmer uncovered, stirring often, for 25 to 30 minutes.
11. Stir it regularly, which is the exact opposite of how you would cook a pilaf. The agitation releases starch from the rice, and that starch is what makes it creamy.
12. Add the culantro and coriander in the last 5 minutes.
13. It is ready when the rice is soft and slightly broken down and the whole pot is thick and loose at the same time.
14. Serve it in bowls with hot sauce and a wedge of lime, and eat it with a spoon.
15. It belongs to Panama’s central provinces, Los Santos and Herrera above all, where it is still cooked over wood.

Technique

• Guacho is the country cousin of arroz con guandú, and the whole difference between them is the amount of liquid.
• The rice is deliberately overcooked, which would be a fault in any other rice dish and is the point of this one.
• Made with salted pig tail it is called guacho de rabito, which is the version people are usually nostalgic about.

Substitutions

• Tinned pigeon peas, which bring the whole thing under an hour.
• Smoked ham hock in place of salted tail.

Variations

• Guacho de mariscos, with shrimp, squid and fish.
• With chunks of yuca and ñame cooked in.
• A chicken version, lighter and quicker.

History

A soupy rice of the countryside cooked with beans, ribs or seafood until creamy, typical of Panama’s central provinces.

Frequently asked questions

What is Guacho?

Guacho is a main from Panama: soupy rice stew with beans, pork tail, or seafood. A soupy rice of the countryside cooked with beans, ribs or seafood until creamy, typical of Panama’s central provinces.

How long does Guacho take to make?

Guacho takes 20 min plus overnight soaking of preparation and 1 hr 45 min of cooking. The recipe makes 6 servings. It is rated medium to make.

What can I substitute in Guacho?

Yes, within limits. Tinned pigeon peas, which bring the whole thing under an hour. Smoked ham hock in place of salted tail.

What is the most important thing to get right in Guacho?

Skipping the soak leaves the whole pot too salty to rescue, and salted tail is what gives guacho its backbone.