Ingredients
Ice
- 1large block of clean ice
- or crushed ice, finely shaved
Fruit syrups
- 300 gsugar
- 300 mlwater
- fruit: tamarind, mango, marañón, jocote, or hibiscus
To finish
- condensed milk
- a squeeze of lime
- a pinch of salt
Equipment
- a hand ice scraper, or a bladed shaver
Directions
- Freeze water in a large container to make a solid block, and let it temper out of the freezer for 10 minutes before scraping. Ice straight from the freezer is too hard and shatters instead of shaving.
- Make the syrups first: boil the sugar and water for 5 minutes to make a base syrup. Add the fruit to the hot syrup, off the heat, and let it infuse until cool, then strain it.
- Add the fruit to the syrup rather than boiling it in, which keeps the fresh fruit flavour rather than cooking it out. Tamarind syrup needs the pods soaked and the pulp worked out by hand, then strained.
- Chill the syrups thoroughly, because room-temperature syrup melts the ice on contact. Pack it firm but do not compress it into a solid lump, or the syrup runs off the outside.
- Heap the ice above the rim into a dome. Pour the syrups over generously, one or several, letting them soak down through the ice.
- Use more syrup than seems reasonable, because ice absorbs a great deal and an under-dressed minuta is just cold water.
- Finish with a stream of condensed milk over the top and a squeeze of lime. Serve immediately with a spoon and a straw, because it collapses within minutes.
Technique
- Tamarind and marañón, cashew fruit, are the most distinctly Salvadoran flavours.
- Vendors keep the block under sacking and cloth, which insulates it surprisingly well.
- It is street food and it is not made at home very often.
Substitutions
- A domestic ice shaver, or a food processor pulsed briefly, which gives a coarser result.
- Bottled fruit syrups, which are widely sold.
Variations
- With several syrups layered in stripes.
- Topped with fresh chopped fruit.
- Raspado, the same thing across much of Central America.
History
Shaved ice cone drenched in fruit syrup and condensed milk, scraped by hand from a block by park vendors.
Frequently asked questions
What is Minuta?
Minuta is a dessert from El Salvador: shaved ice doused in bright fruit syrups. Shaved ice cone drenched in fruit syrup and condensed milk, scraped by hand from a block by park vendors.
How long does Minuta take to make?
Minuta takes 20 min of preparation and 10 min of cooking. The recipe makes 4 cones. It is rated easy to make.
What can I substitute in Minuta?
Yes, within limits. A domestic ice shaver, or a food processor pulsed briefly, which gives a coarser result. Bottled fruit syrups, which are widely sold.
What is the most important thing to get right in Minuta?
Freeze water in a large container to make a solid block, and let it temper out of the freezer for 10 minutes before scraping. Ice straight from the freezer is too hard and shatters instead of shaving.
