Our guide in Ecuador, Marco Toscano, shared this recipe for Locro soup with us. Enjoy!
Saquisilí market, where you could pick up your ingredients (or your local supermarket will do)Ingredients:
- 10 medium-sized potatoes, peeled and cut into large and small squares
- 2 tablespoons canola oil or butter
- 1 white onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 teaspoons cumin (if required)
- 1 teaspoon ground achiote or paprika
- 7 cups water
- 1 cup milk (you can use more if you like)
- 1 cup grated or shredded mozzarella cheese
- 4 tablespoons finely chopped coriander
- Salt to taste
Preparation:
- Prepare a refrito for the soup by heating the oil or butter over medium heat in a saucepan and adding the chopped onion, garlic, cumin and paprika. Cook until the onions are soft (about 5 minutes).
- Add the potatoes to the saucepan, mixing well and continuing to cook for a further 5 minutes.
- Add water and bring to the boil, cooking the potatoes until tender. Use a potato masher to crush the potatoes, but do not crush them all: the potato locro consistency should be creamy but still with some nice chunks of potato.
- Reduce the heat, add the milk and mix well. Cook for a further 5 minutes and add more milk or water if the soup is too thick.
- Add salt to taste, the cheese and coriander.
- Serve the soup with generous chunks of avocado, spring onions, crumbled cheese, coriander and some spicy sauce.