Una Experiencia gastronomica internacional - Bolón de verde Ecuatoriano

No hay plato que identifique plenamente a la comida costeña del Ecuador que el famoso bolón de verde, cuyo ingrediente estrella es el plátano verde, por lo general se lo considera un plato ideal para el desayuno, pero también se puede servir como entrada o acompañante y es uno de los más buscados y apetecidos por la gente local o los extranjeros que visitan nuestro país, hasta el punto que se han generado diversos negocios alrededor de su preparación.

Los bolones de verde se preparan con plátanos verdes o plátanos machos, los cuales se cocinan y se aplastan hasta formar una especie de masa, la que se rellena con queso o chicharrón o chorizo. En la costa no hay desayuno más rico que un delicioso bolón de verde acompañado por un huevo frito, ají, y una taza de cafecito.

El clásico bolón de verde viene únicamente con queso. Pero de ahí en adelante, puedes agregarle los ingredientes que desees.

Bolón de queso: sólo lleva queso.

Bolón de chicharrón: sólo lleva chicharrón de cerdo.

Bolón mixto: Un mix de queso y chicharrón.

Los plátanos verdes pueden resultar difíciles de pelar. La mejor manera de pelar un plátano verde es hacerle un corte longitudinal en uno de los filos o bordes de la corteza. El corte se debe hacer con cuidado para que solamente penetre la corteza, sin tocar la carne del plátano, luego use el cuchillo para elevar la corteza y luego termine pelando el plátano con las manos. Mientras más verdes estén los plátanos, más difíciles son de pelar, en esos casos puede usar el cuchillo directamente para quitarle la corteza. El líquido de los plátanos verdes puede manchar los utensilios y las manos, para evitar esto les recomiendo pelarlos en una fuente con agua fría.

Disfruta la receta del bolón de verde con queso, un plato típico de los desayunos de la costa ecuatoriana.

Receta de bolón de verde

INGREDIENTES

• 3 plátanos verdes pelados y cortados en trozos

• 1 taza de queso criollo o queso mozarela rallado

• 3 – 4 cdas de mantequilla o manteca de cerdo

• 1 cdta de comino en polvo

• 1 cdta de ají en polvo opcional

• Sal al gusto

ELABORACIÓN PASO A PASO

• Una vez pelados los verdes, córtalos en trozos medianos.

• Ahora debes cocinar los trozos del plátano en una olla con agua y sal. Hazlo por una media hora a temperatura media baja.

• Cuando los trozos estén un poco blandos, retíralos y ponlos en un recipiente para machacarlos. NO botes el agua donde se cocinaron, reserva un poco para usarlo más adelante.

• Con la ayuda de un mortero, o la parte inferior de un vaso, maja los trozos de plátano hasta formar una masa homogénea.

• Mientras majas, agrega la mantequilla (o manteca de cerdo), el comino y el ají.  Si ves que está un poco seco, agrega un poco del agua donde se cocinaron los verdes.

• Luego, agrega el queso rallado (o cualquier otro ingrediente que desees).

• Finalmente, agarra un pedazo de la masa y darle forma redondeada.

NOTAS

Esta es la receta clásica del bolón de verde. Sin embargo, hay quienes le agregan un paso más y es que lo fríen antes de servirlo.

Es decir, una vez tengas la bola de verde, los pones en un sartén a llama alta y los fríes hasta obtener una cubierta crujiente.

Esta última receta la encontrarás muy comúnmente en la provincia de Manabí / Ecuador.

Recuerda: Cualquiera puede comer bolón, pero solo los de la Realeza comen bolón de verde Ecuatoriano :)

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An International Wildlife Xperience - Pacoche Forest - Ecuador

Pacoche is located just 20 minutes from Manta, Ecuador. This reserve protects 5,044 hectares of terrestrial ecosystems and 8,586 hectares of coastal marine environments: an ideal combination of land and sea.

Location

It is located 26 kilometers from  Manta.

Extension

The forest exceeds 4,500 hectares in area.

Climate

Dry subtropical, with temperatures ranging between 26 ºC in winter and 24 ºC in summer.

The coastline attached to the refuge has 13 kilometers of sandy and rocky beaches, as well as large cliffs that are also very attractive. The main ones are Liquiquí, San Lorenzo, San José and Santa Marianita.

The Pacoche forest is a green patch on the coast of Manabí, You will know that you are arriving because of its microclimate, humidity and vegetation, which is the habitat of countless species, characteristics of the area, such as howler monkeys, some species of birds, the toquilla native to the famous toquilla straw hats, you can also see the guadua cane and a very beautiful flora.

It is one of the places that I will hardly forget, also when I arrive at the place You will notice some restaurants in the area with typical food from Manabí, such as bolones de verde, la Tonga (Rice with chicken or fish cooked over wood in a banana leaf), fish ceviche, etc...

I remember that day I was very excited, I didn't know what it would be like, but a Guide from the area that you would find at the booth at the entrance to the Forest would guide you through it. He kept looking everywhere to be able to see the howler monkeys and at the same time take care not to slip on them. I recommend that you wear shoes with good grip and that you will possibly get wet because you will find streams that you will have to cross by jumping over the rocks, which made this adventure an unforgettable experience, we had the opportunity.

Thanks to the Guide, I was able to see along the way a giant spider like the fist of a brown hand, it didn't move much, which said a lot about it, it seemed as if it wanted to be photographed.

Howler Monkey

Howler monkeys are dark brown and black. Their name is given because of their peculiar noise used to communicate. They love to move at the top of the trees. They feed on insects and fruits. If you ever manage to get one very close, you will love them. I recommend not touching them, they usually bite very hard.

We continued along the path. We were finally able to see something at the top of the trees, something was moving, and the beautiful nature gave us a beautiful scene, a mother monkey and her baby hanging from her, it was very brief but we were able to see it, It gave us strength to move forward, While in the forest there are things that you should avoid touching like poisonous flowers and insects, For this reason, it is very important that you always listen to the Guide's instructions, As look at the greenery, you will noticed very large trees rise before you and the thin and beautiful layers of guadua bamboo. It is used in the buidling of houses in the area. Without a doubt the Pacoche Forest is the ideal place to get away from the everyday stress and experience nature in its purest splendor.

Move Your Feet Travel Blog is where you become an active part of your Xperience and create lasting memories of a life time for your family and friends. Please visit MoveYourFeetTravel.com and use the website to explore and create your own customized personal Xperience by using the Xperience Lookup System. We are also happy to create a personal Travel Xperience for you!

A Classic Baseball Xperience - Camden Yards

It was June 19, 2022.

As the day for the game approached there was more on my mind beside baseball. One year to the day I had lost my dad. He would have wanted Mom and I to enjoy the game together and remember him in a fond way for one who enjoyed the experiences in life.

The day before and that week for that matter was extremely hot in the Baltimore area even though it was only the middle of June. Camden Yards is found in the heart of Baltimore, Maryland and a few blocks from the famous inner harbor. It is easily accessible by Bus if you are staying somewhere within the city and also by walking from most downtown areas. You will find lots of shopping, restaurants and entertainment near the area.

Mom and I first took the bus then walked a few blocks to get to the stadium. We got there early and walked around the stadium. Near the statute of Brooks Robinson which you can see in the photo were outside eating areas. We decided to get a little street food before we entered into the park. Of course, Brooks Robinson was known for his gold glove defense. I thought his glove painted good was kind of neat. I had not seen that in other statutes so far in ballparks I have visited.

After we had a nice lunch we walked into the stadium near the famous warehouse building that everyone sees in the photos of Camden Yards. We noticed several things as we walked into the gates. The walk area in front of the warehouse was very wide. Despite that the area was packed with fans as the gates were opened.

Entering the Ballpark

This giant walkway was truly fascinating and is located between Centerfield and right field right behind the stands. It has all kinds of historical Baltimore Oriole items including recognition of the great players of the over the years who are part of their Hall of Fame. There were also special areas to commemorate the accomplishments of players like Cal RIpken Jr. A giant team shop that you can actually walk into and buy a variety of things and one special shop of game used equipment as well. When I looked down at the walkway something caught my attention. I noticed small baseball markers. They appeared scattered all over the concrete floor. They indicated where homeruns had landed over the years.

I had a nostalgic moment in seeing the names and remembering those players during the mid 1990s and into the 2000s. As I was looking there was one that really caught my attention. It seemed to be so much further away than the others. It marked one of the longest homerun balls hit. It belong to Jim Thome of the Cleveland Indians back in the 1990s. The irony is that there is one marker in Cleveland's ballpark outside of center field just near the gate. It also has Jim Thome's name on it as the one of longest homerun hit there as well.

Our Seats

The way the ballpark in Baltimore is designed the atmosphere of watching the ball game is very intimate. Even though we were in the upper deck you don't feel far away from the action. I only had two complaints at the time. 1st the scoreboard was hard to see in the middle of the day. It was both too small and the sun glared off of it. Second, there were no cup holders at the game near our seats in the upper deck which lends itself to garbage and cups flying around the area as the wind was coming off of the bay at that time.

The Game

I got to see the older Cleveland ace pitch that day Corey Kluber who was pitching for Tampa Bay as they faced Baltimore. He had a good outing going 6 innings and giving up just two runs but ended up losing the game because Baltimore only gave up a run that day. It is amazing how the recent rules of the game has impacted timing as the game was almost three hours despite only 3 runs being scored.

Move Your Feet Travel Blog is where you become an active part of your Xperience and create lasting memories of a life time for your family and friends. Please visit MoveYourFeetTravel.com and use the website to explore and create your own customized personal Xperience by using the Xperience Lookup System. We are also happy to create a personal Travel Xperience for you!