La Fonda Boricua
When I was in Spain, I had a Serbian roommate, Dunja. We met up again when she visited New York and she she wanted to try some Puerto Rican food. So, we headed up to Spanish Harlem to La Fonda Boricua. This is the restaurant famous for beating Bobby Flay in an Arroz con Pollo throwdown. The restaurant is the type of place that doesn’t bother with menus, but this was no problem. We all knew what we needed to try, and it was amazing. Here is their recipe from the throwdown.
Sofrito:
-1c white onions, chopped
-1c green pepper, chopped
-1/2 red pepper, chopped
-4 cloves garlic, minced
-1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
-1/4 cup recao, chopped
Adobo rub:
-cumin, oregano, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, pepper
The rest:
-4 chicken quarter legs & thighs
-1/4c olive oil
-1.4c tomato paste
-1/4c olives
-1/4t pepper
-3 bay leaves
-4c rice
-6c chicken stock
-12oz beer
Marinate the chicken in olive oil and adobo rub
Chop up the sofrito and saute it for 10 minutes.
Brown the chicken over medium head with some of the olive oil. Add the paste, olives, pepper, sofrito, and bay leaves. Cook covered for 20 minutes until the chicken is cooked. Add rice, stock, and beer. Boil on medium heat until most of the liquid evaporates. Then stir and lower heat to low. Cook covered for 20 more minutes.
25 Spices. 