Good morning. Today’s main recipe mangú con los tres golpes is a Dominican breakfast that roughly means “plantains with the three hits,” which locals understand to be fried Dominican salami, fried cheese, and fried eggs.

Because this recipe is usually garnished with pickled red onions (if you know, you know), it’s been a popular request for the newsletter.

If you have any recipe requests, reply to send them in. We love learning about different cuisines and developing unique recipes for the newsletter.

TRY SOMETHING NEW 🤯

A Dominican breakfast

Mangú Ingredients

Green plantains (1 plantain per person)
Water - for boiling and for the mash
Butter (1 tbsp per plantain)
Salt to taste

Tres Golpes Components

Amounts to preference.

Queso de Freir (alternatives: queso fresco, panela, or haloumi), sliced into 1/4” planks
Salami, thinly sliced
Eggs
Cooking oil
Pickled onions for garnish

Instructions

1) Make the mangú: Peel and add plantains to a pot, and cover with water. Bring to a simmer and boil until they are completely softened.

Once softened, transfer the plantains to a bowl, then begin mashing with a fork.
Add some butter and a splash of water and continue mashing until the plantains hold together and resemble a stiff, rustic mashed potato texture, adding more butter or water as needed. Taste and adjust with salt.

2) Fry los tres golpes: In a nonstick pan, add a bit of cooking oil and fry the cheese until well browned on each side (the recommended cheeses above shouldn’t melt too much).

Then fry the salami slices until lightly browned.
Then fry eggs to your liking.

3) Garnish & serve: To a plate, add a scoop of mangú, followed by sides of fried cheese, salami, and eggs. Top with pickled onions, and enjoy.

THROWBACK TIME 🍳

Kofte is king

Kofte / kofta / kefta all refer to a spiced meat mixture — and there are countless regional variations stemming from almost every Middle Eastern country.

You can customize kofte to your liking since the base technique uses a simple mixed meat framework of ground meat, salt, and seasonings.

Check out the video for all the details or Ethan’s written recipe with serving options.

If you’re going to make kofte style meat — make a big batch.

It’s a versatile protein you can have for quick meals throughout the week, like lunch wraps or simply topping other dishes for extra protein…

THE LEFTOVER SHELF 🥡

Spaghetti & kofte “meatballs”

If you have extra Kofte around, why not use it in the place of meatballs for a quick variation on spaghetti dinner?

Spaghetti & ‘meatballs’ components

Leftover kofte, cut into smaller chunks
Pasta of choice
Red sauce of choice (like this 3 ingredient tomato sauce)
Garnishes of choice: herbs, extra grated hard cheeses, olive oil, extra spices

To assemble

Prep: Cook the pasta to the package directions. Meanwhile, heat up kofte chunks in the microwave and make or heat up the pasta sauce

Bring it together: Before serving, toss the cooked pasta in a pan with sauce and kofte (both reserve some of each) to coat the noodles and warm everything up.

Finish: Serve with additional sauce and kofte chunks over top, and then garnish.

FOOD TRENDS EXPLAINED 🚀

Canned cocktails & wine

Q: What’s all the buzz about with canned cocktails and wine?

A: Ready-to-drink canned cocktails & wine are one of the fastest-growing beverage categories in the past few years.

Canned cocktails and wine are likely here to stay. Why?

1) Convenience

Canned wine & cocktails travel well. You can toss them in a cooler without the worry of anything breaking or having to bring extra glassware or serving tools.
At a picnic or public park BBQ, it’s a great way to have wine or spirits without bringing in prohibited glass containers.

2) Single serving size

Many consumers are no longer just looking to just have a beer at home – if you can have the experience of a cocktail without having to bust out the jigger and shaker, why not?
It’s a hassle to pop open a full bottle of wine and worry about finishing the bottle before it goes bad. Canned wine lets you enjoy a serving or two at a time, no corkscrew needed.

READER Q&A 🧠

Overhyped kitchen gear

Question: “What is a piece of cooking gear most people waste money on? Is there anything you thought you would use a lot but don’t?” - Ian G

Answer: Stay away from cooking gadgets and single-use items.

1) Gimmicky gadgets: avocado cutters, herb scissors, fruit core removers, vegetable dicing contraptions, spiralizers, etc.

Solution: Learn basic knife skills, and a single knife can replace all of these gadgets. With some competency, you’ll become just as efficient if you factor in the time it takes to clean and put away these tools.
Also, a single Microplane can replace a lot of other kitchen items like garlic presses, cheese graters, and zesters.

2) Bulk specialty items: Juicers, pizza ovens, pasta makers, ice cream makers, etc

Solution: If you actually use these, then go for it. Otherwise, you can make do with other tools in your kitchen — especially if making these kinds of recipes falls on special occasions anyway.
For example, you can blend and strain vegetables and fruits. You can make pasta by hand on the rare occasion, and explore no-machine churning methods when you’re inspired to make ice cream.

For more kitchen gear talk, check out Ethan’s kitchen essentials setup, or Brian Lagerstrom’s take on splurge-worthy tools.

READER PHOTO SUBMISSION OF THE WEEK 🏆

Magnificent meatballs

This week’s dinner winner is Lachlan L, who prepared Italian-American meatballs with spaghetti, topped with Parmigiano Reggiano. Beautifully done, Lachlan!

Reply with a picture of the best meal you made this week for a chance to be featured in a future email.

The Mouthful 🍳

The most overrated kitchen gear?