Tuesday, June 30, 2009

Café Rio, Argentine Style

Thank you, thank you, Bille.

The "Café Rio Pork" and "Creamy Tomatilla Salad Dressing" recipes you included in Stephanie's "Tried and True" recipe book saved the day ... and night ... and day ... AGAIN.

This is the second time I made these recipes, but the first time I made them in Argentina.

Sat. night we made this when we had friends over for dinner and it was sooooo good. The next day we brought some of the leftovers to another friend's house and enjoyed it again. And yesterday, Neil fed the Missionaries more leftovers for lunch. And then we had it again for dinner! The recipe makes lots. Yummy, yummy lots.

Making it was a bit of an adventure; looking up the lb. to kg. conversion; the translation for "pork shoulder," (apparently not "hombro de cerdo") -- and that was before we even got to the grocery store.

I panicked when I realized they, of course, don't have packets of Hidden Valley Ranch dressing mix. No worries, two bottles of Newman's Own Ranch Dressing (in the "International Foods" aisle, haha) worked.

Then, after looking in two stores, I couldn't find tomatillas! Neil swore he would not go to Chinatown with me, though I just KNOW they would have had them there; they have everything there!

So instead, I found tomatilla sauce ("Made in Mexico," also in the "Int'l Foods" aisle). I mixed that with the ranch dressing and other ingredients and I couldn't tell the difference from the sauce I made the first time, in the U.S., with all the right ingredients.

Then they didn't have pork shoulder, so they sold me what apparently was the tenderloin (after lots of gesturing, pointing to a diagram of beef cuts, and "butchered" (haha, get it?) Spanish).

And oh yeah, our crock pot was one of only two things that broke in the move. But a big pot on the gas stove worked just fine.

It turned out amazing.

Two of our Argentine friends who just moved back here from Utah, and one of the Missionaries, who is from Sandy, have been to Café Rio, and they said it tastes just like it. (Ironically, I've never been to Café Rio).

So thanks again, Bille (remember when I called you from the grocery store the first time I made this?), I can't recommend your recipe enough!

(Blog friends, maybe if you ask real nice, she'll share the recipe with you, too!)

3 comments:

Stephanie said...

yes! this recipe has saved me many many times as well and can literally feed a football team- i think.

Travelin' Tracy said...

Ooh! I want the recipe...you don't know how many times I think about eating there ever since I graduated. How can I be blessed with this special secret?

Kelsey said...

That sounds like it would make a good marinade!