︎



Beef Patties & Arroz con Pollo with Jeannette & her family

Jeannette and her mom learned these recipes from Jeannette’s grandmother, who moved to California from the U.S. Virgin Islands as a teenager. As a child, Jeannette spent a lot of time with her grandmother and loved her cooking. But it was not until she was nineteen and out on her own that she describes making arroz con pollo independently for the first time.

Food is important to Jeannette and a way to care for those around her. She plans her family’s meals weekly and strategically visits multiple grocery stores to get the ingredients she wants and needs. For the beef patties, she had to visit three different Walmart locations before she found the dough she was looking for. She is thoughtful about the ingredients she uses, only cooking in olive oil, for example, because she considers it the healthiest option. Jeannette is also a skilled multi-tasker in the kitchen. Even while preparing two recipes for the interview, Jeannette simultaneously made a third dish for her mother to eat more immediately to ensure her needs were met.

Now with four children of her own, Jeannette is passing on her grandmother’s recipes with the help of her mother. Two of her children are already out of the house, and she is glad they know how to cook and care for themselves. She is especially proud that they can make the foods that connect them to their family and the Virgin Islands.


Beef Patties Recipe

Servings: 10 patties
Time: 30-40 minutes


Ingredients:

  • 2 lbs ground beef
  • 3 tbsp sofrito
  • 1 packet of Sazon Goya powder
  • ½ jar Manzanilla olives (green, pimento stuffed olives), roughly chopped or pulsed in a food processor
  • 1 package of Goya empanada dough circles
  • olive oil


Instructions

  • Saute the beef in a pan on medium heat, taking care to break it up into small pieces as it cooks.
  • When beef is partially cooked, add the sofrito.
  • Cover and let simmer for about 5 minutes, or until fully cooked.
  • Once the beef is fully cooked, add the Goya powder and chopped olives, stir in to combine.
  • Fill the patties– scoop about 2 tablespoons of the beef mixture onto the middle of a dough circle, making sure to leave space around the edges. Fold the dough in half to create a semi circle, then use a fork to press the edges together. Repeat to fill all of the dough and/or use up all of the filling. Lay the plastic sheets that separate the dough circles between the raw patties to keep them from sticking together while you construct the rest of them.
  • Fry the patties– heat about 4-5 inches of oil in a small pan until a bit of water or dough sizzles when added. Fry patties 2-3 at a time for about a minute or two on each side until golden brown.
  • Lay the patties on a plate lined with paper towels to drain. 


Arroz Con Pollo Recipe

Servings: 8-10
Time: 45 minutes


Ingredients:

  • 3 cups of white rice
  • 3 lbs chicken thighs
  • ½ cup of white vinegar
  • ½ jar Manzanilla olives (green, pimento stuffed olives), roughly chopped or pulsed in a food processor
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 packet of Sazon Goya powder
  • 1 cup of sofrito
  • ½ box of chicken stock
  • salt to taste
  • olive oil


Instructions:

  • Rinse the rice and cook in a rice cooker or via your preferred method, with the bay leaves and bit of salt.
  • Soak the chicken thighs in a bowl of water with the white vinegar to clean them, then rinse each thigh.
  • In a large pot, heat a few tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat, then stir in sofrito and Goya powder.
  • Add the chicken thighs, then cover and let it cook until the liquids start to boil.
  • When the liquids in the pot boil, add the chicken stock. Cover and let it reach boiling again, stirring occasionally until the chicken is fully cooked.
  • Once the chicken has fully cooked, pour the rice into a large bowl, then add the chicken pieces and mix to combine.
  • Pour in the cooking juices from the chicken as well as the chopped olives.
  • Add salt to taste.