Peruvian Cau Cau

Hungry for Peru, as usual.
Originally, this recipe contains tripe (the stomach of a cow) and it used to be one of my faves when I was a carnivore.
Peruvian food is absolutely rich in flavors and colors but, unfortunately for me, most of them contain meat.  So, here is when creativity and hunger strike making one come up with ways to replace the meat without affecting the flavor. (My mother mastered this art. She has made vegan ADOBO people!!!!!)

Oh, this dish, as most of Peruvian food, is served hot. #calientito

Ingredients

+6 potatoes (2 potatoes per person)
+salt to taste
+water
+half a cup of chickpeas
+a small bundle of coriander or cilantro
+turmeric or curcuma
+500 gr of tofu
+half and onion
+1 tsp of minced garlic
+Allspice or jamaica pepper (4 little balls; 2 for the cau cau and 2 for the rice)
+5 tbs of oil (3 for the cau cau and 2 for the rice)
+1 cup of  white or brown rice (Peruvian food without rice or potatoes is like a mojito without limes)

Cau cau

-Cut your tofu in rectangular slices. Marinate with salt, some turmeric and cumin (Add some soya sauce for extra flavor but watch out the saltiness)
-While your tofu marinates in the fridge, peel and chop your potatoes in rectangular slices as well.
-Fry the tofu in a pot or pan until golden brown.
-Lay paper towel on a dish and place your tofu there so it'll soak the extra oil.
-chop your onions in small squares and mince the garlic*
-Turn the stove on, pour 3 tbsp of oil and around 1 tsp of turmeric in a pot. We can add more after. When it's hot, dump 1/2 tsp of  the minced garlic. Let it fry for some seconds. Then dump the onions and 3 to 4 coriander branches and fry until the onion becomes kind of transparent.
-Add the allspice  (2 balls)
-Add the chopped potatoes and then fill in with water until it covers most of the potatoes.
-If the color of the water isn't yellowish enough, add more turmeric. Taste the water for flavor (How do you like turmeric flavor, strong?) and salt to taste.
-If your peas are fresh, pour them so they can cook with the potatoes. If they're  frozen, add them 3 minutes before you turn the stove off.
-Let it cool a bit. Meanwhile, get your fresh coriander and remove the stem. Chop the leaves into small pieces and separate in 2.
-After it's cooled for around 10 to 15 minutes, add the tofu and one part of the chopped coriander to the cau cau and mix well. Be careful not to smash the potatoes too much or you'll have a delicious puree . Sprinkle the other part on top when you serve. Fresh coriander on top gives extra flavor (It's optional though. You could also just garnish with some coriander leaves as I did)

Rice

-get another pot and pour the rest of the oil (2 tbsp) and the rest of the of minced garlic (1/2 tsp). When it is fried enough, pour the rice and mix well. *
-Add the allspice (2 balls)
-For each cup of white rice, you pour 2 cups of water. Since we're using the brown rice, it'll be 2 cups and 1/4 of water.
-Salt to taste. Bring the heat to high and cover pot.
-Let it boil. Keep checking your rice every 10 min. Reduce  the heat to minimum when the water and the rice are on the same level. Wait another 20 min.
-If the rice is still tough, add a little bit more of water and let it cook still on low heat until it's soft.

*Since turmeric has so many health benefits, one way to add it to your diet (If you eat rice everyday) is to add half a tsp of it when you're frying  the minced garlic. Yellow rice!

Assemble

- Put some rice in the center of a plate and on top, pour the cau cau. (The Peruvian presentation suggests to place the rice on one side and the cau cau next to it but I like the 'juice' of cau cau on my rice :p)
-Sprinkle fresh chopped coriander on top and serve hot.
voila.




+Tip:I peel like 3 to 4 bulbs of garlic and use the food processor to mince it. Then I place it in a Tupperware, pour some olive oil, mix well and keep it in the fridge so it's ready to use. It could last weeks. The oil helps to preserve it and garlic has antibacterial properties)

+Tip: Too much water in your cau cau? Don't freak out! separate some of it in a cup or bowl and use it instead of water to cook the rice. Not enough water?? add more.