One downside about living in Chicago is that there is no La Duni. If you’ve been then you know why I miss it so dearly. If not, get your butt down to Dallas and try it as soon as possible. They have the most inventive Latin dishes I’ve ever tasted. If you go for lunch, make sure to try one of their tortas, basically a sandwich, but miles better than any PB&J you could ever make. Not only are delicious, but they’re always presented so beautifully as well.
Since I’m without La Duni, I’ve been testing a recipe that has the same flavors as one of their dishes. It’s not exact by any means, but it satisfies that craving I have for Latin flavors! You could easily serve this without the arepas, but I highly recommend you don’t skip these. They’re sort of like corn cakes or a thick corn tortilla. Either way, they’re so yummy and easy to make!
I was home a few weeks ago and got to visit my beloved La Duni and fill up on their awesome salsa and flautas! My other favorite dishes there are the pollo con broccoli, enchiladas and the puerco con frijoles (which is sort of what this dish is based off of!)
If you’ve been to La Duni, how does it compare? If not, hope you liked it just as much as I did!
LATIN PORK WITH RICE, BEANS & AREPAS
Notes
Pork
- 1/3 cup lime juice
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1/2 tsp oregano
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp cornstarch
- 1 Tbsp soy sauce
- 1/2 tsp chipotle chili powder
- 2 pork tenderloins, 1lb. each
- 1 c. masa harina
- 1.5 c. skim milk
- 1/2 tsp salt
- cooking spray
Beans (make a double recipe), get the recipe here
Garnish
- 1 avocado, cubed
- tomatillo sauce
- Combine marinade ingredients, cover and let marinate for 2 hours or up to overnight.
- When you’re ready to cook, preheat oven to 375 degrees.
- Line a baking sheet with foil and place the pork tenderloins on top. Season with salt and pepper.
- Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until the internal temperature reads 145 degrees.
- To make the arepas, warm the milk on the stovetop, until it’s almost simmering, do NOT boil!
- Stir in the masa harina and salt, mix until well combined. Cover the top of the pan, remove from heat and let sit for 5 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 350. Place a large piece of plastic wrap or wax paper on your work surface and shape the masa into 8 equal pieces. Cover with more plastic wrap and flatten into equal disks. Heat a large skillet and spray the bottom with cooking spray, place a batch of 4 arepas into the pan and cook until they begin to form a brown crust, about 3-5 minutes per side. Do the same with the second batch. Move the arepas to a baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes in the oven.
- Serve pork on top of the rice and beans and top with avocado and tomatillo sauce.
