Papa's Lomo Saltado Recipe
By Cassandra Clifford
In Latin American cultures, there are basically two things which take importance above all else: family and food. It doesn’t matter whether you’re Puerto Rican, Peruvian, or Mexican: those are constants.
Some of my earliest memories with food are in my godfather’s kitchen. Papa was always cooking and he always had food in his house. My mother would often go to his house and he would feed us until we couldn’t eat anymore. He told us stories over food, and soon the association between food, history, and family was formed in my mind. Eating certain dishes makes me think of certain stories and certain people. Cooking is a part of family history, like a memory box passed down from generation to generation, with each chef in the family tweaking the recipe just slightly or adding their own recipe cards to the box.
As a little kid, I was an extremely picky eater. However, there was one dish which I always loved and asked for on my birthday--lomo saltado. This is a Peruvian stir-fry which is quite easy to make, though I am still trying to master mine to make it as delicious as Papa’s was. It’s typically served with white rice, but it’s also delicious on its own. This dish is usually made with beef, but you can also swap out the beef for chicken or pork.
Makes 4 servings
Ingredients
1 lb lean steak (like top round, sirloin, or flank)
1.5 cup French fries (either your favorite recipe or frozen)
2 beefsteak tomatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
5 cloves of garlic, minced
2 small red onions, sliced
⅓ cup red wine vinegar (or to taste)
1 tbsp parsley (or to taste)
1 tbsp granulated sugar
Salt
Pepper
Crushed red pepper (optional)
Vegetable oil
Directions
Cut the beef into thin strips about the size of a shoestring French fry. Toss the cut beef with the minced garlic, salt and pepper.
Heat vegetable oil in a large frying pan on medium heat.
Fry the beef in the pan until it is browned, but not overcooked. You can conserve the liquid which runs off the beef to add to the lomo later (your lomo saltado will be dryer if you don’t, but this is entirely on personal preference). Set aside.
In another frying pan, heat vegetable oil on medium-high heat. Add your onion and stir frequently so it does not burn.
In a bowl, combine red wine vinegar, granulated sugar, and crushed red pepper if using. Stir until well-combined.
When your onions are translucent, add your tomatoes and a bit more salt and pepper. Mash the mixture with a fork and then cover. Turn the heat down to low. Let this sit for about two minutes.
After allowing the tomato and onion to cook together, add the vinegar mixture and parsley and stir until combined.
In a large bowl, combine beef with French fries and add the tomato and onion mixture.
Serve with white rice and enjoy!
