Why doesn't Dominican food get the same recognition as Cuban Food in the U.S.? - Santo Domingo

#24 - Posted 7 April 2008, 12:48 PM
MrDom Location: Dominican Republic, Santo Domingo, DN Join date: March 2008 Member #: 478 Posts: 369	RE: Why doesn't Dominican food get the same recognition as Cuban Food in the U.S.? Quote: dreadlocks previously said: one of the reasons why food from the Dr does not get the recognition abroad that others do is because, in part, they do not have a flagship dish, which, even if not universally acceptable, is an advertising strongpoint. Puerto Ricans have pernil, cubans have the cuban sandwich, argentines have their beef, brazilians have churrasco, the chinese and other orientals have their cuisine, the jamaicans have beef patties, jerk ckicken..and so on. we got into the game a little late, and have to establish a foothold outside the community with a powerhouse dish. i love sancocho, but a beef-based soup is up against a million others mangu is an acquired taste, and, quite frankly, does not have much to recommend it. finally, the cooking methods are a little different than the world outside accepts: too much oil, and too much salt. besides, heavyweight restaurant offerings do not ever season food with sason completo. i like my DR food, though. I remember very well all those Americans eating our oily and salty dishes as you said Dred... (In my aunt’s restaurant and they like it a lot!!!) Mofongo, Puerco asado, locrio, tostones.... I don't know how things work in places outside NYC, but over there Americans do eat our dishes. I studied at BCC in Binghamton NY, we used to have a cultural week, me and other Dominicans prepared food, perform (we danced Merengue and Bachata) and we used to do many other stuff. Our food was sold in a while..... Year after year!!!! But the most special thing was that many people that came to our stand had come here to DR at least once in their life.

RE: Why doesn't Dominican food get the same recognition as Cuban Food in the U.S.?

Quote:

dreadlocks previously said:

hey Frank, i am here. when i say that mangu is an acquired tase, i do not mean it in a derogatory fashion. i happen to like a breakfast of fried salami, fried eggs and mangu as much as the next guy. i find that people in the usa are less likely to find it as interesting as we do, because of the caloric input, or perceived input. as to cibaeno; i had sancocho made by my friend alberto in the capital, and it has to be the best soup i have ever had. it is probably better than all the other beef/pork/chicken based soups available, but the others were there first. it is about gaining a foothold. it would be like trying to put dominican empanadas up against jamaican patties . they just have too much of a foothold to be dislodged. another thing i notice is the lack of variety of dishes: if i want lambi here, all i can get is a la criolla or a la vinagrette. no conch stew, no conch fritters, no conch soup, no conch chowder. same for shrimp; shrimp creole, or shrimp in garlic sauce. the dishes are good as prepared, but more imagination is needed to make us a force in cuisine.

Domincian food is one of the greatest cuisine's in the world. The flavors generate through natural herbs and spices are second to none. I love it. Very tastefully and healthy if you know how to control yourself ! LOL. That can be difficult. LOL

#21 - Posted 7 April 2008, 11:38 AM
dreadlocks Location: United States Join date: December 2007 Member #: 4 Posts: 4339	RE: Why doesn't Dominican food get the same recognition as Cuban Food in the U.S.? one of the reasons why food from the Dr does not get the recognition abroad that others do is because, in part, they do not have a flagship dish, which, even if not universally acceptable, is an advertising strongpoint. Puerto Ricans have pernil, cubans have the cuban sandwich, argentines have their beef, brazilians have churrasco, the chinese and other orientals have their cuisine, the jamaicans have beef patties, jerk ckicken..and so on. we got into the game a little late, and have to establish a foothold outside the community with a powerhouse dish. i love sancocho, but a beef-based soup is up against a million others mangu is an acquired taste, and, quite frankly, does not have much to recommend it. finally, the cooking methods are a little different than the world outside accepts: too much oil, and too much salt. besides, heavyweight restaurant offerings do not ever season food with sason completo. i like my DR food, though.

#22 - Posted 7 April 2008, 11:55 AM
FranktheTank Location: United Kingdom Join date: December 2007 Member #: 8 Posts: 379	RE: Why doesn't Dominican food get the same recognition as Cuban Food in the U.S.? Quote: dreadlocks previously said: mangu is an acquired taste Mangu, an acquired taste! Never heard that before, but I’m usually to buzy stuffing my face to listen. (I see u have finally found us over in the forum section lol) Intelligence organizes the world by organizing itself, Jean Piaget

#23 - Posted 7 April 2008, 12:48 PM
cibaeño75 Location: United States Join date: February 2008 Member #: 411 Posts: 1145	RE: Why doesn't Dominican food get the same recognition as Cuban Food in the U.S.? Excellent points ladronazo and dread (though I disagree with you on sancocho's ability to compete with other stews..my mom visited me this weekend and made a sancocho for us, in the process reaffirming my belief in what I've already stated, that I'll put our sancocho up against anyone's version of the dish and I'll now add to any other similiar dish! It's that good). I'll just say one last thing: I feel that with time, as the dominican community becomes established here in the states, our cuisine will catch on (as it indeed is) with outsiders. P.S. Sancocho, at least Dominican Sancocho, doesn't necessarily have to contain beef. As a matter of fact the sancocho my mom made for me over the weekend contained chicken and pork, no beef, and it was excellent.

#25 - Posted 7 April 2008, 3:49 PM
dreadlocks Location: United States Join date: December 2007 Member #: 4 Posts: 4339	RE: Why doesn't Dominican food get the same recognition as Cuban Food in the U.S.? hey Frank, i am here. when i say that mangu is an acquired tase, i do not mean it in a derogatory fashion. i happen to like a breakfast of fried salami, fried eggs and mangu as much as the next guy. i find that people in the usa are less likely to find it as interesting as we do, because of the caloric input, or perceived input. as to cibaeno; i had sancocho made by my friend alberto in the capital, and it has to be the best soup i have ever had. it is probably better than all the other beef/pork/chicken based soups available, but the others were there first. it is about gaining a foothold. it would be like trying to put dominican empanadas up against jamaican patties . they just have too much of a foothold to be dislodged. another thing i notice is the lack of variety of dishes: if i want lambi here, all i can get is a la criolla or a la vinagrette. no conch stew, no conch fritters, no conch soup, no conch chowder. same for shrimp; shrimp creole, or shrimp in garlic sauce. the dishes are good as prepared, but more imagination is needed to make us a force in cuisine.

#26 - Posted 7 April 2008, 6:08 PM
ny4life Location: United States, New York, NY Join date: December 2007 Member #: 16 Posts: 586	RE: Why doesn't Dominican food get the same recognition as Cuban Food in the U.S.? Quote: dreadlocks previously said: hey Frank, i am here. when i say that mangu is an acquired tase, i do not mean it in a derogatory fashion. i happen to like a breakfast of fried salami, fried eggs and mangu as much as the next guy. i find that people in the usa are less likely to find it as interesting as we do, because of the caloric input, or perceived input. as to cibaeno; i had sancocho made by my friend alberto in the capital, and it has to be the best soup i have ever had. it is probably better than all the other beef/pork/chicken based soups available, but the others were there first. it is about gaining a foothold. it would be like trying to put dominican empanadas up against jamaican patties . they just have too much of a foothold to be dislodged. another thing i notice is the lack of variety of dishes: if i want lambi here, all i can get is a la criolla or a la vinagrette. no conch stew, no conch fritters, no conch soup, no conch chowder. same for shrimp; shrimp creole, or shrimp in garlic sauce. the dishes are good as prepared, but more imagination is needed to make us a force in cuisine. Domincian food is one of the greatest cuisine's in the world. The flavors generate through natural herbs and spices are second to none. I love it. Very tastefully and healthy if you know how to control yourself ! LOL. That can be difficult. LOL

#27 - Posted 7 April 2008, 9:20 PM
dreadlocks Location: United States Join date: December 2007 Member #: 4 Posts: 4339	RE: Why doesn't Dominican food get the same recognition as Cuban Food in the U.S.? NY4LIFE, every country feels that their cuisine is the best: that is normal. but stay way from the spice issue. maybe i do not have the opportunity to receive the best cuisine, but i can tell you that the main beef that foreigners have about Dominican food is the lack of seasoning. entirely too much people cook with sazon completo. recaito is another seasoning which appears in too many dishes, and most foreigners i meet here cannot tolerate it. it is extremely overpowering, and cannot be "cooked out", like skellions, garlic, sage or marjoram, which do not leave a signature taste.

#28 - Posted 7 April 2008, 10:39 PM
ny4life Location: United States, New York, NY Join date: December 2007 Member #: 16 Posts: 586	RE: Why doesn't Dominican food get the same recognition as Cuban Food in the U.S.? The spice issue is your opinion. I have no problems with the seasonings. We do use it alot i must admit and sometimes I feel we should diversify a little bit. Overall, I love the taste. It can be a little strong especially for cacusasian individual enjoy bland food.

#29 - Posted 8 April 2008, 9:32 AM
dreadlocks Location: United States Join date: December 2007 Member #: 4 Posts: 4339	RE: Why doesn't Dominican food get the same recognition as Cuban Food in the U.S.? precisely, NY4LIFE. the topic has nothing to do with whether or not dominicans like dominican food. it has to do with wider acceptance. i can tell you that although we like dominican food, it has drawbacks which reduce its overall acceptablity. the correct application of spices is one of the questions we cannot overlook. caucasians, for example, are not necessarily accustomed to bland foods, but to those which utilise certain seasonings. take a simple example; stuffing for turkeys. a good turkey stuffing simply cannot be properly expedited without SAGE, a spice i have never seen in a dr supermarket. and, as i said before, recaito is better used as a garnish: cooking beef and pork with it is not a good idea, since it drowns out the taste of the meat.

#30 - Posted 8 April 2008, 12:05 PM
cibaeño75 Location: United States Join date: February 2008 Member #: 411 Posts: 1145	RE: Why doesn't Dominican food get the same recognition as Cuban Food in the U.S.? dread, I have to disagree with your take on recaito, or cilantro. Thai cooking uses cilantro heavily, more so than Dominican food, and Thai restuarants are doing good business here in New York. Obviously heavy cilantro use doesn't bother everyone. Edited on 4/8/2008 12:06 PM by cibaeño75.

November 21, 2008, Updated 7:04 AM
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