Rufa Herrera de Perea cooking during the 2011 Folklife Festival.

Photo by Van Luong

Rufa Herrera de Perea, a cook from Medellin, demonstrates a style of wrap typical to the Pacific Rainforest region.

Photo by Van Luong

Photo by Van Luong

Photo by Van Luong

Photo by Van Luong

Photo by Van Luong

Photo by Van Luong

Recipe by Rufa Herrera de Perea

• 1 lb rice
• 3/4 lb beef
• 3/4 lb pork
• 1 chicken breast
• 2 carrots
• 1/4 lb green beans
• 1/4 lb peas
• 1/2  lb potatoes
• 1 garlic foot
• 1/4 lb. onions
• 1/4 scallions
• Handful of cilantro
• Plantain leaves
• String to tie wraps
• Salt
• Cumin
• Chicken bouillon to taste

Hogao (sauce)

• 2 tomatoes
• Cilantro
• 1/2 lb onion
• 1/2 lb scallions
• Salt to taste

Directions: 

1. Dice the garlic, cilantro, onions, and scallions. Add the salt, cumin, and chicken bouillon. This mixture is called the “aliños.”
2. Dice the meats and add 1/3 of aliños to marinate. Keep chicken separate from beef and pork. Let the meats marinate for as long as possible, maybe a day or two.
3. On the day when you will be serving this dish, dice the greens beans, peas, carrots, and potatoes. Rinse the rice and add 1/3 of the aliños.
4. Make the hogao (sauce) by dicing the ingredients and sautéing them until the vegetables are soft.
5. Spread out a large plantain leaf. On the leaf, add a large spoonful of each of the following ingredients; rice, vegetables, meats, and hogao.
6. Fold the four sides of the leaf over the mixture and tightly wrap with a string. Steam for an hour.

Carolina Restrepo is a program intern for the Columbia program at the 2011 Folklife Festival.