It may not be the biggest, but El Cochinito Restaurant may just be the best Cuban restaurant in Los Angeles! This small, 12-table restaurant turns out the most authentic Cuban food we have eaten in a long time. And no wonder, this is a family-run business where the owners, Victor and Gladys Gutierrez, take great personal pride in everything they serve.

So many Cuban restaurants are run by professionally trained chefs who insist on turning simple Cuban fare into something gourmet and foreign. Some of the best Cuban restaurants are run by people who got all their training in the family kitchen.

Plantains are a staple in the Cuban diet. Cubans (and several other Latin-American groups) use them in many different dishes, but you most frequently see them served as maduros (fried sweet plantain) and tostones. The plantain is not, strictly speaking, a banana, but it is related.

Tostones are unique because they are fried twice. This double frying technique is very popular in Cuba! Many cooks use this technique to make French fried potatoes and boniato (sweet potatoes).

The tradition of tostones comes from African slaves. In the Congo, the people prepare plantains in the exact same way, even to this day. Some purists insist on completely starchy tostones with no sweetness. For them, only a perfectly green plantain will do.

Others like a little sweetness in the tostones, and a plantain with a few speckles of black makes a sweeter version.

Maduros: The Sweet Cousin

If you have ever eaten in a Cuban restaurant, you have eaten these -- what many Anglos refer to as "those sweet black bananas." This dish is Plátanos Maduros, and it is also made with plantains. The starchy plantain is allowed to get very ripe -- to the point of being pure black -- and the starch is converted into sweet sugars.

Maduros are fried gently so that they are soft and moist with just a little brown caramelizartion, which sometimes makes for delicious crispy edges.

Celebrating the Versatile Plantain – El Plátano!

“Three Guys From Miami Celebrate Cuban” is our latest book. Here you’ll find many classic Miami Cuban recipes, this time with an emphasis on dishes that are great for parties.

“Three Guys From Miami Cook Cuban” is our first book. It contains many classic Miami Cuban recipes and favorite dishes.

In 1991, Mauricio Collada, Jr. purchased a 21-acre farm in Oregon's Willamette Valley where he built a beautiful home and planted the first vines that would become the basis for the Cubanisimo Vineyards. In 2003, Cubanisimo started producing estate wines and now produces approximately 1000 cases per year. Especially notable are the Cubanisimo’s vintage Pinot Noir and Pinot Noir Reserve.

The Cubanisimo 2005 Pinot Noir features fruity aroma notes of black cherry and spice, with sweet cherry and red raspberry flavors. The 2006 Pinot Noir is also a standout with commanding fruit flavors, including black & Bing cherry, black current, and a hint of caramel. In addition, a 2006 Rosado de Pinot Noir makes a wonderful picnic wine with bright apricot and raspberry flavors.
Collada has also brought a taste of Havana to the area: he regularly hosts a salsa night that features Cuban style salsa lessons and wine tastings.

If you are traveling to Oregon, the tasting room at the Cubanisimo Vineyards is open April through Thanksgiving weekend, 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. daily.

Residents in about a dozen states (including Florida) can order Cubanisimo wines online. Click the website link for more information.

Cubanisimo Vineyards

1754 Best Rd NW

Salem, OR 97304

503-588-1763

cubanisimovineyards.com

See Mauricio and Cubanisimo at Cuba Nostalgia

Visit their booth during the Cuba Nostalgia show: