If you know anything about Puerto Rican culture, you may have heard of Asopao de Gandules, which is a hearty stew that stems from a bigger family of stews called Asopao. What is it, where did it originate, and how do you make it?
Asopao de Gandules is a Puerto Rican stew that contains pigeon peas, vegetable stock, onions, aji dulce, oregano, cilantro, olive oil, and tomato sauce. Depending on the variation, Asopao de Gandules can also contain ham, rice, and dumplings. It started as a Puerto Rican poor man’s stew.
Asopao de Gandules is a great Puerto Rican dish to consume on a cold night, as it is hearty, warm, and comforting.
This article will cover what Asopao de Gandules is, its history, and will tell you how to make it, so let’s get started.
Asopao de Gandules History
Even though the exact origin of Asopao de Gandules is unknown, we know that Asopao started to circulate in Puerto Rican restaurants around the 19th century.
Some sources also theorize that Spanish paella and American Gumbo dishes influenced the hearty Puerto Rican dish.
Since Asopao de Gandules’ main ingredients are vegetables, many Boricuas would make this dish when their budget is running low, as it is one of the cheapest stews to make.
What Is Asopao de Gandules?
Asopao de Gandules is a type of asopao originating from Puerto Rico.
Asopao is the national soup of Puerto Rico, and the term refers to a family of soups/stews that you can make with vegetables, pork, beef, chicken, shrimp, seafood, or a combination of these as main ingredients.
It is a Puerto Rican vegetable asopao that has pigeon peas as the main ingredient. The stew is very hearty, as it contains ham (optional), chicken stock (or vegetable stock), onions, aji dulce, oregano, cilantro, olive oil, and tomato sauce.
Normally, the pigeon peas replace the rice when making Asopao de Gandules.
However, some people include both rice and peas for extra heartiness, but whether you add rice or not will depend on what variation you are making.
Some recipes also contain dumplings that chefs make from plantains, green bananas, squash, root vegetables, annatto, milk, flour, and eggs.
Again, the recipes can vary, and not all Asopao de Gandules dishes will have dumplings.
When making the traditional Puerto Rican soup, you must wait for the stew to thicken before serving it.
Many chefs serve it hot, but many people put it in the fridge to save it for the next day and heat it before eating.