Salpicão
can be wonderful when it's homemade
and light. It is a traditional chicken salad from Brazil. It is a great summer
food and comes in handy when you are a bit pressed for time and want to make
something great for a summer pot luck. In this case, prepare all of the
ingredients and put them in separate containers to transport and combine them
all into the serving dish when ready to serve.
When making this creamy salad, most
Brazilian cooks include hearts of palm, which come from the stems of certain
palm trees. Hearts of palm are available canned in most grocery stores, but if you
have trouble finding them, the salad is just as tasty without them. Also, to
save time you may want to use a cup or two of packaged shoestring potatoes
instead of frying your own. I have tried buying at Amazon.com and I'm
satisfied. If you don't have time, buy it at Native Forest Organic Hearts of Palm. This is the bestselling brand.
Heart of palm, also called palm heart, chonta, palm cabbage or swamp cabbage, is a vegetable harvested from the inner core and
growing bud of certain palm trees (notably the coconut (Cocos nucifera),
Palmito Juçara (Euterpe edulis), Açaí palm (Euterpe oleracea),
sabal (Sabal spp.) and pejibaye (Bactris gasipaes) palms).
Harvesting of many non-cultivated or wild single-stemmed palms results in palm
tree death (e.g. Geonoma edulis). However, other palm species are clonal
or multi-stemmed plants (e.g. Prestoea acuminata, Euterpe oleracea)
and moderate harvesting will not kill the entire clonal palm. Heart of palm may
be eaten on its own, and often it is eaten in a salad.
As of 2008, Costa Rica is the primary source of fresh palm hearts in the United
States. Peach palm is also cultivated in Hawaii,
and now has limited distribution on the mainland, primarily to the restaurant
trade. Florida's wild Sabal palmetto or cabbage palm was once a source of
hearts of palm but is now protected by conservation law.
Brazil was the highest producer of
uncultivated hearts of palm, but in the 1990s its quality went down - mostly
because of unsustainable poaching for stems (called colete, Portuguese
for "vest") of the main producing species, Euterpe edulis -
which is now considered as threatened with extinction in the wild. This left
the market open for Ecuador to export its cultivated hearts of palm. Ecuador is now one of the main
producers of hearts of palm. France is
the largest importer of hearts of palm.
What is Hearts of Palm Taste Like?
Hard to describe what they taste like. They kind of look like
white asparagus minus the tips. The texture is crisp without the 'crunch'. They
are soft, yet firm to the touch, and have a mild sweetness. The is flavor similar to artichokes for some culinary experts it is delicately flavored resembling white
asparagus for others.
How to Select Hearts of Palm
Choose moist,
intact hearts of palm that are unblemished. Avoid or discard bruised or overly soft stalks.
How to Store Hearts of Palm
Fresh hearts of palm should be refrigerated immediately. Unused, tightly sealed portions can be
stored for up to 2 weeks. Store cans or jars out of sunlight at room
temperature. Once opened, use within 1 week.
Watch Video: How It's Made Hearts of Palm
When harvesting the cultivated
young palm, the tree is cut down and the bark is removed leaving layers of
white fibers around the center core. During processing the fibers are removed
leaving the center core or heart of palm. The center core is attached to a
slightly more fibrous cylindrical base with a larger diameter. The entire
cylindrical center core and the attached base are edible. The center core is
considered more of a delicacy because of its lower fiber content.
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 30 minutes
Serves 6
INGREDIENTS:
1 lb. boneless,
skinless chicken breasts
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 tsp. salt
1\2 tsp. pepper
4 slices of lean
cooked ham, cut into thin strips (deli-sliced ham works well)
1\2 c. fresh or
frozen and thawed green peas
2 large carrots,
coarsely grated or
cut into short, thin
sticks
1 green apple, cut
into bite-sized pieces
1 c. canned hearts of
palm, drained and chopped into 1\2-inch pieces
1\ 2 c. regular or
reduced-fat mayonnaise
3 medium potatoes
vegetable oil for
frying
PROCEDURE:
1) Wash
chicken under cool running water and pat dry. Cut into 1/2-inch cubes.
2) In
a heavy saucepan or skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add chicken, salt,
and pepper and cook 10 to 15 minutes, or until chicken is lightly browned and
cooked all the way through. Remove from heat.
3) In
a large bowl, combine the chicken, ham, peas, carrots, apple, and hearts of
palm. Add mayonnaise and mix well.
4) Wash
and peel potatoes. Grate or cut potatoes into long, thin strips. Pour about an
inch of vegetable oil into a large frying pan or stockpot and heat to 350˚F, or
until a drop of water flicked into the pan jumps out.
5) Carefully
place potatoes in oil with a slotted spoon. (If they don’t all fit, you can fry them in two or three batches.)
Fry 10 to 12 minutes, stirring gently.
6) When potatoes are golden brown, remove
from oil with a slotted spoon and place on paper towels to drain.
7) Just
before serving, stir most of the potatoes into the salad and sprinkle a few on
top.
Try
other Brazilian healthy food recipes:
Quick
Cooking Tips
After
handling raw chicken or other poultry, always remember to thoroughly wash
your hands, utensils, and preparation area with hot, soapy water. Also, when checking
chicken for doneness, it’s a good idea to cut it open gently to make sure the
meat is white (not pink) all the way through.
Cooking
with hot oil is simple and safe as long as you’re careful and an adult is
present. Be sure to use long-handled utensils whenever possible. Stand as far
back from the stove as you can and place potatoes into oil slowly to avoid
splattering.
CALORIE COUNTER:
Chicken,
Meat Only, Roasted
chicken, chicken
breast, meat
B- Grade
266 Calories
Nutrition Facts
Serving Size 1 cup, chopped or diced (140 g)
Per Serving
|
%
Daily Value
|
Calories 266
|
|
Calories from Fat 93
|
|
Total Fat 10.4g
|
16%
|
Saturated Fat 2.9g
|
14%
|
Polyunsaturated Fat 2.4g
|
|
Monounsaturated Fat 3.7g
|
|
Cholesterol 125mg
|
42%
|
Sodium 120mg
|
5%
|
Potassium 340mg
|
10%
|
Carbohydrates 0.0g
|
0%
|
Dietary Fiber 0.0g
|
0%
|
Sugars 0.0g
|
|
Protein 40.5g
|
|
Vitamin A
|
1%
|
Vitamin C
|
0%
|
Calcium
|
2%
|
Iron
|
9%
|
Potatoes,
French Fried
Frozen, Home-prepared, Heated In Oven,
Without Salt
french fries, potatoes
B+ Grade
67 Calories
Nutrition Facts
Serving Size 10 strips (50 g)
Per Serving
|
%
Daily Value
|
Calories 67
|
|
Calories from Fat 23
|
|
Total Fat 2.6g
|
4%
|
Saturated Fat 0.5g
|
3%
|
Polyunsaturated Fat 0.2g
|
|
Monounsaturated Fat 1.6g
|
|
Cholesterol 0mg
|
0%
|
Sodium 194mg
|
8%
|
Potassium 226mg
|
6%
|
Carbohydrates 13.9g
|
5%
|
Dietary Fiber 1.4g
|
6%
|
Sugars 0.1g
|
|
Protein 1.3g
|
|
Vitamin A
|
0%
|
Vitamin C
|
11%
|
Calcium
|
1%
|
Iron
|
2%
|
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