Guatemalan Tapado Recipe

Tapado is a Guatemalan soup which consists of seafood, plantains and coconut milk. Other ingredients are vegetables like onions and tomatoes. The soup is flavored with chicken bouillon and achiote.

The soup is cooked until the plantains are so tender they begin to dissolve and thicken the soup. It is eaten as a main meal but is sometimes served with rice.

Amongst Spanish speaking countries, tapado has several different meanings including covered or clogged, lazy, fraud and in Portuguese means stupid. These are all unrelated to the dish. In Gastronomy, tapado refers to a stew made with root vegetables and coconut milk.

Tapado has many variations. It’s typically made with a combination of seafood based on availability and personal taste. Guatemalans make tapado with blue crabs. Some are made with sofrito, a fine blend of tomatoes, peppers, onions, garlic and cilantro, used a base for numerous Spanish dishes.

Origin and Cultural Significance

Tapado originates from the Garifuna people in coastal Guatemala. This group likely started somewhere in the 1600’s and are the result of West African slaves who intermarried with the Indigenous Arawak and Carib populations in the Caribbean.

Tapado is a fusion dish featuring sofrito from the Spanish influence in Guatemala, the use of coconut milk from West Africa, the ground provisions which were staples in Arawak and Carib cuisine and the variety of seafood abundantly available in the Caribbean waters.

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Guatemalan Tapado Recipe

Yield: 4 Servings

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour 15 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes

Tapado is a Guatemalan soup which consists of seafood, plantains and coconut milk. Other ingredients are vegetables like onions and tomatoes.

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Ingredients

• Coconut milk - 2 cups
• Green plantains (peeled and sliced) - 3
• Onion (thinly diced) - 1 whole
• Plum tomatoes (large, diced) - 3
• Potato (cut into thin slices) - 1 whole
• Bell pepper (cut into strips) - 1 whole
• Oil - 1 tbsp
• Oregano (fresh, chopped) - 1 tbsp
• Chicken bouillon - ½ tbsp
• Garlic (minced) - 2 cloves
• Achiote (annato) - 1 tsp
• Salt - to taste
• Pepper - to taste
• Snapper fillet - 2 lbs
• Clams - 1 lb
• Oysters - 1lb
• Shrimp - 1 lb
• Crabs - 3

Instructions

1. In a pot, heat the oil then add the minced garlic, sliced onion, tomatoes and sauté for a few minutes until they are tender.
2. Add the potatoes and peppers.
3. Add the coconut milk and the sliced plantains.
4. Bring to a boil until it takes on an orange color and thicker consistency.
5. Add oregano, salt, pepper, achiote and the chicken bouillon to your taste.
6. Let it cook until the plantains are soft, about 20 minutes.
7. Clean and fillet the fish.
8. Season with salt.
9. Place it into the pan and fry in olive/vegetable oil for a couple of minutes on each side.
10. Place all the seafood in the coconut broth and cook until just tender, this will happen quickly.

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 1212Total Fat: 43gSaturated Fat: 26gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 12gCholesterol: 555mgSodium: 3422mgCarbohydrates: 95gFiber: 7gSugar: 29gProtein: 115g

Nutrition is provided and calculated by Nutritionix. It is for general information purposes and is only a rough estimation.

Photo Credit: tornadogrrrl