5 Classic Recipes Latinos Love to Cook

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While there are a lot of Latin dishes to choose from, those which made the list are favorite traditional recipes that are a staple to most Latino households. If you came from one of the beautiful South American countries, chances are, you grew up loving one of these dishes as part of your family meals. So, we bring you some of the classic recipes Latinos love to cook.

Chimichurri

While not exactly a dish, this green sauce made up of various herbs is perfect for your favorite grilled steak. The recipe originally came from Argentina, but has been adopted by a lot of Latinos and has been gaining recognition in many restaurants around the U.S.

Chimichurri is garlicky, tangy and spicy, and just complements every type of grilled meat, according to All Recipes. The ingredients include flat leaf parsley, cilantro leaves, oregano leaves, minced garlic, olive oil, cumin, white wine vinegar, red pepper flakes, salt and ground black pepper.

Ceviche

Ceviche is very easy to prepare as it requires no cooking with fire. It is served cold and that is why it is one of the go-to summer dish in South America, according to Latina. The recipe is usually made up of raw fish, citrus juice, and chilies. Apart from fish ceviche, there are also other variations such as those with other types of seafood.

Tamales

According to Las Vegas Sun, this dish is a traditional Christmas food in many Latin American countries, such as Mexico, Colombia, El Salvador, Panama and Venezuela. Tamales is a usual part of holiday gatherings because its preparation is quite a handful and families work together to make the cooking faster.

Tamales consists of a dough made out of corn and stuffed with a filling that can either be a type of meat like pork, chicken or beef; cheese; fruit or vegetable. The dough is wrapped in a plant leaf before cooking. Check out this pork tamales recipe courtesy of the Food Network. 

Arroz con Pollo

"Arroz con pollo is a traditional dish that can be found all over Latin America with many variations. It's essentially made with rice, chicken, and spices," wrote the Huffington Post.

Some of the main ingredients include chicken thighs, short-grain rice, chicken stock, green olives, saffron, dried bay leaves and garlic.

Pernil

Pernil, or roasted pork, has a lot of different versions across the region, but is usually made from slow-roasted pork leg marinated in a sauce of beer recipe and other spices, says Laylita. You can check out some of the ingredients and directions for cooking in this recipe.