TOP 10 Foods You MUST Eat In Puerto Rico! | AND Exactly Where To Get Authentic Puerto Rican Food!

hi there welcome to the channel my name is brick and i'm your official puerto rico travel guide from the common to the uncommon i help you discover puerto rico's most amazing natural historic and cultural attractions and today i'll show you the top 10 foods you must eat when you visit puerto rico traveling to another country can be a life-changing experience if you do it right you get the opportunity to not only see a country's monuments and attractions but you also experience their culture and lifestyle one extremely important aspect of a country's culture is their food and this is no exception for puerto rico our traditional creole cuisine plays an integral role in every cultural activity and family gathering similar to the people of puerto rico our traditional cuisine has a rich history from the blend of our african taino in spanish ancestors tradition resulting in what legendary spanish chef jose andres describes as one of the most interesting cuisines in the world with so many delicious food options to choose from it's difficult to know where to start but don't worry in this video i'll show you my top 10 picks of the top foods you must eat when visiting puerto rico and precisely where to get them our first stop for authentic puerto rican comfort food is the community of pinones pinones stretches from the municipality of carolina all the way to the municipality of loisa and is heavily influenced by the traditions of our african ancestors who settled in the area many years ago today their descendants have artfully kept their traditions and cooking styles alive for everybody's enjoyment here we stop at one of the kiosks right next to the beach called el guarekiten and indulge in the food that occupies the number one spot on this list are a deep fried fritter made by placing a gautilla green banana and plantain dough called masa on a sea grape leaf that helps in giving the alcaporia its shape alcaporias are crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside which is most commonly filled with ground beef here we also tried my personal favorite and number two on this list vacalaitos baccalatos are fried cot fritters made with a mixture of cod fish flour and adobo their shape is circular and flat but they can range in size you will notice that many businesses will sell alcapurias but not many will sell baccalatos and that's generally because it can be relatively difficult and complicated to make them however pinyones is a sure bet if you want to find this delicious and somewhat rare authentic puerto rican food the third food we ate at pinones were some delicious empanadillas empanadillas are fried turnovers made with flaky dough filled with all sorts of locally caught seafood such as fish crustaceans and octopus empanadillas look very similar to other authentic puerto rican foods called empanadas and pastellios in fact there's a debate about the difference between these foods but you don't have to worry about that because these foods are essentially the same thing and they all taste delicious so if you pull up to a kiosk with traditional fried food and you can't differentiate between an empanadilla an empanada or a pastellio just point that one and i can assure you you won't be disappointed and although this video is all about delicious food it wouldn't be fair to talk about pinonis without talking about its breathtaking natural landscape pinonis's beaches are some of the most beautiful and pure beaches you will find near the metro area their crystal clear waters are surrounded by a luscious forest full of pine trees sand dunes salt flats and the most extensive natural system of mangroves in all of the island after taking a dip in the water under the blazing sun we decided to stop by the restaurant contraviento where we had the food that occupies the number four spot on this list the famous pinacolada this traditional puerto rican drink is made out of coconut cream coconut milk pineapple juice and can be spiked with rum which is then blended or shaken with crushed ice if you go to old san juan you can actually stop by what is considered to be the birthplace of pinacolada the restaurant called barachina but i can assure you that many places like contraviento and marea also serve a deliciously refreshing pina colada and even experiment with other ingredients to amplify the experience like adding coconut flakes and even by garnishing it with a likable gummy shark now before jumping into the other foods you must eat in puerto rico please take a moment to smash that like button if you're enjoying this video and found it helpful also subscribe to the channel if you'd like to see more videos that will help you explore the common and uncommon parts of puerto rico if you want to eat any of the foods that i've talked about in this video make sure to check out the description below where i've placed the coordinates of the businesses where you can get them also if you're like me and you love sweets make sure to leave some room for dessert and stick around to the end of the video for the last spot on this list now going back to the countdown to get the food that occupies the number five spot on this list we head over to lote bentitres located in the heart of santorse lota ventitres is a gastronomical park with a variety of food options but today we're going straight to el cuchifrito which serves some seriously delicious mofongos mofongos are usually made by frying and mashing green plantains with garlic and other ingredients using a traditional wooden mortar and pastel called pilon mofongo can be eaten by itself or it can be filled with many types of protein such as chicken fried meat fish and octopus other types of mofongo can be made by combining green plantains with ripe plantains and yucca to get to the food that occupies the sixth spot on this list we head over to the famous babos cafe babos is conveniently located about a five minute drive away from puerto rico's main airport and it's extremely close to many of the car rental companies so if you're stuck waiting to receive or hand in your rental car make sure to stop by people's and get some delicious pernil pernil it's a traditional way of roasting pork shoulder it's usually marinated overnight with several herbs and spices called adobo and it is then slow roasted to perfection pernil is most popular during christmas time when it is served with other authentic puerto rican foods but in this case i'm pairing it with the number seven on this list the delicious yucca yucca also known as cassava is a root vegetable which is usually prepared by cutting boiling and mixing it with olive oil spices garlic and onions yucca is extremely versatile it can also be fried or mashed to complement any dish and to top it all off we add the number eight on this list the delicious amarillitos amarillitos are easily made by frying ripe plantains and are perfect for adding sweetness to any dish this combination of pernil yuca and amarillitos is a fantastic example of the influence that our african taino and spanish ancestors cooking styles had on what today is our authentic creole cuisine if you think you've had a good cup of coffee but haven't tasted and smelled the delicious aroma of puerto rican coffee then you seriously need to think again in the 19th century puerto rico was one of the largest exporters of coffee on the planet unfortunately for many reasons the coffee industry in the island dwindled in size but recently there has been a resurgence of interest in coffee and a strong effort by both young and old farmers to rejuvenate and reinvent the coffee industry in puerto rico in fact the island's tropical climate and high altitude mountains allow for the growth of beans used to produce coffee that is both complex and rich in flavor it is for this reason that puerto rican coffee holds the ninth spot on this list if you want a guaranteed spot that sells coffee made with a special blend of a hundred percent locally grown beans you need to head over to tostado at their locations in calla loisa or callecondado and while you're there make sure to check out their absolutely mouth-watering brunch options such as their savory breakfast burger and their unique pumpkin pancakes so next time you visit puerto rico help the coffee industry skip the starbucks frappuccino and get yourself a cup of a hundred percent locally grown specialty coffee by local farmers and last but definitely not least we head over to the bakery called ornofino to get the authentic puerto rican pastry called casitos quesitos are made by stuffing puff pastry dough with cream cheese which is then baked to delicious perfection and glazed with honey and sugar other variations of cacito are also stuffed both with cream cheese and delicious guava paste however in this case we visited ornofino specifically to try their famous 24 inch extra large quesitos as you might have imagined we paired this sweet treat with some delicious locally grown coffee and i have to say we were definitely not disappointed and that wraps up my list of the top 10 foods you must eat when visiting puerto rico however this is just a tip of the extensive repertoire of delicious authentic puerto rican foods similar to other countries there are even special dishes that are only served at specific times of the year like christmas or dishes that you can only find if you visit specific municipalities or regions within puerto rico like the city in the municipality of arecibo so if you'd like to see a part two of this video make sure to leave a comment below and that's it thank you guys for sticking around till the end of the video if you found this video helpful make sure to like share and subscribe to the channel also if you like this video there's a good chance that you might also like these two videos on my channel so make sure to check them out thank you so much for watching and see you in the next one [Music] you

Channel: Brik's Travel Guides

Views: 189,728

Keywords: Puerto Rico, puerto rico travel guide, puerto rico guide, puerto rican food, piñones, pinones, bacalaitos, bacalao, empanadilla, empanada, alcapurria, alcapurrias, mofongo, quesito, puerto rican coffee, cafe de puerto rico, puertorrican food

Id: tfdlPvq9MO4

Length: 12min 30sec (750 seconds)

Published: Tue Nov 16 2021