Cuban Cooking & Rhythm |
Despite a tumultuous recent history marked by scarcity, poverty and isolation, Cuban food and music capture the happy, open and enduring spirit of the people. Recent policy changes by United States President Barack Obama suggest a thawing of relations that may spark greater interest in Cuban culture.
Two-time Grammy nominated band Tiempo Libre welcomes the opportunity to showcase the beauty of their native country through their infectious and joyous performances of timba, which combines sultry rhythms of son with high-voltage Latin Jazz.
The group’s latest album, "Bach in Havana"
fuses the classical Baroque compositions of Johann Sebastian Bach with Afro-Cuban rhythm and sensibilities. For the seven classically trained members of Tiempo Libre, this marriage mirrors their double lives as rebellious students at La ENA, the Julliard of Cuba, studying Bach by day and plunging into the forbidden fruits of tambores, the music of Afro-Cuban religious ceremonies, and rumba by night.
“Well, you have to understand that most Afro-Cuban music comes from a unique mix of African and European cultures and then mixed with elements that are urban and rural,” explains Jorge Gomez, the group’s founder and musical arranger.
Music is not the only place where these medleys of stylistic and cultural influences appear.
“And the same is true for the food! So, for instance, quimbombo is an amazing stew from the African tradition, made with okra, meats, tomatoes and onions. Lechon asado, roast pork, comes from the countryside and is frequently served with rice, beans, yuca and boniato, a Cuban sweet potato. This is the real food of the guajiros, people from the more rural areas of Cuba. On weekends, my family would go over to my father’s father’s house. My grandfather, like many Cubans, came from Spain. So, our typical meal would be tortilla espanola, kind of a frittata made with lots of eggs, chorizo, potatoes and onion.”
So the cuisine and music of Cuba is inclusive since it captures the blended beauty of Cuban culture.
“Rumba comes from the African traditions brought by slaves. The music called son combines European sonorities with African rhythms. Timba is kind of like ‘the kitchen sink’ based on son, rumba, Latin jazz, and then throwing in anything musically spicy that suits your taste.”
Good Company Needs Good Food and Music
Food and music are natural ambassadors for culture because they tap into a universal appreciation for pleasure, but also capture local customs and practices.
“Virtually every culture has foods and forms of music that are almost iconic like pasta and opera for Italians; curry or ragas for Indians; rock-and-roll and hot dogs for Americans; cha-cha-cha and puerco asado in Cuba,” says Gomez.
Cubans revere food because cooking and eating allow them to be social and festive with family and friends. Sociability is a major trait among Cubans. It gave them collective strength to endure political repression and economic deprivation. Cooking and eating together helped them look past the bitterness of what they lacked to find hope that they would someday rise together.
“Cubans are very social people. We do most things in groups, with family, with friends,” describes Gomez. “The whole American idea of personal space feels alien to us.”
“So, food is a focal point for that sociability. Families and friends gather for meals, for holidays, for special moments—all centered around food.”
And where there is food, there is usually music. Upbeat, energetic and festive, Cuban music is a cathartic foil for much of the pathos on the island.
“In Cuba, there is little else to sustain you but friendship, family and the things you do together like dance, play music, play dominos, tell stories,” shares Gomez. “Amid so much deprivation, it would be easy to allow yourself to get down. But, when you are playing music—music for dancing—it's almost impossible to be sad.”
An Eclectic Cuisine Based on Tradition
African and European roots inspire a regionally diverse Cuban cuisine that humbly respects the native fruits, root vegetables and livestock on the island. According to Gomez, there is a definite emphasis on different cultures between different neighborhoods and regions.
“You might eat quimbombo, an African okra-based stew; or you might eat ajiaco, a kind of thick soup of all the root vegetables with lots of meat that comes from the countryside; or you might eat caldo gallego, a Spanish soup with white beans and chorizo.”
“In Cuba, we eat tamales, but in each region, they have different names and different ways of cooking. From region to region there are dulces tipicos, [which are] sweets [or] desserts that are specific to each region.”
Authentic Cuban cuisine stays close to the traditions, which build on staple ingredients such as white rice, black beans, onion, garlic, lime, bay leaf, oregano and salt. Treated as base or aromatic ingredients in the United States, many Cubans considered these items a luxury.
“In Cuba, that combination of ingredients would have seemed like a banquet to me!” Gomez emphasizes.
Though there are many wonderful Cuban restaurants and markets in the group’s adopted home of Miami, Florida, as well as other regions of the United States, nothing feels as comforting and nostalgic as the flavors of their early childhood.
For Gomez, that might include comida criolla, a dish made of pork tenderloin with rice and black beans. Hilario Bell remembers his father’s masterful lamb dishes and growing up near all the pigs, sheep and chickens roaming Santiago de Cuba on the far eastern side of the island. Tebelio “Tony” Fonte fondly reminisces about the strawberry, lemon and chocolate pastries his mother made in weekly batches. Carrying on the tradition, he admits to having the group’s sweet tooth.
To this day, no one makes rice pudding like Joaquin “El Kid” Diaz’s grandmother. Leandro Gonzalez describes his grandmother’s flan as a bite of magic. Cristobal Ferrer Garcia also has a soft spot for his grandmother’s flan, though her variation includes calabaza, which is akin to pumpkin. Luis “Rosca” Beltran Castillo still loves the garlic chicken his grandmother roasted every week with all the ingredients from her backyard.
“When I think of authentic Cuban food, I think of very traditional cooking,” says Gomez.
“At least in the places where I eat, there is not a lot of innovation and risk-taking going on, but that’s fine with me. Cuban food connects me back to my childhood in Cuba—the place I left and long for. So, the more traditional, the better!”
Closer to the Land, More Appreciative of the Ingredients
Even with all the fond memories from their early childhood, the group grew up during a tumultuous time known as the Special Period after the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union. With the fall of their Communist ally, Cuba lost approximately 80 percent of its imports and exports while gross domestic product dropped 34 percent. Food rations favored the privileged and wealthy over the poor.
“Growing up in Cuba during the Special Period, there was no food,” recalls Gomez.
“You were lucky to have enough rations of rice—and maybe a few green tomatoes to add to it—to keep you going for weeks at a time. For Cubans, any food that is tasty and fills you up is comfort food.”
Poverty and scarcity drove families to be creative in extending the limited ingredients they had. As a result, Cubans have an earnest appreciation and respect for their food.
“I suppose it made me much less picky. It made me appreciate the preciousness of food in its most basic form. There are lots of days even now when my lunch will be a plate of white rice with tomatoes and a little dribbling of oil and vinegar. How delicious! Late at night, sometimes a bowl of black beans with salt and lime seems to me like the most exquisite meal in the world.”
The group, named “Best Latin Band 2008” by Miami New Times, stays humble even with fans and concerts all over the world because of these experiences. Their memories of food from their native country are warm and nostalgic not because of abundance or bounty, but because of the rich beauty in simple pleasures.
“Don't get me wrong, I love eating all sorts of delicious meals all over the world,” Gomez stresses. “But I am also perfectly happy eating a ripe mango or a handful of roasted peanuts.”
Prior to the Special Period, Cuba had one of the most industrial, machine-based agriculture industries in the world. Pesticide use was very heavy. However, concern about food shortages led to more sustainable agricultural policies. Today, 80 percent of Cuban produce is organic. Bio-fertilizers and bio-pesticides have replaced chemicals and the farming industry is prospering.
“[Cuba] is an island only 800 miles long. So wherever the food is grown, it doesn't have far to go to get to the table,” explains Gomez. “It's much more organic there.”
“There is very little of what we would recognize as agriculture here in the U.S. No agribusiness. In many places, fields are still plowed by animals and fertilized by them too!”
Like so many impoverished cultures, Cubans have a deep connection with their land as well as much greater respect for it and the food it provides.
Cooking, Eating and Dancing with Tiempo Libre
Tiempo Libre hopes Cuban food and music will bring the U.S. and Cuba closer after decades of estrangement. Gomez describes their music as “rich, sweet, intense and complex like Cuban coffee or a mojito.”
“There is nothing like tasting and enjoying a new food or music from another country to make you curious to know more about the culture—to open you to new ways of life, ways of looking at the world.”
“Hopefully, through music and food, a new openness can be created between these two incredible cultures getting to know each other again after a long time apart.”
Tiempo Libre hopes their contagious tunes inspire greater interest in Cuban culture. Most importantly, they want to spread joy and happiness, which are at the core of Cuban people.
“Our music is written and played to inspire people to let go of their cares, their inhibitions, and to enjoy life!” exclaims Gomez.
For a complete taste of Cuba, Gomez recommends pairing certain tracks from Tiempo Libre’s recently released “Bach in Havana” with particular Cuban dishes.
“So, if you were going to listen to the ‘Gavotte,’ I associate that song more with the countryside and food from the earth such as lechon asado, or pork, with yuca or boniato, very typical Cuban root vegetables. You could eat that out on your patio, under palm trees.”
“But if you were going to listen to ‘Olas de Yemaya,’ that has to do with the sea and I would pair that with pargo frito entero, or whole fried snapper, served with lots and lots of fresh lime, white rice and black beans.”
“Either way, I would eat it at night, by candlelight, to give that toque barrocco, a little Baroque touch.”
Gomez suggests “Olas de Yemaya” would pair well with a main course because its gentle complexity compliments, and does not distract from, the food. Yemaya is the deity of the sea in the Afro-Cuban religion Santeria, so a seafood dish would fit perfectly.
“A wonderful light lobster dish, or shrimp a la parilla, or from the grill, with fresh avocado salad with some very ripe tomatoes would be incredible!”
To top off the entire meal, “Kyrie” would be an appropriate end for a Cuban feast, which would be the time for a glass of dark aged rum with a Cuban cigar. And what does Gomez believe listeners will understand after listening to the music?
“That dancing is the secret to a happy life!”
Better make that dancing, food and good company are the secrets to a happy life.
Listen to Tiempo Libre’s “Bach in Havana”.
Two-time Grammy nominated band Tiempo Libre welcomes the opportunity to showcase the beauty of their native country through their infectious and joyous performances of timba, which combines sultry rhythms of son with high-voltage Latin Jazz.
The group’s latest album, "Bach in Havana"
fuses the classical Baroque compositions of Johann Sebastian Bach with Afro-Cuban rhythm and sensibilities. For the seven classically trained members of Tiempo Libre, this marriage mirrors their double lives as rebellious students at La ENA, the Julliard of Cuba, studying Bach by day and plunging into the forbidden fruits of tambores, the music of Afro-Cuban religious ceremonies, and rumba by night.“Well, you have to understand that most Afro-Cuban music comes from a unique mix of African and European cultures and then mixed with elements that are urban and rural,” explains Jorge Gomez, the group’s founder and musical arranger.
Music is not the only place where these medleys of stylistic and cultural influences appear.
“And the same is true for the food! So, for instance, quimbombo is an amazing stew from the African tradition, made with okra, meats, tomatoes and onions. Lechon asado, roast pork, comes from the countryside and is frequently served with rice, beans, yuca and boniato, a Cuban sweet potato. This is the real food of the guajiros, people from the more rural areas of Cuba. On weekends, my family would go over to my father’s father’s house. My grandfather, like many Cubans, came from Spain. So, our typical meal would be tortilla espanola, kind of a frittata made with lots of eggs, chorizo, potatoes and onion.”
So the cuisine and music of Cuba is inclusive since it captures the blended beauty of Cuban culture.
“Rumba comes from the African traditions brought by slaves. The music called son combines European sonorities with African rhythms. Timba is kind of like ‘the kitchen sink’ based on son, rumba, Latin jazz, and then throwing in anything musically spicy that suits your taste.”
Good Company Needs Good Food and Music
Food and music are natural ambassadors for culture because they tap into a universal appreciation for pleasure, but also capture local customs and practices.
“Virtually every culture has foods and forms of music that are almost iconic like pasta and opera for Italians; curry or ragas for Indians; rock-and-roll and hot dogs for Americans; cha-cha-cha and puerco asado in Cuba,” says Gomez.
Cubans revere food because cooking and eating allow them to be social and festive with family and friends. Sociability is a major trait among Cubans. It gave them collective strength to endure political repression and economic deprivation. Cooking and eating together helped them look past the bitterness of what they lacked to find hope that they would someday rise together.
“Cubans are very social people. We do most things in groups, with family, with friends,” describes Gomez. “The whole American idea of personal space feels alien to us.”
“So, food is a focal point for that sociability. Families and friends gather for meals, for holidays, for special moments—all centered around food.”
And where there is food, there is usually music. Upbeat, energetic and festive, Cuban music is a cathartic foil for much of the pathos on the island.
“In Cuba, there is little else to sustain you but friendship, family and the things you do together like dance, play music, play dominos, tell stories,” shares Gomez. “Amid so much deprivation, it would be easy to allow yourself to get down. But, when you are playing music—music for dancing—it's almost impossible to be sad.”
An Eclectic Cuisine Based on Tradition
African and European roots inspire a regionally diverse Cuban cuisine that humbly respects the native fruits, root vegetables and livestock on the island. According to Gomez, there is a definite emphasis on different cultures between different neighborhoods and regions.
“You might eat quimbombo, an African okra-based stew; or you might eat ajiaco, a kind of thick soup of all the root vegetables with lots of meat that comes from the countryside; or you might eat caldo gallego, a Spanish soup with white beans and chorizo.”
“In Cuba, we eat tamales, but in each region, they have different names and different ways of cooking. From region to region there are dulces tipicos, [which are] sweets [or] desserts that are specific to each region.”
Authentic Cuban cuisine stays close to the traditions, which build on staple ingredients such as white rice, black beans, onion, garlic, lime, bay leaf, oregano and salt. Treated as base or aromatic ingredients in the United States, many Cubans considered these items a luxury.
“In Cuba, that combination of ingredients would have seemed like a banquet to me!” Gomez emphasizes.
Though there are many wonderful Cuban restaurants and markets in the group’s adopted home of Miami, Florida, as well as other regions of the United States, nothing feels as comforting and nostalgic as the flavors of their early childhood.
For Gomez, that might include comida criolla, a dish made of pork tenderloin with rice and black beans. Hilario Bell remembers his father’s masterful lamb dishes and growing up near all the pigs, sheep and chickens roaming Santiago de Cuba on the far eastern side of the island. Tebelio “Tony” Fonte fondly reminisces about the strawberry, lemon and chocolate pastries his mother made in weekly batches. Carrying on the tradition, he admits to having the group’s sweet tooth.
To this day, no one makes rice pudding like Joaquin “El Kid” Diaz’s grandmother. Leandro Gonzalez describes his grandmother’s flan as a bite of magic. Cristobal Ferrer Garcia also has a soft spot for his grandmother’s flan, though her variation includes calabaza, which is akin to pumpkin. Luis “Rosca” Beltran Castillo still loves the garlic chicken his grandmother roasted every week with all the ingredients from her backyard.
“When I think of authentic Cuban food, I think of very traditional cooking,” says Gomez.
“At least in the places where I eat, there is not a lot of innovation and risk-taking going on, but that’s fine with me. Cuban food connects me back to my childhood in Cuba—the place I left and long for. So, the more traditional, the better!”
Closer to the Land, More Appreciative of the Ingredients
Even with all the fond memories from their early childhood, the group grew up during a tumultuous time known as the Special Period after the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union. With the fall of their Communist ally, Cuba lost approximately 80 percent of its imports and exports while gross domestic product dropped 34 percent. Food rations favored the privileged and wealthy over the poor.
“Growing up in Cuba during the Special Period, there was no food,” recalls Gomez.
“You were lucky to have enough rations of rice—and maybe a few green tomatoes to add to it—to keep you going for weeks at a time. For Cubans, any food that is tasty and fills you up is comfort food.”
Poverty and scarcity drove families to be creative in extending the limited ingredients they had. As a result, Cubans have an earnest appreciation and respect for their food.
“I suppose it made me much less picky. It made me appreciate the preciousness of food in its most basic form. There are lots of days even now when my lunch will be a plate of white rice with tomatoes and a little dribbling of oil and vinegar. How delicious! Late at night, sometimes a bowl of black beans with salt and lime seems to me like the most exquisite meal in the world.”
The group, named “Best Latin Band 2008” by Miami New Times, stays humble even with fans and concerts all over the world because of these experiences. Their memories of food from their native country are warm and nostalgic not because of abundance or bounty, but because of the rich beauty in simple pleasures.
“Don't get me wrong, I love eating all sorts of delicious meals all over the world,” Gomez stresses. “But I am also perfectly happy eating a ripe mango or a handful of roasted peanuts.”
Prior to the Special Period, Cuba had one of the most industrial, machine-based agriculture industries in the world. Pesticide use was very heavy. However, concern about food shortages led to more sustainable agricultural policies. Today, 80 percent of Cuban produce is organic. Bio-fertilizers and bio-pesticides have replaced chemicals and the farming industry is prospering.
“[Cuba] is an island only 800 miles long. So wherever the food is grown, it doesn't have far to go to get to the table,” explains Gomez. “It's much more organic there.”
“There is very little of what we would recognize as agriculture here in the U.S. No agribusiness. In many places, fields are still plowed by animals and fertilized by them too!”
Like so many impoverished cultures, Cubans have a deep connection with their land as well as much greater respect for it and the food it provides.
Cooking, Eating and Dancing with Tiempo Libre
Tiempo Libre hopes Cuban food and music will bring the U.S. and Cuba closer after decades of estrangement. Gomez describes their music as “rich, sweet, intense and complex like Cuban coffee or a mojito.”
“There is nothing like tasting and enjoying a new food or music from another country to make you curious to know more about the culture—to open you to new ways of life, ways of looking at the world.”
“Hopefully, through music and food, a new openness can be created between these two incredible cultures getting to know each other again after a long time apart.”
Tiempo Libre hopes their contagious tunes inspire greater interest in Cuban culture. Most importantly, they want to spread joy and happiness, which are at the core of Cuban people.
“Our music is written and played to inspire people to let go of their cares, their inhibitions, and to enjoy life!” exclaims Gomez.
For a complete taste of Cuba, Gomez recommends pairing certain tracks from Tiempo Libre’s recently released “Bach in Havana” with particular Cuban dishes.
“So, if you were going to listen to the ‘Gavotte,’ I associate that song more with the countryside and food from the earth such as lechon asado, or pork, with yuca or boniato, very typical Cuban root vegetables. You could eat that out on your patio, under palm trees.”
“But if you were going to listen to ‘Olas de Yemaya,’ that has to do with the sea and I would pair that with pargo frito entero, or whole fried snapper, served with lots and lots of fresh lime, white rice and black beans.”
“Either way, I would eat it at night, by candlelight, to give that toque barrocco, a little Baroque touch.”
Gomez suggests “Olas de Yemaya” would pair well with a main course because its gentle complexity compliments, and does not distract from, the food. Yemaya is the deity of the sea in the Afro-Cuban religion Santeria, so a seafood dish would fit perfectly.
“A wonderful light lobster dish, or shrimp a la parilla, or from the grill, with fresh avocado salad with some very ripe tomatoes would be incredible!”
To top off the entire meal, “Kyrie” would be an appropriate end for a Cuban feast, which would be the time for a glass of dark aged rum with a Cuban cigar. And what does Gomez believe listeners will understand after listening to the music?
“That dancing is the secret to a happy life!”
Better make that dancing, food and good company are the secrets to a happy life.
Listen to Tiempo Libre’s “Bach in Havana”.
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