Wonder Paste

Sounds like Shake n’ Bake, right? There has got to be some authentic name for the magic, flavor paste I’m about to introduce you to, but I’d prefer to liken it to that time saving, multi-meat covering, invention of the 1960’s.

Like Shake n’ Bake, Wonder Paste is a blunt culinary tool that can dramatically alter food stuffs with very little effort or skill. It also saves time, has multiple uses and tastes good with chicken or pork-- or tofu, or rice or veggies or whatever.

Here’s what you have to do: Put about 50 cloves of garlic in a blender (Do yourself a favor and buy the pre-peeled stuff), add 1 cilantro and 1 parsley bunch (with the bottom half of the stems removed), toss in a 1 ½ teaspoons of salt, add ½ cup of olive oil, and blend. If your blender is kinda crap like mine, you will have to jab at the mixture to keep it moving while the blender stutters and whirls. If you’re like me, you’re into mad scientist stuff and won’t mind the minute danger one bit.

The result should be a pesto-like paste that drags people to your kitchen by their noses. The closest culinary cousin to Wonder Paste is Puerto Rican sofrito. Their paste of garlic, peppers and onions is often used in soups, rice and bean dishes, and Wonder Paste can be used the same way.

Black Beans: Add 1 ½ tablespoons to a can of black beans with 1/3 cup of water and simmer.

Rice: Add 1 tablespoon for every cup of uncooked rice-- otherwise following cooking instructions listed on packaging.

Soup: Add ½ tablespoon for every cup of broth then add whatever meat or vegetables you like.

This is my first week with Wonder Paste, but I’m sure there is a infinite number of uses.

Keep in mind that the garlic in Wonder Paste needs to cook some before you can get an accurate flavor profile of your dish, so give it a few minutes before you begin to adjust seasons.

Wonder Paste freezes wonderfully.

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