Haitian Spaghetti
In the midst of mindless online surfing I get the most interesting text from a friend: “Hey, the next time you make Haitian spaghetti, can you video it and send it to me, please? Mine's never tastes as good as yours.”. My first thought was, how flattering. I was indeed flattered by the notion that someone could think my cooking was good. In all honesty, isn’t that what we all want? To have what we offer people be loved and accepted. Well I assured my friend I would help her out in mastering the art of Haitian spaghetti.
Haitian spaghetti used to be a mystery for me too in what seems like a lifetime ago. Once I had the job of feeding someone (firstborn circa 2003) I decided to master it, besides its an easy go to when you don't have the time or energy for the traditional Haitian meal. For as long as I can remember, spaghetti has been a staple food in my Haitian household. Before I started making my own pasta, (YES!, I make my own, that will be discussed in a different post), I would always pick up at minimum 2 boxes for my pantry at the grocery. It is the one thing I refused to run out of.
I will be so bold and claim this dish as a Haitian comfort food. It is what grilled cheese is to Americans. It is what Gumbo is to natives of Louisiana. I’ve been asked many times by my American friends, why the spaghetti gets the distinction of being Haitian. If you have ever met a Haitian person in your life you know that they can be, what we like to say in the hip hop culture “extra”. Well so is their cuisine. The combination of flavoring and technique utilized in our cuisine just adds something that is hard to explain, but its definitely there. Making it for your children is a rite of passage for a Haitian mom. Watching my kids master getting the noodles from the plate to their mouths without the customary unraveling from the fork is a pleasure to watch. It gives you the warmth of knowing you are giving them something good, something made with the love in your heart. The best thing about this dish is it has so many variations to it. Yours can be different and like anything you can add that special something that makes it yours.
RECIPE
1 Lb of Spaghetti
4 Hot dogs
½ cup of olive oil
4-5 cloves of garlic, roughly chopped
1chicken flavor Bouillon cube
2 tsp parsley, roughly chopped
1 tsp of Thyme
1 small tomato, cut in 4
½ cup of Ketchup
2 Tsp Mustard ½ cup of grated parmesan cheese
1 whole yellow onion, sliced in medium sized rings
In a large pot bring 4-6 quarts of water to boil, add salt to taste. I like to add about 1 tsp of olive oil to water to prevent sticking.
Add four hot dogs to the boiling pot. Remove them after 4 minutes of boiling and set aside to cool. Personally, I like my spaghetti "al dente", so I boil my spaghetti for about 9 minutes and then remove from the heat. If you want yours a little more tender you can cook for longer but be aware that you don't want to overcook because the drained pasta will be returning to the heat before its finished and when overcooked can take on a gummy consistency.
Remove one cup of the pasta water prior to draining and set to the side for later.
Drain your pasta and set aside.
Add ½ cup of olive oil to pot on medium heat and sauteé the garlic, thyme, bouillon cube, tomato and hot dogs until oil has yellow/orange color. Be sure to watch your heat so you don't burn garlic.
Return drained spaghetti to pot with sautéed ingredients. At this time add, ketchup,mustard,parsley,parmesan,onions and reserved pasta water and continue to sautée until all ingredients are mixed.
Alas, the final product. Your kitchen should smell really really good by this time.
Manjé! ( literally "EAT" in Kreyol)
Now, I want you to know that there are probably endless variations of Haitian spaghetti. Those variations can be based on regionality, preference or family traditions. This recipe is my personal favorite. I know people who like theirs with smoked herring , some prefer salted codfish or even ground beef. As we get further along I hope to be able to present more recipes that represent different aspects of Haitian culture. For now I encourage you to give it a try, heck, add something of your own and let me know about it. I'm always happy to learn.