Colombian Hogao (Tomato and Scallion Sofrito)
Tomato and scallion cooked down in a little oil with garlic until the tomato collapses into a sauce. Twelve minutes, six ingredients, and it goes on patacones, arepas, rice and into half the soups in Colombian cooking.
Servings: 2
Calories: 59kcal
Ingredients
- 2 tomatoes finely chopped
- 2 sprigs scallion cebolla larga, finely chopped
- ½ garlic clove finely chopped
- 1 pinch ground pepper optional
- 2 teaspoons oil
- Salt to taste
Instructions
- Heat the 2 teaspoons of oil in a pan over medium heat and add the tomato, the scallion, the garlic, the pepper if you are using it, and salt to taste.
- Cook for about 7 minutes, stirring constantly, until the scallion has gone soft and translucent and the tomato has collapsed into a sauce rather than staying in pieces.
- Serve with patacones or arepas.
Notes
Hogao is the base of Colombian cooking, the way a soffritto is the base of Italian. It goes on patacones and arepas, into beans, soups and rice, and beside almost anything grilled. Learning it is worth more than learning any single dish. Cook it until the tomato collapses. Seven minutes is the figure and the signal is better: the tomato should stop being pieces and become a loose sauce, and the scallion should be translucent. Taken off early it tastes of raw tomato, and that flavour carries into whatever it is stirred into. Cebolla larga, the long green scallion, is what this uses. Regular onion works too, which is what the recipe's note means, and gives a sweeter, rounder result. Many households use both. It keeps for several days in the fridge and is better on the second day, so it is worth making more than two servings' worth while the pan is out.
Nutrition
Calories: 59kcal | Carbohydrates: 5g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Trans Fat: 1g | Sodium: 1169mg | Potassium: 298mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 1035IU | Vitamin C: 17mg | Calcium: 15mg | Iron: 1mg