Chilean specialty cooks in the ground

This week we are visiting Chile and preparing one of the country's most popular dishes, Curanto.

This dish is very similar to a clam bake. It can be cooked either in a hole in the ground or in a regular oven. This recipe is for a traditional Curanto en Hoyo (which is cooked in a hole in the ground).

• CURANTO EN HOYO

This recipe should serve about 10 people.

Preparation

First you will have to dig a hole in the ground about 4 feet deep. Fill the hole with firewood and light it. After the wood has burned down into hot coals, cover the coals with large stones. Wait until the stones are very hot. Cover the hot stones with several sheets of wet newspaper. Cover the newspaper with fresh seaweed, which you can request wherever you buy seafood. Then you will begin to layer the Curanto ingredients on the seaweed, beginning with the ones that take the longest to cook.

Ingredients

3 pounds mussels

3 pounds clams

2 or 3 whole crabs

2 whole lobsters (about 4 pounds)

3 pounds shell-on shrimp

2 pounds chorizo

5 pounds boiled potatoes

10 ears of corn

2 pounds pork shoulder, cut into large chunks

1 large chicken, cut into pieces

3 tablespoons paprika

2 tablespoons cumin

2 cups chopped bell pepper

4 cups chopped onion

Putting it together

Layer all meats and vegetables over the seaweed in your prepared hole and sprinkle with spices. Cover completely with more seaweed. Cover seaweed completely with several more sheets of wet newspaper. Let the packet cook for about an hour, or until the pork and chicken are thoroughly cooked.

Then all that's left to do is to open your packet, grab you favorite drink and give me a call, so we can enjoy this delicious food.

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Next week, we will visit Uruguay to prepare a very traditional dish called Chivitos.

Antonio Villagomez is head chef and owner of Cilantro's restaurant and catering in Yuba City. Contact him at 844-2111. His Web site is www.cilantros.us.