CubaPLUS Magazine

Flavors of Manzanillo: lisetas and something else...

By: Alina Veranes
Feb 03, 2023
Flavors of Manzanillo: lisetas and something else...

Called with love by its inhabitants Pearl of the Guacanayabo, for lying at the foot of the Gulf of the same name in the southeast of Cuba, Manzanillo is a city of simple, cheerful people and full of traditions, among which the culinary ones stand out, in a mixture that combines dishes of marine origin with those from inland, in an organic and natural way.

FIL12157-manzanillo.jpgWhile grandparents and some connoisseurs today long for old traditional dishes, forgotten by modern life or by the vicissitudes of a blocked economy, today's manzanilleros claim not to have forgotten the essentials and find a way to prepare their main delicacies. So the lisetas continue to be a star dish, even with popularity above prawns or shrimp and some say greater than lobster, are the famous fried lisetas.

It is a fish only known in that area of Cuba, of a natural silver color, elongated and cylindrical in shape, with an exquisite flavor when passed through boiling oil, when it then looks golden and is perceived as a juicy mass and toasted at the same time. It is an emblem of popular gastronomy in that seafaring city, and there are those who believe that it can be placed among the delicacies of gourmet cuisine anywhere in the world.

It would be necessary to see if the manzanilleros exaggerate. For now I tell you that the fried lisetas are delicious for their crunchy texture and special flavor, accompanied by ice cold beer. They say that the first successful fried lisetas business was founded by the Asturian emigrant, a native of Oviedo, Juan González Sánchez, in the second half of the 19th century, when he settled and lived forever in the Manzanillo port.

Shrimp cocktails, with lemon, mayonnaise sauce or the so-called Russian sauce, or such spicy prawns and some tomato sauce, are also among the most delicate dishes of Manzanillo's gastronomy. In addition, the medium-sized shrimp or prawns are made in well-seasoned and shelled rice, which tastes wonderful with salad and fried green plantains. And there are ingredients of combinations such as paella, less prepared these days, but well known and with many variants.

Flavors of Manzanillo: lisetas and something else...Carts or timbiriches that sell oysters in cocktails or spicy salads, which sometimes carry clams or tortoiseshell eggs, are quite traditional and sought after in the city of Manzanillo. They are attributed infallible aphrodisiac properties or to sharpen intelligence or cacumen, in popular slang. Among the most appreciated sweets in that maritime city are currants in syrup, a tradition that is not known to exist in another corner of Cuba, made from a strawberry that the natives also like to eat raw, ripe and with a pinch of salt. . They are also very delicious desserts such as rice pudding, sweet potato and "criollo masapán" based on sweet potato and eggs, syrupy plums, and flans garnished with pineapple or bananas, fruit, majarete and soft dulce de leche (cut or cream).

But the people of Manzanillo, like those of the rest of the Island, have roast pork or fried dough from that animal as their favorite meat, a delicacy reserved for their most important festivities. They usually accompany it with cassava with seasoning or mojo, red beans congrí and wet cassava, to neutralize the fat of the indispensable mammal. Oh, and the inevitable seasonal salad. Not only canned, bottled or dispensed beer enlivens the celebrations.

For a long time, the legendary local Pinilla rum cannot be missing, with a gold medal at the Paris Fair in 1925. A true jewel of the master rum makers of that city and of Cuba.

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